State of the Program: Nebraska

Mavric

Mavric

Yoda
Staff member
Trajectory: Sideways. Many Nebraska fans felt the team went sideways under Pelini, who won nine or 10 games each season but always lost four. Still, few FBS programs win as consistently as Nebraska had under Pelini, and Riley never lost fewer than four games at Oregon State. It might be tough for Riley to replicate Pelini's standard records in Year 1, but he will have time to elevate a championship-starved program. The recruiting dynamic will be fascinating. The staff brings an innovative approach and Riley has ties to Texas, but Nebraska must make some inroads in the Big Ten footprint. Many felt Riley got the most out of Oregon State for much of his tenure, but this is a different stage with much more pressure to perform.
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It must suck to have to churn out copy about football in late February. No Spring Camp, no major recruiting news, certainly no games. So you have to come up with something, and Rittenberg came up with this.

It's gotta be hard writing about Nebraska. Nobody knows what we'll be, what'll happen with Riley, or how to approach anything. But some conclusions are just plain silly. Like a recruiting statement of, "...Nebraska must make some inroads in the Big Ten footprint."

Ummm... no we don't. We could win the conference and a national championship without a single guy from the Big Ten footprint on the roster. This is a lazy groupthink idea that has no basis in reality, but has that feel of truthiness about it.

Or how about "It might be tough for Riley to replicate Pelini's standard records in Year 1..." Yes, it might. It'd be tough for Riley to climb Kilimanjaro, but I'll bet he might. Riley might do anything, including giving birth to the second coming of Dominic Raiola. But that might also be tough.

Finally, we get, "Many felt Riley got the most out of Oregon State for much of his tenure, but this is a different stage..." Props to Adam for soldiering on through a dreary dead season, but pointing out that Nebraska is different from Oregon State is pretty weak sauce. Next he'll be writing that we don't have a rodent for a mascot, or that Riley will have to learn to enjoy corn on the cob.

 
As a fan, football stories suck this time of year but as a writer, this is when it's easiest to write articles. Take a bunch of random/uninormed opinions, tag it with football and it'll get read...

I expected most of the national press to get critical of MR as the off-season wore on. MR was a very good hire but the lack of "splash" means media has to troll a bit. I remain quietly confident.

I didn't realize MR was ever pregnant; when can we expect Dom Jr on the field? This is the best news since Christmas
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How many coaches in the history of college ball win big at power conference programs of Oregon State caliber? Bill Snyder? ...

 
zoogs said:
How many coaches in the history of college ball win big at power conference programs of Oregon State caliber? Bill Snyder? ...
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KSU has how many conference and National championships?

Snyder has done wonders there for what they were before. However, I think Nebraska expects more.

 
If Bo were still here, saying the program is going "sideways" would make sense. It is absolutely lazy writing to say it's going sideways after a complete change in coaching staffs from a relatively inexperienced group that has proven they will lose 4 games a year to a very experienced group with new ideas coming to the program. Now, you can predict that experienced group will fail and win less or you can predict that they are going to be successful and win more. Do that and give reasoning on why you feel that way.

But, just to say it's going sideways is pure evidence the writer put more thought into how he was brushing his teeth that morning than writing this.

 
knapplc said:
Or how about "It might be tough for Riley to replicate Pelini's standard records in Year 1..." Yes, it might. It'd be tough for Riley to climb Kilimanjaro, but I'll bet he might. Riley might do anything, including giving birth to the second coming of Dominic Raiola. But that might also be tough.
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I love statements that are made to sound important but actually say nothing. "If he hadn't made that tackle, he might have scored." "They could contend for the conference championship this year."

 
Mavric said:
knapplc said:
Or how about "It might be tough for Riley to replicate Pelini's standard records in Year 1..." Yes, it might. It'd be tough for Riley to climb Kilimanjaro, but I'll bet he might. Riley might do anything, including giving birth to the second coming of Dominic Raiola. But that might also be tough.
Click to expand...
I love statements that are made to sound important but actually say nothing. "If he hadn't made that tackle, he might have scored." "They could contend for the conference championship this year."
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Or the statement that I personally hate is " (insert name) is playing as well as anyone in the country"

 
BigRedBuster said:
If Bo were still here, saying the program is going "sideways" would make sense. It is absolutely lazy writing to say it's going sideways after a complete change in coaching staffs from a relatively inexperienced group that has proven they will lose 4 games a year to a very experienced group with new ideas coming to the program. Now, you can predict that experienced group will fail and win less or you can predict that they are going to be successful and win more. Do that and give reasoning on why you feel that way.

But, just to say it's going sideways is pure evidence the writer put more thought into how he was brushing his teeth that morning than writing this.
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agree.........his whole thought process was meh.......plain and simple, he said nothing.

 
From an outsider's perspective, I feel that the "sideways" trajectory was about right. After a coaching change that brings in a guy with a 93-80 record, I'm not sure you could say the Huskers are on an upward trajectory. You also have to factor in what he's up against; limited ties to the Midwest, a cut-throat approach to recruiting among top B1G coaches, and a newfound pressure to win. There's also the first year woes that come with new coaches trying to change a culture. A 9 or 10 win season in year one would be quite the success, but not necessarily an improvement.

With all of that being said, had the article been about the FUTURE state of B1G programs, you'd have to say that Nebraska is on an upward trajectory. Riley has shown his ability to build a program (Oregon State went from nothing to respectable). NU certainly doesn't need rebuilt; they need to be rebranded. The only question is whether or not he can do that.

The guy has a quiet confidence to him that reminds me of Tressel. I have a feeling he will have his championship-caliber teams every few years or so, he just has to be able to bring in the talent to do it.

 
Urban Myth said:
From an outsider's perspective, I feel that the "sideways" trajectory was about right. After a coaching change that brings in a guy with a 93-80 record, I'm not sure you could say the Huskers are on an upward trajectory.
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I don't think anyone claimed it was upward. It's unknown. Things have changed. As others have said, there was no real thought or analysis put into this column.

 
knapplc said:
It must suck to have to churn out copy about football in late February. No Spring Camp, no major recruiting news, certainly no games. So you have to come up with something, and Rittenberg came up with this.

It's gotta be hard writing about Nebraska. Nobody knows what we'll be, what'll happen with Riley, or how to approach anything. But some conclusions are just plain silly. Like a recruiting statement of, "...Nebraska must make some inroads in the Big Ten footprint."

Ummm... no we don't. We could win the conference and a national championship without a single guy from the Big Ten footprint on the roster. This is a lazy groupthink idea that has no basis in reality, but has that feel of truthiness about it.

Or how about "It might be tough for Riley to replicate Pelini's standard records in Year 1..." Yes, it might. It'd be tough for Riley to climb Kilimanjaro, but I'll bet he might. Riley might do anything, including giving birth to the second coming of Dominic Raiola. But that might also be tough.

Finally, we get, "Many felt Riley got the most out of Oregon State for much of his tenure, but this is a different stage..." Props to Adam for soldiering on through a dreary dead season, but pointing out that Nebraska is different from Oregon State is pretty weak sauce. Next he'll be writing that we don't have a rodent for a mascot, or that Riley will have to learn to enjoy corn on the cob.
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You're going to criticize the article for that? Unless Nebraska starts to pull some bluechip recruits out of California, Texas or Florida (which isn't happening) then it might be wise for Nebraska to do better in states like Illinois, Ohio, New Jersey and Maryland.

Seems to me that you're complaining for the sake of complaining. You're basically knocking Rittenberg for being too literal with the use of the word 'must'. Get over it. It's not a secret that recruiting success is dictated by geography, which is to our disadvantage, and your best bet is to recruit kids in your conference footprint to pitch the idea of playing closer to home.

Should he just not write articles between signing day and spring practice?

 
hskerprid said:
Mavric said:
knapplc said:
Or how about "It might be tough for Riley to replicate Pelini's standard records in Year 1..." Yes, it might. It'd be tough for Riley to climb Kilimanjaro, but I'll bet he might. Riley might do anything, including giving birth to the second coming of Dominic Raiola. But that might also be tough.
Click to expand...
I love statements that are made to sound important but actually say nothing. "If he hadn't made that tackle, he might have scored." "They could contend for the conference championship this year."
Click to expand...
Or the statement that I personally hate is " (insert name) is playing as well as anyone in the country"
Click to expand...
The statement I hate the most is when they say a player is playing at an SEC level or words to that effect. Pisses me off every time.

 
Dr. Strangelove said:
knapplc said:
It must suck to have to churn out copy about football in late February. No Spring Camp, no major recruiting news, certainly no games. So you have to come up with something, and Rittenberg came up with this.

It's gotta be hard writing about Nebraska. Nobody knows what we'll be, what'll happen with Riley, or how to approach anything. But some conclusions are just plain silly. Like a recruiting statement of, "...Nebraska must make some inroads in the Big Ten footprint."

Ummm... no we don't. We could win the conference and a national championship without a single guy from the Big Ten footprint on the roster. This is a lazy groupthink idea that has no basis in reality, but has that feel of truthiness about it.

Or how about "It might be tough for Riley to replicate Pelini's standard records in Year 1..." Yes, it might. It'd be tough for Riley to climb Kilimanjaro, but I'll bet he might. Riley might do anything, including giving birth to the second coming of Dominic Raiola. But that might also be tough.

Finally, we get, "Many felt Riley got the most out of Oregon State for much of his tenure, but this is a different stage..." Props to Adam for soldiering on through a dreary dead season, but pointing out that Nebraska is different from Oregon State is pretty weak sauce. Next he'll be writing that we don't have a rodent for a mascot, or that Riley will have to learn to enjoy corn on the cob.
Click to expand...
You're going to criticize the article for that? Unless Nebraska starts to pull some bluechip recruits out of California, Texas or Florida (which isn't happening) then it might be wise for Nebraska to do better in states like Illinois, Ohio, New Jersey and Maryland.

Seems to me that you're complaining for the sake of complaining. You're basically knocking Rittenberg for being too literal with the use of the word 'must'. Get over it. It's not a secret that recruiting success is dictated by geography, which is to our disadvantage, and your best bet is to recruit kids in your conference footprint to pitch the idea of playing closer to home.

Should he just not write articles between signing day and spring practice?
Click to expand...
Texas is closer to us than parts of the Big Ten footprint. Closer means nothing. Unless you are within a few hours drive(the 500 mile radius), you are looking at a plane trip to go to games. Pennsylvania or California, you are not driving from either. And distance does not matter when watching on TV, the picture on a plasma is the same everywhere.

The main reason its easier to recruit close by is because of unofficial visits. The way media works now, proximity means next to nothing for coverage.

 
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