Big Dance + Big East = Big Dreams

by Jason Krivanek

March madness indeed. It’s been a month like no other so far for the Creighton basketball program, and the Jays haven’t even put their dancing shoes on yet.

In the span of two weeks, the Jays fought their way out of a hole to capture their first outright regular season Valley title since 2001. Then Creighton and their fans stormed through the field in St. Louis to bring home the Arch Madness trophy, with junior phenom Doug McDermott becoming the school’s all-time leading scorer along the way. Then to trump it all, news came down that Creighton has been invited and is expected to join the Big East Conference starting next season.

“I don’t think it’s been…

McDermott Carries Creighton to Valley Title

by Jason Krivanek

The stakes couldn’t have been higher. The atmosphere couldn’t have been more electric. And the Jays couldn’t have come up with a more clutch effort in clinching the regular season Missouri Valley Conference championship before an ecstatic sellout crowd last Saturday at the CenturyLink Center.
“Wow, that was an incredible performance by our team,” said Creighton head coach Greg McDermott. “I couldn’t be more proud of them. The way they have conducted themselves off the floor and in the locker room throughout the season in a championship fashion…you like to think good things will happen to guys who do the right things. So I’m proud that they are champions on the floor as well.”
He was also…

Jays Shaken by Recent Slump

by Jason Krivanek

Doug’s sigh said it all. The Jays were mired in a slump, and Illinois State had just come into the CenturyLink Center and handed Creighton another unexpected defeat. Suddenly the team that couldn’t miss couldn’t make ‘em. The team that many had pegged as perhaps the best in program history looked ordinary. The Jays looked lost and out of synch.

Junior all-American Doug McDermott left the podium after doing his best to answer the tough questions about his team’s lack of execution, he exhaled deep and hard. He looked like his dog got hit by a car, somebody stole his ice cream, and his girlfriend dumped him all on the same day. He looked like he needed a…

Preseason Favorites on a Roll

by Jason Krivanek

Seismic shifts in conference alignment have been rocking college athletics over the past few seasons, and it appears likely that Creighton could get caught up in the shift. Speculation has been running wild around the Creighton program in recent weeks regarding the Jays’ future conference plans.
Last month the presidents of the 7 Catholic colleges that compete only in basketball in the Big East Conference elected to defect and form their own league. DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, Seton Hall, St. Johns, and Villanova are expected to add either 3 or 5 teams to their ranks, with Creighton’s name high on the list of potential new members.

The timing has never been better for Creighton to…

Grounded by a Broken Heart

by Jason Krivanek

It was supposed to be one of the biggest nights of young Josh Jones’ life. Creighton’s senior guard was playing the best ball of his Bluejay career, and he was pumped to be returning to the Bob Devaney Center floor for one last game.

After all, this was the court where he became a legend. This was the place where some of his fondest memories had been made, where he and his Omaha Central teammates won 3 consecutive state championships with Jones leading the way.

But Creighton had lost both games played in Lincoln so far during Jones’ Bluejay career, and he hadn’t had much impact on the outcome. He couldn’t stand the thought of closing out…

Welcome Back Rex

by Mike Babcock

Rex Burkhead was running along the sideline. And Jeremiah Sirles wanted to know why.

“I’m going in,” Burkhead said.

“I was like, ‘Oh, well, let’s go then,’” said Sirles

The brief exchange between I-back and offensive tackle took place as the Nebraska football team prepared for the second half of the Iowa game on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

Sirles patted his teammate on the back.

“See you in the end zone.”

With just over 3 minutes remaining in the third quarter, they did. Burkhead ran 3 yards for a touchdown, the Huskers’ only touchdown, on the frigid afternoon.

But one touchdown and two Brett Maher field goals were sufficient for a 13-7…

Walk-ons Welcome

by Mike Babcock

Nebraska’s long-standing walk-on tradition can be traced to Bob Devaney’s tenure as coach. For all intents and purposes, it began then. But walk-ons became commonplace under Tom Osborne, as a hedge against the NCAA’s reduction in football-scholarship limits.

In 1974, Osborne’s second season as head coach, the NCAA maximum was reduced dramatically, from 45 to 30 annually – 33 percent. So he began encouraging walk-ons, even holding back scholarships to award to those who worked their way onto the two-deeps.

As a result, Nebraska gained a reputation for being a haven for walk-ons.

A national reputation.

In August of 1988, Malcolm Moran wrote in the New York Times: “The effort of the walkons provides the…