Nebraska’s latest late kickoff may feel unusual in the Central time zone, but the Huskers have done this kind of thing before. The last time they started a game at 10 p.m. Central, Tommie Frazier was a freshman and Kansas State was the opponent.
That one happened in Tokyo.
Saturday’s trip to Oregon does not require a flight across the Pacific, just a long wait before Nebraska and the Ducks finally get going. The game kicks at 10 p.m. back home, 8 p.m. in Eugene, and FOX will carry it. There’s plenty of time for anyone planning a full Saturday around it - maybe even enough to squeeze in a round of golf, a birthday celebration, dinner, a few household chores and a change of heart about the paint color.
Nebraska is treating the odd hour like a problem to manage, not a crisis. The Huskers saw this kind of game coming and know it comes with the territory. Matt Rhule said Monday, “I've never coached a game that late.”
So the schedule has shifted with it. Meetings and practices moved back two hours this week, with Nebraska meeting at 4 and taking the field at 6 before eating afterward. Players have been told to push bedtime a little later, and Rhule leaned on his staff’s knowledge of sleep and sports science while preparing for a game that could still be going deep into the night by the time it’s over.
That kind of adjustment is tame compared with Nebraska’s 1992 trip to Japan. According to an athletic-department travelogue preserved by HuskerMax, the Huskers and Kansas State took a 13-hour trip from Kansas City through Vancouver, traveled together, practiced at a baseball stadium, took in welcome events and toured sights before meeting in the Tokyo Dome.
The kickoff there was 1 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 6, in Japan - which meant 10 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 5, back in Nebraska. Same game, different day on the calendar.
Nebraska handled it just fine. The Huskers beat Kansas State 38-24 in the Coca-Cola Bowl to win the Big Eight championship and reach the Orange Bowl. Frazier threw a touchdown pass and ran for three scores, while Calvin Jones ran for 186 yards in front of about 50,000 fans.
That trip also capped a bounce-back stretch after Nebraska’s surprising 19-10 loss at Iowa State a few weeks earlier. The Huskers responded with a win at Oklahoma, then took care of Kansas State in Japan before riding home on the same plane with the Wildcats.
This week’s version is less exotic, but the challenge is the same: wait all day, then play when the body wants to be done. Nebraska is trying to bounce back from the disappointing Indiana finish, and Oregon has its own urgency.
Dana Holgorsen has seen the late-night routine before. He pointed to West Virginia’s bowl win over Arizona State to close the 2015 season, when fans on the East Coast were up deep into the night.
His advice was simple. “When it's time to get out there and play, go play.”
Andrew Marshall said coaches have offered suggestions and some players are staying up later. Some are also using afternoon naps to stay sharp. For him, the emotional side matters more than the clock.
“Football is football at the end of the day,” Marshall said.
Owen Stoudmire said he tries to get eight to nine hours of sleep, and Paul Mubenga said Nebraska’s job doesn’t change because kickoff is late. Rhule also likes that this trip comes before a bye, giving the team a chance to recover afterward. For now, though, he wants the adjustments to stay in the background.
The message is straightforward: handle the schedule, then handle the football.
“We just can't allow it to be a factor,” Rhule said.
In 1992, Nebraska had to go to Tokyo to play this late. This time, the Big Ten and television made the arrangement much easier.
Still, the hour is the hour.
See you at 10.
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