Vegas opened the Tigers as 1 point dogs at home for tonight's showdown. The public gave the Nubs a nice collective hand job and jerked the line to as high as 4. Experts from Scouts Inc. to ESPN's Tim Griffin to Dr. Saturday are taking the Huskers in the 'Zou. In a game that is almost universally projected to be close, we can forgive a certain amount of disrespect, but a near consensus? Has Mizzou not won 23 of 27 at home? Have the Tigers not beaten Nebraska soundly the past three times the Huskers traveled to CoMo? Has Nebraska not lost seven straight and 14 of last 15 on the road vs ranked opponents? Why don't more pundits like the Thursday night home underdog here? Dignified anger after the jump.

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Got this in an email from Mizzourah reader, Bobby, who I usually shoot an email back-and-forth with every couple of weeks.

Im so fucking pumped for tonight I want to break my computer at work.

And I thought me not falling asleep until about 6a was extreme. Felt like Christmas morning when I was a kid, without dad pouring whiskey in his coffee.

Damn, I'm so scared of Nebraska after watching this kid throw. Nice arm, nice size. Might keep an eye on him for years to come.

Of course, the Nubs OOC opponents from '08 were a bit tougher than the panzee schedule they have this year with THREE SUNBELT TEAMS. San Jose State, VTech, W. Michigan, and New Mexico State all visited Lincoln before Mizzou's 52-17 thrashing in '08.

There are certain teams that I was taught to hate at birth; Cubs, Mets (remember, this was the early 80's), Packers, Vikings, Blackhawks, Red Wings, kU, and the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Most Husker fans were everything we weren't- arrogant and entitled, yet they had a team that won, mainly because they always found a way around suspending their own players. Mizzou fans were none of that. We were kind, got along with all, but our team sucked. We got screwed over time after time. We were basically what Iowa State is now. How could you hate Mizzou?

Times have changed. Mizzou is now the hunted, and have won the last two in this series. Many Nebraska fans are still an entitled bunch, yet bitter as hell. They believe they "dominated" VTech without scoring a touchdown. It's pathetic anymore, and listening to what many Husker fans think of themselves now reminds me of my dad when I was 17yrs old.

"Remember when I could throw harder, shoot better, and run faster than you? Yeah, I know that stopped when you were about 10, and you're 17 now, but remember those days? Let me go watch some of those home movies and I'll drink from my 'World's Greatest Dad' mug. It validates everything."

Now, to this game.

Mizzou also has a faster defense than the Huskers have seen. Sure, VTech was pretty good, but overall, the Tigers have more speed. Can the Husker OLine go from being able to block Johnny McPussy from University of Louisiana-Insert City to going against either of the Agent Smiths, Coulter, the hill known as Terrell Resonno, or Jaron Baston who has the motor of a six year old on Red Bull? Throw in a blitz from Sean Weatherspoon, Luke Lambert, and Will Ebner, who is there to kill you, or Andrew Gachkar. The Husker OL was tested by Jason Worlids of VT, and he got some pressure on Lee. The Huskers haven't seen a Tiger team with this kind of speed on D. Ever.

There are so many variables in this game, and I don't see how any of them are anti-Mizzou. Nebraska is somehow favored by 3.5-4pts in a game on the road against a team that they've been smoked by the last two games, haven't won in that stadium since '01, and the dog has looked very good against every team it's faced. Mizzou must get it into the endzone instead of having to use Grant Ressel to kick FGs, even though he's been automatic. Nebraska has beat nobody. Mizzou has won on the road, a neutral site, and a pair at home. If Blaine Gabbert does what he's done in all four of his games, this will be a Tiger victory, 35-17. Derrick Washington will get back to being himself. The guy has a chip on his shoulder, as do all the Tigers after the disrespect they've seen from the polls, B12 writers, and hell, even the gamblers. Don't underestimate a pissed off team that is tired of hearing how good the Huskers have been. Remember 2003? How about 2005? 2007?

Remember two things: It's Gold Rush, so grab yourself a shirt or wear gold, and just as important, bring your Victory Whiskey. Rock M Nation will have a live thread, and feel free to blare this at your dickhead Nub co-worker.

Greetings from our Chicago Bureau. As the latest addition to this excellent blog, I'm looking forward to filling your hungry eyeballs with words. As you well know, MizzouRah didn't need a new writer - they've always done great work here. However, a change of pace back can be a sexy addition to one's running game (see: Kendial Lawrence), and I hope to add to an already great site.

Thanks to Big Head for his welcome post; it was nice to see he included a picture of me pre-gaming for the Jay Reatard show last fall. Its always nice to put a name with a face, right? Facts about myself:

Likes: Gambling, an aged port after a medium steak, women, alcohol, the Missouri Tigers, sleeping, good music, the world wide web, Christmas, bodies of water.

Dislikes: the kansas jayhawks, sooners, huskers, celebrity culture, terrorists, losing wagers, hangovers, having your soul raped in Arrowhead on 11/29/2008 by a white QB turned WR.

I know you probably want me to write more about myself, probably eight or nine more paragraphs, but enough about me! Let's talk gambling. This week's lines. Winning money. But first, there are experts who make weekly picks and have better winning percentages than I, so check out Phil Steele, Dr. Bob (if you're rich) and others before you throw your daughter's prom dress fund down on MizzouRah picks. Obviously. Picks after the jump.

I originally posted this on Mizzourah 1.0 as my preview to 2007's 41-6 destruction the last time the Huskers visited CoMo. Worked then. Let's see how much magic is left in this. And yes, much Victory Whiskey was consumed.

Husker Hate week culminates less than 48 hours from now. At this moment, I expect every Husker fan at this time to be boarded up in their cellar, basting them self in Natural Light with empty Skoal cans lying around and beating their wife in anticipation of this loss, all the while somehow not breaking the long ash on their Wildhorse cigarette that is tucked in their puckered chapped lips. Their messiah, Sam Keller, is not coming through on his promise (or at least their self-perceived promises that Husker fan put on him) to come through with the National Championship that they thought they’d have after drinking all the red Kool-aid ever made.

On Sunday morning, Husker fan will wake up, come out of their cellar and realize the destruction that was caused on their team by the Missouri offense and wonder how they can still get to a BCS game by finishing, at best, third in the Big 12 North. The polls will come out across the nation, and two hours later via wiretap, Scottsbluff will receive the news that the Huskers dropped out of the poll. Sadness will ensue and it will be time for Husker fan to step forth in church, stiff the offering plate, and say the blood of Christ is red because he was a Husker fan too, and the reason he took forever to die on the cross was because he was tough and coached by Tom Osborne. Sunday afternoon will come, and Husker fan will root not for one team, but every Husker to win, which in Husker fan’s mind is possible. A bruised and beaten wife will step into the living room to receive another beating. Not because her husband’s red Husker shirt has turned a bit pink from the wash, but because the stinging of yet another loss hurts a little more because it was a Big 12 North loss. Husker fan is bound and determined to keep a marker of the pain on his wife. Her left eye blackened by a swift right, she hold up a bag of frozen corn, which ironically should be the nickname of Nebraska’s defense.

After the swelling subsides in her left eye, Husker fan’s wife will grab him a lukewarm Natty Light and make a run to Bucky’s to get a fresh roll of Skoal. Pulling past the 50 year old homeless guy that is currently on his shift as the sandwich board for Doral cigarettes, she heads in for his ‘chaw’. But they are out. Tearing up, she shakes in fear as she grabs a roll of Grizzly. As she goes to the cashier, she notices the stack of Omaha World Heralds that happen to be at half price. She picks one up and her sobbing turns into full blown crying. Her tears dampen and run the newsprint. There is no denying that she now has to purchase it.

She drives away from Bucky’s crying and her vision blurred, she narrowly misses hitting the homeless again, as the changing of the guard from Doral to Decade sandwich boards is going on. As her rusted ’85 Trans Am pulls onto the oil soaked concrete pad of the carport next to their double-wide, she just stares at the newspaper, fearing the worst. She knows that Husker fan will be angry enough with the fact that his ‘chaw’ was out, but she can’t fathom the rage that will become Husker fan after he sees the final score again; Missouri 41 Nebraska 18. She knows that she’ll get another black eye after seeing that Chase Daniel threw for three TDs and over 275 yards. She knows that her cold sore covered lips will be busted after seeing Jeremy Maclin, T Rucker, and Tony Temple all have great games. She can’t imagine the burns that will be on her arms from the thought that the Missouri defense didn’t let the Huskers back in the game.

All the while, Big Head will be oozing of glee in St. Louis, still drunk off Victory Whiskey after the late night trip back from Columbia.