Welcome knappic! Been to Kearney, NE on business several tims, even drivn thrugh Lincoln once & saw the stadium looming over the plains. I must say, Cornhuskers fans are DEFINITELY some of the nicest & most passionate cfb fans I'he ever met. I have always liked NU as far back ad the old Big 8 days & I like them even more after meeting more of their fans. Love Tom O. especially his call to go for 2 against the U even though a tie would have given him the Natty.
As for your questions, yes & yes. I do think the Dawgs weren't as focused & dedicated in practice & game planning for the Cap. 1 bowl as they would've been for the BCS NC game. I would have a hard time believing anybody who said otherwise as this only seems natural after a to hard fought, emotional loss in a game with such high stakes.
That said, I also felt that NU was a much better team than I expected going in, especially offensively. I mean, yall had us on the ropes in the 1st half but didn't capitalize on all of your opportunities. After halftime, our team came alive & your defense had no answers. I was impressed by Nebraska at the end of the game for sure although your very highly rated defense, especially pass defense didn't perform to the best of their ability & I reckon Coach Bo would agree.