A little less than 5 years ago, two guys worked together to come up with a game plan to beat Michigan State in the 2003 Alamo Bowl.
The Huskers gave up 3 points to the Spartans who managed only 18 yards rushing on 23 carries. The Nebraska defense sacked MSU QB Jeff Smoker 5 times and came up with three pass interceptions.
The Nebraska offense tallied 17 points and 389 yards of total offense (229 yards rushing, 160 yards passing). The Huskers did not have a turnover.
Think about those numbers for a second. The defense came up with 3 turnovers and gave up only 18 yards rushing. The 2007 Huskers got one turnover in their last 7 games and I doubt any of us could count the number of individual running plays of more than 18 yards the "blackshirts" gave up this season.
OK, so the 2003 Alamo Bowl was one game. But it was one game that followed a tumultuous month of coaches and players pulling together after the firing of head coach Frank Solich.
Fast forward to November 2007. The two coaches that led Nebraska to that Alamo Bowl victory are vying for the same job, or are they? Could it be that they are going to be asked to pull the team together after the firing of a different head coach?
The guy who coached that team, Bo Pelini, has been a defensive coordinator for two very successful programs since leaving Nebraska. He is apparently very interested in coming back as head coach at Nebraska because he just took a plane ride from Louisiana to Georgia with the University President an the Athletic Director to talk it over. I wonder if the subject of assistant coaches came up?
The conventional wisdom is that Turner Gill would not leave a head coaching position for an assistant coaching job. For most guys, that would be too big of a blow to the ego. But what if the guy you worked for most of your life, the guy you asked to be the best man at your wedding, the guy you admire more than anyone in the world, asked you (on behalf of the new head coach) to come home and help rebuild their broken house? Would you do it if you knew you weren't going to be the foreman?
I know, it's a stretch. But this is Rumorville. It's the place for "what if's". Can you imagine it? Do you think Tom Osborne can imagine it? Most importantly, can Bo Pelini and Turner Gill imagine it?
Will Tom Osborne go for two?
The Huskers gave up 3 points to the Spartans who managed only 18 yards rushing on 23 carries. The Nebraska defense sacked MSU QB Jeff Smoker 5 times and came up with three pass interceptions.
The Nebraska offense tallied 17 points and 389 yards of total offense (229 yards rushing, 160 yards passing). The Huskers did not have a turnover.
Think about those numbers for a second. The defense came up with 3 turnovers and gave up only 18 yards rushing. The 2007 Huskers got one turnover in their last 7 games and I doubt any of us could count the number of individual running plays of more than 18 yards the "blackshirts" gave up this season.
OK, so the 2003 Alamo Bowl was one game. But it was one game that followed a tumultuous month of coaches and players pulling together after the firing of head coach Frank Solich.
Fast forward to November 2007. The two coaches that led Nebraska to that Alamo Bowl victory are vying for the same job, or are they? Could it be that they are going to be asked to pull the team together after the firing of a different head coach?
The guy who coached that team, Bo Pelini, has been a defensive coordinator for two very successful programs since leaving Nebraska. He is apparently very interested in coming back as head coach at Nebraska because he just took a plane ride from Louisiana to Georgia with the University President an the Athletic Director to talk it over. I wonder if the subject of assistant coaches came up?
The conventional wisdom is that Turner Gill would not leave a head coaching position for an assistant coaching job. For most guys, that would be too big of a blow to the ego. But what if the guy you worked for most of your life, the guy you asked to be the best man at your wedding, the guy you admire more than anyone in the world, asked you (on behalf of the new head coach) to come home and help rebuild their broken house? Would you do it if you knew you weren't going to be the foreman?
I know, it's a stretch. But this is Rumorville. It's the place for "what if's". Can you imagine it? Do you think Tom Osborne can imagine it? Most importantly, can Bo Pelini and Turner Gill imagine it?
Will Tom Osborne go for two?