junior4949

What concerns me about the playoff this year is if Bama beats Georgia.  

Do you suppose he already knows who the new OC is?

1 minute ago, TGHusker said:

He was smart to come home to the Big 10.  At least he isn't a bottom dweller this year like..........unspoken team located in Lincoln. 

Riley was smart to go to USC rather than LSU.  The SEC has been on a long run for dominance in football, but everything is cyclical.  I can see where the tide eventually changes and another conference has a dominant run.  

What will be more interesting is whether or not Sark will still be the coach at Texas when it officially enters the SEC.  

It's a bit interesting when one looks at it from different perspectives.  For Lincoln Riley at his age and where he is at with regards to his career, he seemed to run from the SEC.  For Brian Kelly at his age and where he is at in terms of his career, he welcomed the challenge of the SEC.  It wasn't that long ago coaches were falling all over themselves at a chance in the SEC.  I'm looking at you Bert. 

42 minutes ago, Jeremy said:

Gotcha. 

 

The only way we run our '95 scheme again is if Osborne himself is calling plays. Which would be cool, not gonna lie. 

 

I'm not asking for that. Paul Johnson option - I'm convinced it would work. We would have an identity (which we don't right now), and we would be unique; hard to prepare for in the B1G.

I think you're a bit off with the bolded.  In the last dozen or so years, we have had some tremendous athletes playing QB here.  For as much hate as he receives, can you imagine what Adrian Martinez could have done behind the 95' OL?  What Taylor Martinez could have done behind that line?  What Tommie Armstrong could have done behind that line?  I don't want to take anything away from TO's playcalling, but it was pretty easy to call plays back then considering not only his OL but the defense we had as well.  

In the last dozen or so years, we have had some decent OL and put some in the NFL.  Unfortunately, the OL as a whole has not exactly played very well as a unit.  We have some decent OL this year, but they don't exactly play well together each and every play.  There's always a breakdown on nearly every play.  

Football has changed in many ways over the last three decades.  However, the one constant is winning the trench war.  Win the trench war and controlling turnovers typically results in a favorable outcome.  We have guys that are still getting pushed around in the trenches.  

How many programs does a Solich or a Bo get fired from with their winning percentage while at Nebraska?  

7 minutes ago, Hedley Lamarr said:

Or you do what ever program does and hire and fire until you hit. Imagine if Ohio St was scared to take a gamble on a FCS HC. If Oklahoma was scared to take a chance on a DC. You just swing and don't stop swinging until you knock one out of the park. 

First of all, you only provided two programs.  Why is this?  It's because all the rest of them us included are still swinging and still missing.  Tennessee comes to mind.  Texas comes to mind.  Arguably, Michigan comes to mind.  USC comes to mind.  Florida State comes to mind.  Miami comes to mind.  Shall I continue?  There's plenty of programs that won a NC who are still hiring and firing away just like us.      

Ohio State passed over one of the hottest names in coaching this year.  Coincidentally, this same coach was coaching Ohio State the one and only time we've beaten them since joining the B1G.  We tried what OU did.  We fired our DC we took a chance on.  I don't know what the answer is, but I know the revolving coaching door is not working.  The revolving AD door isn't working either.  There are changes that need to be made, but I don't think a reset is needed at this time.    

2 hours ago, JJ Husker said:

There was a picture of him last week out in public with his left ankle taped?? I wonder if he wasn’t injured a bit on that low cheap leg shot he took when he fumbled towards the end of the Michigan game.

 

But as to the gist of the question, my guess is a gimpy 2AM is probably the better option in this QB room. And no that doesn’t say much good about our recruiting or development or decision making to not a have a more viable backup plan in year 4. Some people will say “but Macaffrey left” but he wasn’t a good backup option either.

In todays game, there aren't a lot of teams that have a good backup option at QB.  Penn State was owning Iowa until their starting QB went down with an injury.  We haven't exactly had a good backup option since Frazier/Berringer.  I always felt that there were games when Taylor Martinez shouldn't have been playing because he was so banged up.  However, we just didn't have a good backup option.  I doubt Frost was twisting the arms of Vedral, Macaffrey, or Gebbia to transfer.  

People also forget that he was pretty much ran out of town when he was in Norman.  I would venture to guess if he had aspirations of being a head coach, he would be one by now.  

1 hour ago, lo country said:

I never did....Thought he was the one to get us back to glory.  It is one thing to look at W vs L, but to see how bad NU actually is compared to is peers......SMH.  And we are hoping we can get to 6-6....Scared we might not get another "good hire"......The bar has been set so low, the next coach could be a solid 7 win coach and look like a god compared to the past 7 years.......

To the bolded:  if past performance is indicative of future results, you can bet on it.  A solid 7 win coach will not only not look like a god but will also get fired just like the 9 win coaches have.  We definitely need to make some tweaks, but I'm not sure we need a reset.  

I would venture to guess if we lose out the rest of the way there will be assistant coaching changes.  Whether he gets to make them remains to be seen.  The only scenario I see with Frost not being the head coach next year is if he resigns.  

1 hour ago, captain_sasquatch said:

I want Frost to win so badly. Can't make a real judgement call until the end of the season, but history shows us we're very likely not going bowling. Realistically, barring catastrophe, I think he's back next year.

 

My Realistic Take:

Fire Verduzco, Held, and Austin. Maybe Lubick as well. Revitalize the offensive side of the ball and make sure Frost isn't calling plays anymore. He clearly needs to focus on all phases of the game. Go out there and get the absolute best offensive assistants money can buy with a huge emphasis on OL. This is basically the Solich treatment.

 

My Less Realistic Take:

I don't envy Trev Alberts, but if I am Trev I am only making a decision if I have my homerun hire in the bag. Who would be a homerun hire at this point?

 

Bob Stoops

Chris Petersen

Urban Myer

 

Those are really the only absolute homeruns I can think of. I don't care for Urban, but you can't discount his success. We can discuss the reality of either of them coming here all we want, but bottom line is you have to at least put out the feelers and see if there's any possible interest and you likely need to do that now. If either of them bite, Frost gets his pink slip and we move on. If neither of your homeruns bite, then Frost gets another year and if he wins we're golden. If he doesn't, you have more financial freedom.

People need to get a grip.  Bob Stoops under no circumstances will ever be our coach.  He's 61 years old.  Financially, he's set for life.  Then, there's the little nugget where we fired one of his best friends.  Bob Stoops may very well coach again, but it will never be at Nebraska.  Chris Petersen resigned a couple of years ago.  He's a guy that I don't ever see coaching at this level again.  He may very well never coach at any level again.  Urban Meyer more than likely coaches at the collegiate level again.  It may be as early as next season.  However, it will never be at a school like Nebraska.  He wouldn't even take his dream job at Notre Dame when offered opting for Florida.  Why?  Zook was a horrible coach but a great recruiter.  Florida was absolutely stacked with talent, and this was before the SEC was the dominant conference.  He went to Ohio State when the B1G wasn't exactly dominant and Ohio State was absolutely stacked with talent.  If he coaches at the collegiate level next year, my money is on USC.  The Pac 12 is down.  They don't have any dominant coaches.  These are the opportunities he jumps at.  

If we're being honest with ourselves at this point in time, there's almost zero chance Trev's got his homerun hire in the bag.  He hasn't even been the AD all that long.  He might very well have a list or is composing a list right now, but this is as far as he could be.  I don't think there is any way he was hired with the expectation of replacing the head football coach in his first year as AD.  Unless Frost resigns, I can't imagine him not being here next year.  

It's premature to fire him now.  We have to let the rest of the season play out.  If we go O fer the rest of the season, I would say there needs to be some serious talks and conditions set going into 2022.  If we only win one or two games the rest of the way, then conditions need to be set for 2022.  If we win out, leave him be. 

On 9/4/2021 at 5:17 PM, Alabama Husker Watcher said:

I think Frost's problems are indicative of a larger problem in college football. Everyone is looking to hire the next big time head coach, so schools jump on coaches the instant they do anything impressive and become the next big name. Texas hired Tom Herman after he had one excellent season with Houston. Herman had only been head coach for two seasons and was given the reigns of the Texas football program. Sound familiar? Frost had been head coach for all of two seasons before he was hired at Nebraska. He had one excellent season and one average season. He had not proven himself yet and he was not ready to take on such a challenge on such a level. He's like a boxer who was put in the championship bout too soon.

It's interesting that you compare our situation to Texas.  I agree that we're very similar.  Both schools have systemic issues.  We know Texas has them.  How does a coach like Mack Brown who rarely lost more than a couple of games a season eventually struggle to the point of making a bowl?  Something changed within that program after 09'.  I don't follow them enough to know what it was, but something changed.  I believe both Herman and Frost are good coaches.  I also have no doubt that Sarkisian is going to completely flame out.  Until either school figures out what their systemic issues are, neither will have the success that they expect.    

The problem is Nebraska.  If Solich wins the NC in 99', does he retire as Nebraska's coach?  I don't think so.  While he probably makes it longer than 03', my money says he's fired by 07'.  If Bo wins a conference championship in either 09' or 10', is he still the coach?  I don't think so.  Up-trending success like the teams you mention only happens after we're the B1G doormat for a while.  Yes, we can absolutely have that.  However once we have that and the coach doesn't take the next step to winning titles, he's fired. 

This leads me back to a question I posed a few days ago:  is this a destination job?  I don't think any of the schools you mentioned are destination jobs.  When we become like them, it would seem we aren't either.  Some people are okay with this.  Up-trending success is nice until you achieve it.  After that, you want more.  If we go this route, the first coach that achieves it will bounce for a better gig once it's achieved.  This path will not yield championships.  Who knows?  Maybe this is the new Nebraska football.  It's going to be very interesting to see what Nebraska and Michigan do at season's end.     

I agree with everything you said about the Clownahan hire, but he was a coach that led his team to the Super Bowl.   He was an OL coach which is what always puzzled me as to why Zac Taylor got pummeled nearly every play.   

"We gotta get the next one right."  We've been saying and trying to do that for nearly two decades.  Other than maybe Riley, who have we hired that most didn't feel was right?  I think we have to stick with Frost for at least one more season after this. 

6 minutes ago, GSG said:

 

Ferentz also only had 2 losing seasons. Not 3, going on 4 

That's fine, but it really isn't the point.  If we continue to change coaches every 3-5 years, we will never win anything of any substance.  When someone objectively looks at programs around the country that were once on or near the top of college football, there are a few programs that really stand out with regards to coaching changes and internal problems.  We are in good company with the likes of Texas, Tennessee, and one could also probably throw Michigan in there.  Sometimes, it makes one wonder if there's more to it than just the coaches they've brought into the program.    

4 minutes ago, Guy Chamberlin said:

 

In Bo Pelini's last four years Nebraska finished ranked 24th, 25th, Unranked and Unranked. The conference championship we "nearly won" was actually a humiliating blowout to an 8-5 Wisconsin team. A lot of us took pride in the division championship that year, but there was no getting around the taste left in your mouth from that CC game.. The question was whether Husker fans were expecting too much back then, or now. No one, and I mean no one, thought those 9-4 seasons were enough. Most didn't want to fire Bo, but they did demand progress. And that's really the question:  should Nebraska still see itself as a program that can contend for the Big 10 and national relevance, or accept the new conventional wisdom that we'd be lucky to get back to 9-4 and happy to even be in a game with Wisconsin?

 

This is actually about leaving the goalposts where they were and comparing expectations.

 

 

It really isn't with regards to the bolded.  If you are going to cherry pick, then there's no reason to discuss it.  I see you didn't even mention the 2009 season where we lost the conference championship in the final second of the game.  I see you didn't mention the 2010 season  where we lost the conference championship by a field goal.  You only want to discuss his his final four years.  Why?  Is there something major that happened in his final four years?  Oh that's right, we completely changed conferences.      

Iowa is a great example of what is wrong with Nebraska.  Ferentz is the longest tenured coach in the B1G.  Nebraska has chosen the revolving door method.  After much reading here, it appears as though we're ready to keep that method rolling.  

2 hours ago, thatguy said:

At the end of the day, here's the deal.

Scott Frost is (still) an offensive play design genius. it's why he was successful in oregon and UCF. their conferences are filled with teams who just either aren't talented, or aren't beholden to having to scrap and earn every point scored on saturdays. in those conferences, you basically only have to "out-talent" your opponent to win. no issues for Scott there.

 

in the B1G and the SEC, no dice. if you aren't outcoaching your opponent, you aren't winning. that's it. look at teams from those conferences with great recruiting, but poor coaching - Tennessee, Florida State, Michigan, Texas A&M, and to an extent Georgia and Penn state. it's why we've seen certain coaches flame out in the SEC and B1G, despite being heralded. here's where Scott just doesn't have the required skillset.

Teams/Head Coaches that have the prerequisite attention to details and intentionality about personnel, schemes, and special teams are the ones who are successful. Frost just doesn't have that. you can out-playdesign all you want, but if you lack the will to prepare and compete at that level in all phases of the game, and the required attention to detail to prepare your team down to an individual level, you just won't succeed in those conferences. 

Something else that those coaches have is a certain amount of humility to take self-inventory and look inwards. no hubris. where you see hubris at this level of football, you see underachievers. and that's what Scott Frost is at this level.

He may well be successful at the next job he has, but don't let that fool you. if he doesn't develop the right skillset, he'll never be successful in the SEC or B1G.

The bolded sounds a lot like the old Big 8.

On 8/31/2021 at 4:34 PM, Guy Chamberlin said:

 

I would love to see one of you guys go back in time and tell Nebraska fans of 2014 that Bo Pelini's big game embarrassments, historically poor record against ranked teams, zero conference championships, and barely sniffing the back end of the Top 25 was the ceiling for expectations at the University of Nebraska and we should be grateful for it.

 

If you go back to 2008, you'll find that Bo Pelini was widely celebrated for bringing Nebraska football back to relevance. That doesn't mean his firing seven seasons later was wrong. No more than it was wrong for Youngstown State and LSU to dump Bo after us.

 

Show of hands: is it now too much to ask that Nebraska compete for conference championships and national rankings? Or would we take 9-4 seasons forever with humble appreciation? 

 

Call me a dreamer, but I still think Nebraska could be the next Iowa State or Indiana.  

To the bolded:  move the goalposts much?  While Bo didn't win any conference championships, he did play for his fair share.  In the above bolded you say he barely sniffed the back end of the top 25.  In the below bolded, you ask if it is too much to ask for national rankings.  We were pretty much in the national rankings almost every year Bo was here.  We did get blown out.  However, we nearly won some conference championships as well under Bo.  9-4 seasons in the B1G typically would result in a national ranking.    

Your post is no different than many of the posts I've read over the years that have justified firing Solich.  We haven't won a conference championship since Solich.  We haven't played for a national championship since Solich.  If the desire was to be the next Iowa State or Indiana, then we've made two huge firing blunders with Solich and Bo.  I know most fans don't like to hear this, but our ceiling changed when we joined the Big 12.  It changed again when we joined the B1G.    

1 hour ago, Guy Chamberlin said:

 

Head football coach at UNL is the biggest celebrity in the entire state. 

 

It's a blessing and a curse and appears to be tied to winning.  No one knows that better than Tom Osborne. 

 

Celebrities get fawned over, given tons of perks, and score prodigious amounts of tail (hey Frank!) but they also have millions of people judging and trolling them. 

 

The person who leads Nebraska back to relevance will have the state at his feet and will never have to buy his own Runza again. 

If past performance is indicative of future results, the bolded is absolutely false.  Bo brought us back to relevance, and we fired him.  If Solich would have won the NC in either 99' or 01' he still would have eventually been fired.