Whatever it takes

Who won't TO take an endorsement from?

Back in ‘84 Orange Bowl, Tom Osborne’s Nebraska football team- one of the greatest in history – with the Triplets – decided to trade jerseys on a number of players to confuse Miami. The team with Rozier, Gill and Fryer, tried for an edge with a gimmick like switching names and numbers. In other words, Osborne was willing to try anything to win. (And don’t even get me started about LP in the ’96 Fiesta Bowl…)

Well, here we are twenty-two years later, and TO is doing it again. A close race has turned into a dead heat. Now Osborne isn’t exactly known as a party guy -- he’s asking Democrats to cross over and vote for him. Nebraska’s senior US Senator endorses his opponent. He rarely makes an effort to help out fellow Republicans. Hal Daub, he ain’t. Yet who makes a trip in for him? House Speaker Denny Hastert, the second most partisan (behind Tom Delay) Republican in the country (Big money, names in bid for governor – OWH – 5/2/06). And one wonders what Hastert gained out of the trip?

And another kicker: Osborne is contributing a quarter of a million dollars to himself (Osborne helps fuel his own campaign – LJS – 5/2/06). With all the talk about Pete Ricketts spending on himself, it would be interesting to see how TO’s donation per his net-worth compares to Ricketts. (I wonder if I should hold my breath for that story…)

No, Tom Osborne hasn’t been afraid to go negative. He’s not afraid to spend the money. And he’ll bring in whoever can help him. He will try anything and do whatever it takes. What else can we expect this week? The sky’s the limit…