ray233

Now, come'on guys....if a Baylor or Iowa State fan was on here raising the same issue....we'd tell them to go win some games first (at least I would). Until we prove otherwise, we're a 5-7 team trying to earn the right to be listed. I'm seeing the light just like you guys, but until we do it on the field, the glass of kool-aid is going to be half empty from the outside looking in. One more week to go!

Thats ridiculous... Thanks for the info folks. I seem to remember him coming here and the BOO birds were LOUD that game if memory serves. Ahhh...this takes me back. I remember being at that game in '05. Evridge was getting hammered all day and just kept popping back up. He showed a lot of heart and really impressed me with his toughness. I also remember being worried about how bad our team was during that game. Zac Taylor got hit hard in the 4th quarter, leaving it up to Harrison Beck to come in at the last second to complete a game saving pass. After a few disturbing first attempts (he actually threw a ball BEHIND the visiting team bench...and he wasn't trying to throw it away), he finally hit a receiver and put us in field goal range. Evridge was having a HORRIFIC passing day. He went 5-27 (18.5%), and at one point, I think he had gone two quarters without completing a single pass. The sad part was that although he may have been tough, he was not fast by any means. I think he ran for over 150 yards on us. You'd have thought he was Vince Young. All this after three losses in a row, getting outscored by nearly 50 points. Man...is it next Saturday yet? I need to move on from this...

We didn't "need" Keller, but I think a quarterback with game experience was important when the 3rd opponent was USC. If it was Ganz that went down last year, instead of having Keller, did you really want the season coming down to (our beloved) Beau Davis? We still don't know how Beau or Ganz would have held up through the physical pounding that Keller took last year. I like Beau and his ethics, but he just doesn't have the necessary tools for success in D-I. That said, without the Keller thing happening like it did, how else could we have gotten 2 decent QBs on the depth chart in 2007? Where else do we get a starting quarterback with big-boy game experience to leave their program and commit to one year with Nebraska? I think what happened in 2007 was the best situation for us in 2008. Joe played enough to get comfortable, not take too many licks, and gain confidence in a 'nothing to lose situation' in the season's final games. Plus, now we might actually play some defense to go along with it.

That's essentially what Nebraska has been trying to do...salvage the excellence before the program's standards descend. And rest assured, if KU puts together three or four 9-win seasons in a row (through tougher schedules and some player turnover), my perception of the program's recent success will certainly change. Respect needs to be given where it's earned.

JustTheTip, I should have used quotes. I was replying to a statement by jayhawk. He said: "Maybe you guys are so used to dominant that you forgot what a normal definition of good is..." I was agreeing with him. Just like I'm sure losing in the first round of the NCAA tournament a couple of years ago was unacceptable. Even I have higher standards for your team than that.

J, I think our standard of good is a little different. We're spoiled in Huskerland....not a lot of losing to temper our expectations over the years. Right, wrong or indifferent, we expect to have a well-ranked and nationally competitive team every year. I think the Callahan tenure is still looked at as an odd period for many of us. It just didn't feel right, didn't feel like our Nebraska program. I mark it up as a fluke. So far, Pelini's brand is feeling a lot more familiar. A lesser level of success with Pelini may bring my expectations down a bit, but until then, I'm sticking with the high standards.

Is that 'passion' I just heard from a Nebraska coach? It almost sounds like he understands what college football is about. In fact, it almost sounds like the players might be motivated... (freaking Callahan regime...)

Agreed. Honestly, I don't think this game is that much of a threat. I know some smaller conference schools can compete outside of their division (the Boise State's), but those teams are usually kicking the crap out of their own conference. Boise State has only lost one conference game in the past in the past 6 years. They can mix it up with the talent and size of the big boys, but they are dominating their own conference. Western Michigan is a middle-of-the-packer in the middle of the pack. Our offense was decent last year, and much more effective with Ganz at the helm. Defensively, if you think Bo's defensive production will be anything like what we put on the field last year, we shouldn't even be whispering the "V" word. We could be 0-3 by that time. Luckily though, we have the size and talent to run all day long against WMU. I'm not placing any bets, but with the horses we have in the 3-deep, we could put up 400 yards rushing...seriously. WMU gave up 400 yards/game last year, and if we weren't looking to exercise our "multiplicity on offense", we could run for every one of them. Wait a second, we gave up 477 yards/game last year.....let's not go by old stats.

Do these guys work for Mission Impossible? They self-destruct like it's a part of the process.

jack, I have no problem with the success of other teams in our division. It's great for the North and the Big12 as a whole for everyone in our conference to succeed. I just think it's very premature for fans of a team like Kansas to start trumpeting things like "turning the corner", "power shifts in the North" and "shafted in the polls" after one successful season. If there's one thing that shouldn't be taken as condescending, that's the facts: KU's last six seasons: 2007: 11-1 2006: 6-6 2005: 7-5 2004: 4-7 2003: 6-7 2002: 2-10 KU's 2007 opponents: W Central Michigan (8-5) W Southeastern Louisiana (3-8) W Toledo (5-7) W Florida International (1-11) W Kansas State (5-7) W Baylor (3-9) W Colorado (6-6) W Texas A&M (7-5) W Nebraska (5-7) W Oklahoma State (6-6) W Iowa State (3-9) L Missouri (11-2) Reality is that the great season Kansas had last year, included wins over seven teams with losing records. It's not that we simply can't respect Kansas as a winner, it's that we wouldn't be impressed with our own team with those results through that schedule. We know it's not just about the record at the end of the season. It's about playing at a high-level and sustaining it. Kansas hasn't proven that. Don't temper your expectations, but please look objectively at the program you are and the programs you face. With all the pride we have in Husker Nation, we too have to temper our expectations no matter how excited we are about the season. Maybe I should have only addressed KU fans with this post.....I'm not ready to call Missouri a national power, but they do scare me a little this year.

I love this. This gets me really excited for what the defense could possibly do this year. Guys start playing for each other, and not themselves... could end up being a very good year for the defense. I agree, but if you look back at articles before last season, they talk about the comraderie of the players, how they believe in one another, etc. etc. just like we are reading now. I don't know how much of this "feel good" sentiment is media generated/slanted and how much is real or if there really is a lot of difference. We'll find out how different it is this year, not when the team is playing well, but how they react to a bad game/bad series, etc. Will they get down on each other/themselves like last year, or will they pick each other up? We won't know the answer to this until we see the first sign of adversity, right now, we are still in the honeymoon phase. I am optimistic in this team and staff, but I don't know how much of this sunshine pumping is being generated by the media, and how much is genuine. You can ask 18-22 year old kids questions in a certain way to get a response in the ballpark of what you are looking for in order to write your story the way you want to. I really hope there is an attitude shift, but the fact is we don't really know right now. I guess my main point is, let's get down to the damn football games! I am getting sick of all the hype and the articles, etc. It has been a damn long offseason. Let's just hope that when the adversity comes, there is someone there to 'coach' them through it.

KU Head coach performance bonus criteria: 2007: 11-1 2006: 6-6 2005: 7-5 2004: 4-7 2003: 6-7 2002: 2-10 KU elite opponent criteria: Central Michigan (8-5) Southeastern Louisiana (3-8) Toledo (5-7) Florida International (1-11) Kansas State (5-7) Baylor (3-9) Colorado (6-6) Texas A&M (7-5) Nebraska (5-7) Okahoma State (6-6) Iowa State (3-9) Missouri (11-2) I just read your other post JGS. I rather enjoyed your extreme sarcasm. As you can see above, I too am taking the high road.

Thanks guys....It's nice to have a place to jot down my (admittedly) long-winded thoughts. My wife usually changes the channel about 20 seconds into the show. You guys are awesome though....I've been reading this board for a long time as a visitor and more recently a member. I just love the loyalty and hunger for Husker football. GBR!

Arrogant KU and MU fans have been bugging me as of late. The delusion I see on these boards in some cases is almost saddening. The biggest issue I see in some of these posts, is that fans of these schools with recent success just don't get it. They don't understand the difference between a good TEAM and a good PROGRAM. I'm going to attempt to explain it to them: Characteristics of a good team include: Good Players Good Coaching Good Team Chemistry Happy Fans Characteristics of a good program include: Winning Tradition Consistently High Expectations Consistent Recruiting Proven Philosophies Loyal Fans No one should argue that Kansas and Missouri had good teams last year. But let's be realistic. We need to remove the phrase "turned the corner" from their vocabularies. Kansas didn't become a winning program after beating Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl. Basketball? Sure. Kansas has all of the characteristics of a good program. Kansas football? Not quite. If Kansas goes 4-8 this year, the fans are going to be disappointed, but they'll simply temper their lofty expectations for the next year. Instead of high expectations, they will go back to high hopes. Mark Mangino will not lose his job after a collection of 7-5 seasons. The 2007 KU team had good players, good coaching, good chemistry and a friendly schedule. They had success as a team, not as a program. For an unproven program, it's a dice roll from year to year. Maybe Kansas will be good this year, maybe they won't be. Until a school like KU is a top team year in and year out, the status of the program will remain the same. Missouri? Same boat. They've been putting a good team on the field for the last couple of seasons, but nothing with the program has changed. Same coaching, same philosophies, same expectations. If Missouri goes 6-6 this season, fans will throw their hands up and blame it on the "Pinkel Factor". After a season or two, expectations will conform to the on-field results. Maybe they'll still be high, maybe they'll be back to wishful thinking. That's how unproven programs function. Nebraska on the other hand, is not in this realm of unproven programs. Nebraska has the winning tradition, high expectations, proven philosophies and loyal fans. In a good program the expectations never drop. Year in and year out, people surrounding the program will expect a highly competitive team. Not hope, expect. Successful programs will set the bar high. If they don't reach that bar, people start getting fired. A good program will not guarantee a good team every year, but it will demand progress and success. I'll sum it up for you here KU and MU fans: Having a good team does not mean you have a good program. Having a good program means you continually have good teams. Got it? Nebraska has been down for a clear reason. The things that made the program great were deviated from. The program and it's tradition was churning out good to great teams every year. Not a losing season in 40 years before Callahan. Nebraska hadn't lost to Missouri or Kansas at home since before the kids in the student sections were born. We know what went wrong in the program. It's being rectified on a program level, which means the good to great teams will start hitting the field again very soon. The program dictates the winning culture and will now settle for nothing less. I just want these guys to understand that a good couple of seasons for them and a bad season for Nebraska, does not reverse the rotation of the earth. Nebraska is still the better program and will reload. These unproven groups should really get some continual success before they start thinking they have "it". You're not a good program, until you're a good program. The true measure? When a poor season is an unacceptable anomaly....and there's a piece of serious hardware in the case (or maybe four or five pieces). The biggest ingredient in the "kool-aid" is success. You see kiddies, enjoying your success is one thing...but acting like all of the sudden you're one of the elite programs is another. Your program isn't there and as of right now...it's not even a discussion. Your teams are trying hard and that's respectable, but it takes a whole lot of winning to truly "turn the corner". Until then, your recent winning is as systematically temporary as our losing. That carriage that you're riding in is just a pumpkin called 'hype'. Show some humility. Midnight could strike at any time princess...

Isn't Colt McCoy that child actor from "The Littles", who always wore the red hat? No?

hskrpwr, Thanks for the feedback. If you look at a team like the 2003 Huskers (oddly enough), they were ranked pretty high in many defensive categories and had a pretty weak offense (Jamaal Lord/Josh Davis). The team went 9-3. Out of the defensive starters on that team, 8/11 were drafted. The other three were invited to workouts, as well as many other players on the 2-deep. There was not that much NFL talent on that team, but other guys were able to reap the benefits of the team having a high-profile season defensively. Of course scouts aren't "measuring" a player's win/loss record along with his 40 time. However, they do follow the hype for evaluation. That whole Husker defense got a deeper look from scouts because of the production of the whole unit. I don't think Baylor's defensive players got as much preliminary attention from the scouts that year. Being on the 'radar' counts for something, and a good team can get you there. IMHO

I don't know that there will be much of a difference in the quality of the games. Personally, I like day games better. Sunshine over Memorial Stadium on a Saturday afternoon.

I'm more offended by the target subjects hair than anything the blogger had to say. I'm disgusted by it.

There is a time for me each year where I am completely consumed by Husker football. The idol that is the Big Red, seems to surface just before fall practice, continually ramping up my anticipation level, until kickoff roughly 5 weeks later. To pass this time, I usually have to engulf myself in Husker happenings for 30-60 minutes a day. Outside of reading the same stories from different news outlets (and pretending like they're new), I start to dig around through statistics and look for signs of hope and positive numbers in Nebraska's favor. Adding to the situation, is the fact that we are embarking on the results of another regime change, affording me the opportunity to look at the very subtle changes in program that may or may not translate to the field. As my patience has grown thin, I have officially decided to do more than sit back and read any and everything that is published regarding Nebraska Football. I am now going to fill some of that time gap by exercising my post count... Enough of that BS. On with the meat of the post. The Body Language As the desperation grew this off season, I decided that one of the best gifts I could give myself would be a $9.99/month subscription to Huskersnside.com. I haven't decided on whether I'm happy or disappointed that their full game "archives" do not have any game footage from the Callahan era whatsoever. But in reality, one in my position can't be too picky...and besides, I don't buy DVDs of movies that I didn't like in the theater. What is available, however, is a collection of tunnel walk videos throughout the years. I found it very interesting to watch the body language of the players as they prepared to take to the field throughout the different coaching regimes. Mainly 1994-1995, 2003 and 2007. Here's what I noticed: 1994-1995, These guys approached the field like they weren't allowed eat without a victory. Very business-like. Heads held high and intense focus. They believed they could beat everyone....and did. These guys were all pretty calm through the walk. They reminded me of hitmen. Even before the first championship, they walked with their heads high. Their body language said "We will succeed". 2003, I'm not sure how much of the influence on Bo's defense was leftover from previous years, but these guys were fired up for every play. You could easily see the results on the field, but even in the tunnel walk, guys were amped...bouncing around and brimming with energy. These guys just couldn't wait to take the field. You don't see any uncertainty in them. Their body language said "We will leave every single drop on the field". 2007, Something was wrong. For the most part, guys were casually moving through the line. A couple of guys seemed 'fired up' during the sequence, but upon further review, it appeared to be more of a frolic of fonfidence (fake confidence) than anything else. A couple guys are almost dancing around and acting silly, as opposed to the intense focus witnessed by previous walks. Also, from the view of the horseshoe (behind the heads of exiting players), it appears that many players have their heads down a bit as they walk by. I can understand the tall guys ducking their heads, but for the most part, Billy's boys looked like they were trying to psyche themselves up instead of actually just being psyched for game day. Their body language said "We're down, but we'll try". Reviewing the Tunnel Walk videos really got me thinking about team "swagger". Team swagger typically develops from one of two sources: A coaching philosophy that attempts to breed it, or the experience of success. Either way, it seems to be a very consistent ingredient in good to great teams. True confidence can not be underestimated, and it is painfully obvious to most of Husker followers, that Callahan's teams did not have it. Some of his player's had it, but the team never did. There is a gigantic difference between the two. Confident teams win games, confident individuals win awards. One of the more intriguing ideas from this brief study was about the swagger of the coaches alignment with the team attitudes. Tom Osborne was a guy who didn't talk much about it. He was hard-working and quietly passionate. By most accounts, he was also nice and extremely humble. However, you never got the feeling that he was unsure of himself in the slightest bit. Bo is a football man. He lives breathes and eats the game of football, and technically, he is very disciplined in his approach to it. But Bo brings his heart with him to the football field, and apparently his heart is made out of organic volcano lava. Bo's passion is infectious, not just to the players, but even to the fans. His drive for excellence and no-nonsense approach to achieving it is hard to look beyond. He is a fiery leader, but more importantly, Bo Pelini is a trusted teacher. His players believe in him, his staff believes in him and the fans believe in him. This passion and fire takes a hold of his players from the onset. Bo does not have to convince his players to play hard. He breeds passion, brotherhood and accountability until it is an automatic process. Pelini doesn't wait patiently for confidence, he installs it like a defense. You can see it in all of his players. Like Pelini, Callahan eats and breathes the X's and O's. Also, like Pelini, Callahan is highly disciplined in his approach. The big difference in attitude between the coaches, was that Callahan created a culture of emotional discipline in conjunction with the demands on players' schematic understanding of his complex offense. There were just a couple of problems, though: The Fall of Callahan Callahan's staff approached the game with a business-like mentality, but without the confidence of success. Player's developed more as co-workers, than family. Many played for themselves and to salvage their opportunities. The culture was very much in tune with Callahan's NFL background. In the NFL, the guy behind or in front of you is a threat to your bottom line. Your exceeding him could be the difference between a Mercedes and a Maybach. The difference between taking a cold shower, or wading in an olympic-sized swimming pool in the shape of your head. Player's don't typically establish a brotherhood in the NFL, because there is too much internal competition. In the age of free agents, salary caps and multiple contract clauses, being a rich man is a lot of hard work and loyalty and passion generally take a backseat. In college football though, (hopefully) none of your teammates are getting paid. You don't play for pay, you play to win. The bottom line in the college football world, is winning. Sure, some players have the opportunity for individual ability to take them to the next-level, but being on a losing team can hurt those chances just as much as anything else. The NFL Draft is all about perception. Who looks the part? Who's going to stay out of jail? Who has the best stats? If your team is in the tank, then the perception can get muddled. The lack of sacks for a defensive end don't always take into account how many times he was double-teamed (because the rest of the line was mediocre). Scouts don't really care that you're a better player than your teams 3-9 record says you are. They don't care that your receivers never ran crisp routes and dropped passes, leading to your 1:2 touchdown to pick ratio. On the other side of this, scouts do pay more attention to a mediocre player on a National Championship team. The point is, that in college football being on a winning team counts big. It's all that matters in college and it counts big in the evaluation of players for the next-level. The right mix of millionaires can win in the pros. In college, the desire to win has to replace the fear of not getting a contract extension. That culture has to be set and maintained. Since there's no guaranteed money to motivate players, there has to be personal coaching too. The impending threat of not making it to "The League" will not create a brotherhood of football players. If anything, it will separate players as they enhance their focus on "me" and me's opportunities. Selfishness opposes help defense, playing for the man next to you...even playing for the fans. Bill Callahan's business plan game plan did not prepare his players for college football. Players who's talent exceeded the bad seasons enough to give them a shot at the NFL, may be better prepared for the pro culture, I'll give him that. However, those players were few and far between. The truly gifted players will adapt, even with poor coaching in college. But for everyone of them, there are 15 guys on the team that will live or die from the coaching they receive. Often times, college is the transition into adulthood both physically and emotionally for players. At this point in their lives they can need as much advice in life, as they do with their field techniques. Unfortunately, even the best coach can't play 'poppa' to every young man on the roster. Player's have to hold each other accountable. Player's have to resolve their own issues and motivate one another. The best coaches are able to establish this culture within the team, enabling the players to govern their own relationships. This is where the bond forms. The brotherhood. Callahan (slash Pederson) did not maintain Nebraska's football family. They tore down the successful farm to build a skyscraper in it's place. They turned away from Nebraska's foundation, which has always been exemplified in the relationships and the attitudes of the players. The organism that is Nebraska football rejected these changes like a bad heart transplant, and as a result, four seasons of Big Red football died on the operating table. At this point, the program didn't need another new heart, it needed the old one back. Our beloved Huskers got that heart back when Tom Osborne returned. The confidence and swagger of Nebraska football has stayed with him, even when it was nowhere to be found on the field. He doesn't have to call plays and recruit to be effective. He doesn't have to reinstate the option. What he has to do is make decisions for the program that are in line with the Nebraska way. The ethics, the tradition, the swagger. Bo Pelini was a decision. He was a decision made with the interests and understanding of Nebraska Football at it's core, by the undisputed beating heart of the program for the last few decades. Tom Osborne made a family decision. The Rise of Pelini Husker football has not been Husker football for four years. They still wore the uniforms, walked the tunnel and played the game, but they just didn't get it. They didn't understand it. They didn't know it. They're learning now. They're meeting the players who had success. They're meeting players who loved college football and hated half pads because they couldn't lay the wood to each other. They're being taught football as a primary and schematics as a secondary. They're evaluated on their ability to play football, instead of their ability to retain hundreds of plays they'll never use. Nebraska football is experiencing a resurgence of intensity. Star ratings are not what made Nebraska great. Effort was and will be again. Toughness was and will be again. Passion was and will be again. These are family traditions. We simply can't avoid these factors. These things define Head Coach Bo Pelini. They define his staff and will naturally define his team as a whole. It's cause and effect. You'll see it on the stat sheet, but more importantly, you'll see it in the players. The fight. The hustle. The attitude. The season won't be perfect, but it will be great to watch. We lost big because of the little things. We learned that big-budget, Hollywood coaching can not get around the small things. You can't avoid the tradition. You can't avoid the basics. You must respect college football for what it is. Many of us were excited about the possibilities of change....now we're clamoring to go back to the future with Bo Pelini. The grass wasn't really greener, and I'm more excited to be a Husker fan than ever. I will be watching things closely. As a fan of this great program, I am starving for some on-the-field success and the swagger that comes along with it. I will be paying especially close attention to the body language in the opening act: The 2009 Tunnel Walk.

I'd say NU by 3 TDs easy. Nebraska's will be able to run the ball all day long. They'll control the clock and set the tempo....opening the passing game wide open if desired. I'm not expecting WMU to go scoreless, but I don't believe they're going to control the ball or the clock with the run....and their quarterback tends to throw picks, if they have to bomb away. I doubt WMU can win: -The Time of Possession Battle -The Battle in the Trenches -The Special Teams Battle They could potentially win the turnover battle, but I doubt with the new effort infusion that NU will be idle on defense. Plus, the "Sea of Red" can and will be a huge distraction to their psyche, confidence and team communication. Pencil me in fellas.....NU by at least 21. Come and get it Western Michigan.

I think we will handle WMU without much of a fight...for a number of reasons. -Our defense will be 100% better on effort alone, not to mention proven schematics and the ability to adjust -This will be Bo's first game, and he will be looking to make a statement...defensively, if nothing else -The defense is excited to have the freedom to make plays, plus they've got a huge chip on their shoulder. If that wasn't enough, they get a quarterback who is prone to throw it up for grabs (20 TDs/15 INTs last season). -Let's not forget about our solid quarterback, Joe Ganz had 17 CAREER passing attempts before starting the final three games of 2007 against conference opponents...in those games, he averaged 466.3 yards, 58% Completions, 5TD/2.33INT per game (in his FIRST THREE career starts) -Did I mention 2 out of those 3 games were on the road? In his one game at home, he was 30/40 (75%), for 510 yards, 7 TDs, no picks. Near flawless in the comfort of Memorial Stadium. -I'm not saying Ganz is Peyton Manning, but statistically speaking Ganz was a rookie last year...now a bit more settled and confident, he gets Western Michigan at home. I expect the offense to roll. -Furthermore, our experienced O-line should dominate against a WMU D-line that averages just under 266 lbs. The average drops to just about 248 lbs in the 2-deep. We should be able to wear an undersized Western Michigan out with the ground game. The stable of backs should be tearing off chunks of yardage all game long. -On the flip side, WMU's starting running back is 5'10", 169 lbs. Not that he can't be effective at that size, but I don't see the Broncos wearing us out with their ground game. -Do 85,000 pumped up fans matter at this point?

1) How long have you been a member of Husker Nation? Probably around 20 years. 2) What/who led you to The Nation? I saw the games on TV with friends growing up. 3) Where are you from originally? Bellevue, NE 4) Where do you live now? Papillion, NE 5) Favorite Husker memory? Too many. Walking back in and seeing the winning kick in the 2005 Pitt game was cool. 6) Worst Husker memory? Big 12 championship in 2006. My wife and I were the only morons in the stadium without sock warmers. She ended up putting gloves on her feet to help with the sub-zero temps. I basically just cried on the inside. 7) Number of home games attended? Not sure...maybe 15-20 8) Number of away games attended? Not sure....maybe 4 9) Favorite Husker memorabilia/apparel?....I used to have a Tommie Frazier jersey I bought at a supermarket. I wore it for picture day in 8th grade. 10) Favorite place to watch a Husker game? I like watching at home now....I've been front row and nosebleed. Really doesn't matter now, just about any seat is a good seat. 11) Favorite all time player? I thought Crouch was sweet 12) WCO or Option? WCO now, Option then 13) Stevie Pederson or Billy Byrne? Tom Osborne 14) Lil Red or Herbie Husker? Lil Herbie 15) Favorite Husker play? Tommie Frazier breaks 67 tackles in one play 16) Favorite game-day beverage? Limeade 17) How did you find HuskerBoard? I don't remember. Probably Google GBR

I think when we look at the staff changes here, we are focusing way too much on schemes. Don't discount how poorly our defense was 'coached' during Callahan's tenure. Was Cosgrove responsible for everything that was wrong with Nebraska the last few years? Certainly not. Was Cosgrove responsible for our horrific defenses? Absolutely. He did NOT adjust. He did NOT scheme appropriately for the variation of offenses he faced. He did NOT motivate players to play with passion. He did NOT teach players fundamentals. He did NOT develop players. He did NOT create leaders. Adjustments: How many times did you scratch your heads when Cosgrove's scheme would get destroyed by the same plays over and over again, quarter after quarter? Schemes: How many times did Cosgrove open up with a scheme that in no way matched up with the opponent we were facing? How many turnovers did we create? Motivation: I remember more Huskers with mugshots, than I do with awards. The guys who were self-motivated, did okay. The guys who needed a push from the coaches, not so well. Where was the driving, the pounding, the screaming, the 'hair on fire'? I miss it. Fundamentals: Missed tackles. Enough said. Development: Barry Turner was a freshman All-American. He's been largely ineffective for 2 straight years. McKweon was a promising Sophomore. He would not have played for most schools the last two years, let alone been a starting MLB. Suh has the talent. Dillard has the instinct. Our walk-on program made nobodies into All-Americans like it was a bad habit in years past. How many walk-ons did Cosgrove develop? How many kids got molded? Coaching is what truly levels the playing field between star ratings. Leadership: This is sorely missed. Aside from the 'Zack Bowman turns in his Blackshirt' story, can anyone really define the leaders on these past few teams? Adam Carriker? Scary man-beast, but not a field general by my standards. Ricky Thenarse? Passionate, but not a grab you by the facemask kind of guy just yet. Corey McKweon? Promising early, but did not play at a high enough level to be bossing other guys around. Courtney Grixby? Played with a lot of heart, but did not inject it into his teammates. He was a quiet leader when someone needed to be screaming. Maybe you saw something different, but I saw a group of guys, with no leader and no consistency. Cosgrove could not build kids into better football players. Promising players have not been coached to success during his tenure, in fact, most of them had lost the passion they started out with. He had a penchant for being inflexible and playing favorites. His inflexible schemes were the cause of many yards gained, many games lost and ultimately his job. From the outside looking in, his approach was a wildly optimistic hope that the kids on the roster would simply "get it". If not, better luck with the next set of recruits. That's NOT coaching; that's management. You can get away with that in the NFL, mainly because if a multi-million dollar contract won't motivate a kid, not much will. The only currency you have with college kids...is passion. Let them acquire it in buckets and make them spend every cent. When I think about Bo Pelini in terms of adjustments, schemes, motivation, fundamentals, development and leadership, I see exciting times. I see talent becoming each kids starting point, not their peak. I see flexibility and adjustments saving yards and preserving wins. I see Bo doing the little things. The little things that matter. The basics of his philosophies. Tackle or be replaced. Go hard or go home. Be a leader or we'll make one. Expect Pelini to bring small changes with big impact. The coaching mentalities between him and Cosgrove alone will reshape this defense immediately. I can't predict numbers or stats, but I predict VAST defensive improvement with confidence. Don't be surprised if Bo's staff changes just as much within the players as he does schematically. As a team, a change in attitude can take you from the bottom to the top faster than any X's or O's. GBR

"Teams that will represent, that we can be proud. Doesn’t mean we’ll win every game, but at least be a very competitive football team that people don’t look forward to playing very much." That is why I love Tom Osborne. That humble ferocity is one in a million.

Missouri in the National Championship game? When did people stop taking the 'Pinkel Factor' into account? Pinkel ---> <--- Mizzouri's chances