Before 1965, Nebraska never played a regular season game on a non-Saturday in what’s considered the modern era.
That season the Huskers played Oklahoma on Thanksgiving Day, and it was the beginning of what's become a tradition at NU. From 1965 to 1989 Nebraska played nine times on either Thanksgiving Day or Black Friday.
This was well before the days of major television contracts. In fact, teams were lucky to appear on TV once per season. Playing on Black Friday and Thanksgiving Day during that era gave NU a distinct advantage over other teams because of the additional television exposure they received. This run of games from 1965 to 1989 sparked what has become nearly a 30-year tradition for Nebraska - Black Friday football.
In 1990 the Huskers began a tradition that will run at least through 2019, but hopefully beyond that. It started with Oklahoma, then Colorado and now Iowa. Nebraska football on Black Friday has become synonymous just like the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys playing on Thanksgiving Day. That's why when former NU Athletic Director Shawn Eichorst and head coach Mike Riley both spoke out against the tradition and had the Iowa series ended starting in 2020, it led to public outcry around the state.
Iowa was even confused, as in 2011 the Hawkeyes went out of their way to accommodate Nebraska to keep their Black Friday tradition alive.
“Our experience with it has been positive,” Iowa Athletic Director Gary Barta told the Cedar Rapids Gazette in 2013. “When we went into it, the reason we limited (the initial deal) to two years is because Nebraska has had Friday-after-Thanksgiving games for a long time in their history, and we had never done anything like that on our campus. We wanted to make sure that it worked.
“There’s some disadvantages, but overall it’s been great. Nebraska and I have talked. (Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz is) on board. So it’s something that both schools have recommended to the conference that we continue, and we have recommended that we continue it indefinitely.”
This was before the 2013 season. Last September the Big Ten took it off the schedule for 2020 and 2021, and the decision was supported by Riley and Eichorst. Iowa was confused and didn't want the Black Friday games to end. Both Eichorst and Riley are now gone, and all signs point to Black Friday football coming back between the two schools in 2022. It's a decision fully supported by head coach Scott Frost.
“I grew up like you did watching Nebraska play Oklahoma on Black Friday," Frost told HuskerOnline. "It’s a great tradition here to play on that day. I know Iowa is all for it. I know Bill Moos, and I are all for it. Hopefully, we can land in a place where we are playing the same opponent every year on that Friday, and I think that’s what Nebraska fans are used to.”
As for scheduling as a whole, Frost is a big believer in creating uniformity amongst the Power 5.
The Big 12, Big Ten and Pac 12 play nine-game conference schedules, while the ACC and SEC continue to play eight-game league schedules, creating disparities in final win-loss records.
“I’ve said for a long time, and I’ll continue to say that I don’t think it’s a level playing field when three conferences are playing nine games, and two others are only playing eight," Frost said. "I think that makes an easier path for the teams playing eight to get into big bowl games and the playoffs. It’s kind of a cycle that continues to happen because when you only play eight, half the teams in the league will finish with one fewer loss. When that happens, at the end of the year those teams are ranked higher, and typically they start the next year ranked higher.
"The wins that you do get are worth more in strength of schedule because the teams you are playing against have a better record. I think you really put yourself behind the eight ball if you are poaching yourself and beating each other up playing extra games. I’ve seen it happen in the Pac 12. I think it happened this year to the Big Ten. I don’t care if it’s eight or nine games, but I’d love to see every conference play the same number of games in conference.”
Frost also talked about how some leagues like the SEC continue to schedule late-season games against lower level FCS schools.
This allows those teams to get more rest in November and be healthier for rivalry week and the conference championship games in December.
“It’s tough when there is some conference that in Week 11 are playing top 25 opponents within their league, then there’s a couple of other leagues that are playing FCS teams in Week 11," Frost said. "You don’t have to be a genius to see that that’s not really fair and equitable. Again, what I say isn’t going to carry much weight, but I do think that somebody needs to step in and make that uniform.”
