Husker Football? What Happened? (Lincoln: how much, to move, title)

[mattpoulsen]

College football IS NOT all about recruiting. Yes, the better the talent the better off you are, however the ones who succeed most are the coaches who develop the talent.

Osborne never had top 10 recruiting classes, but he always had top 10 teams. Callahan has always had top 10 recruiting classes, but never had a top 10 team.

Yes, when you're running systems like all the rest you have to recruit like all the rest. Nebraska did very well with their 3 star and the occasional 4 star recruit who were mixed in with several walkons every year because they were running a system that was unique.

I would love to have 20 5 star guys come in, but Pederson and Callahan put far too much emphasis on just recruiting. They forgot to coach them once they got to Lincoln!!

The general point is that, in nearly all of college football recruiting is key, but not in Nebraska...or at least Nebraska we used to love. Nebraska has always had a different feel to it...then Pederson came in and made the program look like every other program out there. Well, when you're handicapped in terms of pure mind blowing talent then you have to make up for it some how...you have to coach...not just delegate and manage.

I also think Pelini is a near lock. I think that its somewhat telling that the top JC player in the county, who is a 5 star recruit, just committed to NU. He did this while other recruits are/were reneging on their commitment. The reason I think this is significant is because, according to those close to him, prior to committing to NU his top choice appeared to be LSU.

Well, the guy is 5 star defensive end, meaning he would have played under Pelini at LSU. Hmmm....do you think T.O. maybe filled him in on a little information that we're not yet privy to??

[JesusisLord]

Originally Posted by Steve_W

I'm guessing you aren't from Nebraska are you? Nebraska football has always been half recruiting and half walk on.

I did not know this, and it puts a major dent in my original post of ideas based on college football recruiting involving Nebraska. The guy above me wrote a similiar post, which I thank you for his correction of my incorrect post regarding Nebraska football. I honestly don't know how Nebraska football works, and I thank you for both your insights, but do understand recruiting is extremely crucial for most college programs to succeed.

Ex. Phillip Fulmer has been the same Ball Coach for Tennessee for at least the past ten years, they used to be a top 10 team every year, but the last 4-5 years they have dropped to a Top 25 team. Same coach and defensive coordinator, what has limited his ability to compete with big time schools, I believe it is recruiting. Same system, different faces.

[Elkman]

Adios Billy Callahan. Never liked you in Oakland, never liked you in Nebraska. Don't let the door hit you on the way out. Nebraska will return to tradition with the original T.O. back in the helm.

[JesusisLord]

Originally Posted by Elkman

Adios Billy Callahan. Never liked you in Oakland, never liked you in Nebraska. Don't let the door hit you on the way out. Nebraska will return to tradition with the original T.O. back in the helm.

Just because Tom Osborne was a good coach, doesn't mean he'll be a good enough athletic director to get Nebraska football back on the winning road. I'm not trying to burn out your lamp here, but don't deem him your savior until Nebraska starts winning again.

Are you telling me he's going to convince the coach to run the option down the opponents throat, which no one runs anymore?

Nebraska owned college football when they had those GIGANTIC linemen of the early and mid 90's!!! They ran the option like six fat farm boys coming to steam roll you into the grass.

[aerahrtlu]

Originally Posted by JesusisLord

Are you telling me he's going to convince the coach to run the option down the opponents throat, which no one runs anymore?

Hopefully he wont have to "convince" anyone of anything. He'll just fire him and hire someone that will do it.

[mattpoulsen]

You make a fair point about T.O. He was a great coach and he has great leadership ability. The problem is that there are going to be some ridiculous expectations out there, and people aren't very patient anymore. People need to understand that he's trying to reestablish NU's identity, which isn't done over night.

The Husker team's of old were built on 4 decades of tradition. It was the "system" that was so successful...not just one particular set of athletes. That's not how college football is ran anymore, with coaches bolting from one team to the next every 4 or 5 years. We had the same coach for nearly 30 years...that's nearly impossible for people to imagine in this day in age. Joe Pa and Bowden are the only coaches in this league and they are obviously from Osborne's generation.

You mentioned that Callahan's recruiting may be the problem. Actually, Callahan, technically, has better "athletes" then TO ever did. His recruiting classes have been very impressive. He just doesn't do anything with the talent once it gets here.

T.O. would take 8-man football players (if you don't know that means in highschool their teams only play with 8 players on the field), who walked-on and turned them into NFL players. They would pay their own way and play at NU because it was in their blood. Do you think a farm boy on the plains of Nebraska has this same devotion to NU now??

Part of the reason NU was so successful is the program really reflected the character of the state. We ran the football with crazy methodical precision and just wore teams down. We were simply more physical than the other teams. Our defense was year in an year out one of the best in the nation. The "flashy" West Coast system appeals to "NFL type" recruits, but it doesn't appeal to the people of Nebraska.

Osborne's goal cannot be to reinstall the option...he knows that. The option worked because it was a system that was in place for decades. It won't work now...maybe if we wouldn't have scrapped it, but its not going to happen now.

To "Jesus", I would point out that no one, but NU, ran the option between '94 to '97, a span where we won 3 national titles and went 60-3. Right before that run all the "experts" were telling us that the option was ineffective and outdated...oops!!

That said, I expect Osborne to try and bring in a coach who runs a college system not a shrunk down NFL system. It'll involve a balanced attack with a strong power running game, but also a dynamic passing attack...and probably a little bit of option too. He'll bring in someone who understands what made NU special and why that uniqueness made NU so successful. We can't recruit against USC and Florida...heck not even Texas. But look at our teams of the '90s. Tommie Frazier is, arguably, one of the best college QB's to play the game...do you think he was a 5 star QB coming out of highschool??

Osborne will try to bring someone in who will try to recreate the "idea" of NU football from the 70's, 80's, and 90's. He'll bring someone in who will be around in 15 years. I'm pretty sure Pelini is going to be the guy and if he's not "completely ready" then people need to remember that neither was TO. But, again, consistency and perseverance are the hallmarks of the NU program.

For those reasons Pelini or Gill would both be excellent choices for NU. No, they may not necessarily be the top picks at USC, Texas, Florida, or Notre Dame...but we're Nebraska we are very successful at doing things differently than everyone else. We will not return to dominance by simply copying what everyone else does...we only will return to dominance by doing things our way.

[tpabes]

First of all Osborne can bring back the option. Just not the option that Nebraskan's think of. The spread option/passing attack is big these days, seen Florida lately! If they do indeed fire Callahan, and please do (how can he sit there in a press conference two weeks in a row and tell us he is doing an excellent job), I have a darkhorse pick, Bobby Petrino did a heck of a job at Louisville and might be in trouble with the Falcons. The obvious problem is he has no connections with Nebraska, but he is a proven college coach. I would give Gill the best chance of coming back, Pelini might just too tough to get, altough about everyone in the state is begging him, its hard to believe we have lost three blowouts in a row and a fourth a big possibility, excellent job, give me a break.

[mattpoulsen]

Tpabes,

The option you speak of in Florida is exactly the type of attack I was referring to, in fact, I was thinking of their system when I mentioned it. They don't run a true option system though...they run a spread offense with some option in it. There are tons of teams that will run some option. But there are no major teams that run the true triple option...or even the veer option. That's also pretty similar to what Gill happens to run in Buffalo.

I would rather have a coach come in that is a smaller name who is committed to NU for years or decades. Petrino wouldn't be here long. He is the type of coach that I'm talking about when I say..."here for 4 or 5 years and move on". I think he'd be successful, but we would just be rebuilding in 3 or 4 years when he leaves. I think Pelini would come. NU is a huge job...one of the best in the business. The fact that we have had an off year isn't much of a detriment...in fact, for someone like Pelini, it gives him the opportunity to be the guy who restored the order at NU. Where if he would take the LSU gig, if it were to become available, he'd simply be taking over an already top notch program. Plus, Pelini has openly said that he really liked the community of Lincoln. I could see him at LSU or NU...we'll just see how it plays out. That said, I do also really like Gill...he may need a bit more time, but he would be a NU lifer. I would love either one, but really, compared to what we have now, I'd take just about anybody.

[Steve_W]

Originally Posted by JesusisLord

I did not know this, and it puts a major dent in my original post of ideas based on college football recruiting involving Nebraska. The guy above me wrote a similiar post, which I thank you for his correction of my incorrect post regarding Nebraska football. I honestly don't know how Nebraska football works, and I thank you for both your insights, but do understand recruiting is extremely crucial for most college programs to succeed.

Ex. Phillip Fulmer has been the same Ball Coach for Tennessee for at least the past ten years, they used to be a top 10 team every year, but the last 4-5 years they have dropped to a Top 25 team. Same coach and defensive coordinator, what has limited his ability to compete with big time schools, I believe it is recruiting. Same system, different faces.

You are absolutely right about recruiting and college football in general and it has become increasingly important.

[tpabes]

Originally Posted by mattpoulsen

Tpabes,

The option you speak of in Florida is exactly the type of attack I was referring to, in fact, I was thinking of their system when I mentioned it. They don't run a true option system though...they run a spread offense with some option in it. There are tons of teams that will run some option. But there are no major teams that run the true triple option...or even the veer option. That's also pretty similar to what Gill happens to run in Buffalo.

I would rather have a coach come in that is a smaller name who is committed to NU for years or decades. Petrino wouldn't be here long. He is the type of coach that I'm talking about when I say..."here for 4 or 5 years and move on". I think he'd be successful, but we would just be rebuilding in 3 or 4 years when he leaves. I think Pelini would come. NU is a huge job...one of the best in the business. The fact that we have had an off year isn't much of a detriment...in fact, for someone like Pelini, it gives him the opportunity to be the guy who restored the order at NU. Where if he would take the LSU gig, if it were to become available, he'd simply be taking over an already top notch program. Plus, Pelini has openly said that he really liked the community of Lincoln. I could see him at LSU or NU...we'll just see how it plays out. That said, I do also really like Gill...he may need a bit more time, but he would be a NU lifer. I would love either one, but really, compared to what we have now, I'd take just about anybody.

Sorry I misread you, if we got Pelini do you think Gill would come back and be an offensive cordinator. If not, personally I think Watson wouldn't be a bad person to keep. He is kinda of the one who started this all, when he exposed our defense at Colorado. I think both would be smart enough to run an offense that will run the ball, use play action wisely and control the clock so our defense is constanly on the field like you said. I know Watson was calling plays last Saturday, but if he got full reigns of the offense I think it would be different. If Gill became the head coach, I know Pelini wouldn't come to be a cordinator, so that would be interesting to see who they would hire.