Ric Flair

When was the last time the defense deserved them, 2010 or so? How many times have they been goven and talen away since? And has that resulted in any actual improvement on the field? Pelini's attempts at motivating the players are tired, weak and played out.

If we want to appeal to 16 and 17 year old kids, I think that's the answer. Improve the sound system, get a killer video for the big screen and use pyrotechnics and every trick in the book to construct the coolest entrance in college football. I also favor adding black as a school color and finding a way to incorporate some of it into the uniform. Roll out the all-black for a night game or two each season. Get the very best people Adidas has and that are otherwise available to put together some killer uniforms. Give the current players and even committed recruits some input into those decisions. And watch as the recruits roll into Lincoln.

I think you hire a professional staff with experience appealing to the demographic we're after and creating a great game day experience. I think grabbing a couple of people from the WWE would be a smart move. They know how to appeal to precisely the people we need to appeal to. The focus can still be on tradition, but with an emphasis on making the tradition cool, relevant and exciting. It's time for a fairly radical shakeup and a new approach.

This is what happens when an Athletic Department thinks its target market is the 60 year old bluehairs it needs to sell tickets to at high prices to finance the Department and either forgets about or doesn't care about appealing to the 17 year old kids that we need to actually take the field and play the sports. The conflict there is demonstrated by the ridiculous reaction of a big segment of the fan base anytime anything changes. Remember how many of the fans, especially the older ones, reacted to the news we would be using black uniforms for a game? But what percentage of the kids we're trying to get to come to Nebraska and play football look at "cool" uniforms as a factor? So while the "traditionalists" are gnashing their teeth and rending their garments in outrage about how we've abandoned tradition and sold out, they're completely ignoring the fact that the kids love stuff like that. Our Tunnel Walk is lame. I get that the traditionalists love it. But from the perspective of 17 year old kids it's lame. The music is lame and tired. It's played out. And the whole game day experience could use a refresh as well.

I have it on good authority that Pelini is a defensive genius and guru and that anyone who doubts that simply doesn't know anything about football. I'm also assured that the dozen or so blowout losses, upset losses to unranked teams and records for defensive futility that have been set under Pelini are all aberrations and prove nothing.

makes me think that something else is going on. It is.

Richt was a great offensive coordinator at Florida State and has been a mediocre head coach given the amount of talent he has access to. In a way his career has followed a similar track to Pelini's and I feel he's better suited to be a coordinator than a head coach. I think he would be an improvement over Pelini, but so would virtually anyone at this point. I think we can do better.

Yep. I've been preaching this for the past 2-3 years. Enough. It's time to turn the page.

I can't see another school, aside from maybe a mid-major, having any interest whatsoever in Bo as a head coach. Given the pathetic state of his defense, I think the fiction that he's a defensive guru has also been exposed. So I'm not seeing him having a lot of options. Regardless, it's well past time to pull the plug.

Pretty much spot on. Even the true Bolievers have to realize that trusting him with this program is essentially exactly like Charlie Brown trusting Lucy to hold the football so he can kick it. How many times to we have to see the same thing play out to realize that Bo is simply incapable of being a head coach at this level?

I don't think it matters what Bo does now. I think he's done here. I think every moment he remains here is a waste of time we could be spending to get a better head coach in here and getting things back on the right track. And anyone who hasn't had a sneaking and growing suspicion that Bo wasn't the right guy over the past couple of seasons simply hasn't been paying attention. He's plainly incompetent and simply incapable of being the Head Coach at a program like Nebraska. Time to flush him and his staff and start over. If the new coach wants to keep Brown and Fisher, that's cool. Everyone else needs to leave immediately.

No. I dont think the staff has. I think Taylor has. Watch the first three games. Then watch the next three games. Then re watch today, and try to argue with me. I don't think we necessarily disagree Mr. A. Martinez is out there because the coaching staff keeps sending him out there. And I don't think the team believes in him...or in the coaching staff that contines to force him on them. so it's mutiny? I think the thinking is that it's players who have lost faith in the staff because they would prefer either Armstrong or Kellogg to Martinez...and because Beck wants Armstrong or Kellogg to start and Pelini insists on Martinez getting the nod despite not being 100%. So there's significant infighting and general dysfunction in play as well.

No. I dont think the staff has. I think Taylor has. Watch the first three games. Then watch the next three games. Then re watch today, and try to argue with me. I don't think we necessarily disagree Mr. A. Martinez is out there because the coaching staff keeps sending him out there. And I don't think the team believes in him...or in the coaching staff that contines to force him on them.

The coaching staff seems to have completely lost the team. That's what I'm seeing...in what they say, don't say and in their body language.

Martinez isn't the only problem, but he's certainly one of them. One aspect of that is his spotty, inconsistent and often head-scratching play. Another is that the entire team, defense included, plays better when he's in street clothes and Armstrong and/or Kellogg is under center. That just seems obvious. And if Benning is right, the fact that Beck and at least some of the players don't want Martinez to be the starter is dividing the locker room. I think that could be the reason you see such a tepid effort like we witnessed today.

Didn't Abdullah average 8.9 yards per carry? So why the hell didn't we keep pounding the ball?

Yeah, the whole thing is weird. Combine all of that with the fact that the team seems to play far harder when Kellogg/Armstrong are starting at QB and you have a situation where it seems the team and certain of the coaches don't want Martinez starting and Pelini is forcing the issue. Today's game was the result. I think this is one conspiracy theory that seems plausible. I'm not sure what Pelini's love affair with Martinez is, but it's pretty bizarre.

Anyone else listening to Big Red Overreaction? Damon Benning is of the opinion that Pelini is making Beck start Martinez and Beck is reacting by putting Martinez in a position to fail. Pretty interesting theory, particularly given Beck's comments after practice on Tuesday and Pelini's bizarre post-game press conference.

Yep, time to move on. This is unacceptable.

One way or another, Bo needs to go. He needs to take Beck, Papuchis and the rest of those not ready for prime time players. Keep Brown and Fisher. The rest need to be gone. I would have fired them a season or two ago. I'd prefer they be fired now. But realistically we'll have to wait until the end of the year. But it needs to happen. This is beyond pathetic.

This is pathetic. What are our strengths exactly? We're routinely outcoached and outplayed anytime we play a decent team. And this debacle starts with our coaching staff. I'm ready to move on from the Pelini era. It's been clear to be for some time that he's not the answer.

Well that's great. We can't get recruits to the game and no one will be watching. 11 a.m. time slots blow.

I'll just add that we haven't done anything to impress anyone in more than a decade. Every time we get on a big stage where the voters are watching we wind up getting pummeled. That's not a way to build respect. Nor is playing this ridiculous cupcake schedule. We need big time wins against big time competition to get the respect we want.

I disagree. Love him or hate him, what Johnny Manziel did last year was unprecedented. Winston's doing better on pretty much every stat compared to where Manziel was at this point last year. Yeah, they showed the stats after the game. Johnny Hypesman is a great college QB, but I'd take Winston over him and wouldn't even think twice about it. Winston also manages not to be a complete douchebag...something that has eluded Manziel.

Florida State is an outstanding team. They've absolutely killed two ranked teams in the past two weeks, including a Clemson team at home that was ranked #3 in the country. Winston is the best freshman QB I've ever seen and they have a ton of weapons on both sides of the ball. Their defensive speed is incredible and their secondary has been very impressive. So they're worth keepng an eye on as well.