Nebrasketball: The Coolest Underdog in College Basketball

It’s that time of year, again. Just four or five more games left before the conference tourneys, then we hit full-blown Madness. Now is the time to scope out potential underdogs —teams with stories of hardship and drama that strike a nerve and get us on their side. But before you fall into a trap of hipster picks like Rhode Island or Creighton, the one team to watch out for is…Nebraska?

Sure, a deep run in the NCAA Tournament isn’t guaranteed, and that’s fine…but if you’re looking for someone to actually root for? The Huskers are super intriguing and have all the ingredients of a good underdog story. For starters, they’ve only made the NCAA tournament seven times, complete with ZERO wins.

Tim Miles, their head coach, has been a mix-and-match master this season. They had four players transfer out after finishing the season 12–19 last year, but saved the day with his relentless recruiting. He’s brought in two huge transfers (Isaac Copeland from Georgetown, and James Palmer Jr. from Miami) and four freshmen (one from Iceland) to patch all the holes left by this offseason’s mass exodus. Only one player (Glynn Watson Jr.) in their starting rotation held that position last year.

Since 2014, Miles’ second season as head coach, they haven’t finished higher than 6–12 in conference play. However, this year, a year where they were picked to finish №12 out of 14 teams by Sports Illustrated, they’re 11–5 in Big Ten play with a 20–9 overall record. Plus, some of their losses have even been impressive (ie: 73–72 loss vs. Kansas). They’re truly one of the most surprising teams in the country and an amazing TV product.

In addition to being a great watch on TV and an awesome story, the success of this season has also cooled Miles seat (a chair he rarely sits in during game action). And rightfully so, he’s already proven his worth as a recruiter, and with his role-filling act this year, he’s solidified at least another season or two in Lincoln. Plus, Miles has shown his ability to adapt to the times. He’s one of the most social media savvy head coaches, going as far as appointing his sports information director to tweet out his pep talks during games.

This is a team that’s cool, flat out. And in college basketball, that’s all you can really ask for. Jump on the bandwagon now, because this’ll be the year they finally snag a win in the Big Dance.