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Today Tom Osborne announced his retirement from Nebraska Athletics. It's a bittersweet day, mirrored by a cold December day in 1997. Today, in Nebraska, it's bright and sunny. But I can't help remembering that day, in the midst of yet another National Championship run, when Dr. Tom announced that he was stepping down from his post as Head Coach at the University of Nebraska. In his 25 years at the helm, Osborne guided the Huskers through good times and bad - more good than bad, by far - and left the program on the highest of highs, finishing his final five years with a 60-3 record. But that's not all he accomplished. We all know the rundown: 255 career wins. Won 250 games faster than any coach in NCAA history 25 years winning 9 or more games 25 straight bowl games 13 Conference Championships Three National Championships Two Heisman Trophy winners Ranked in the Top 25 throughout his career, minus two weeks National Coach of the Year eight times Coached 65 CoSIDA Academic All-Americans College Football Coaching Hall of Fame entry - 1999 Jim Thorpe Lifetime Achievement Award - 2000 Founder, TeamMates Program Throughout his career Osborne coached with class and honor. He retired in 1997 from coaching, taking up a political career in the House of Representatives in 2000-2006, representing Nebraska's 3rd District. Osborne returned to the University of Nebraska when the football program was in disarray, taking on an interim Athletic Director position in 2007. Osborne navigated the football program through some dark times, helping guide it back to stability, if not dominance. As stated in Tom Osborne's bio on Huskers.com, "To put Osborne’s dedication to developing complete student-athletes in perspective, he accumulated more football Academic All-Americans in his 25 years as coach than any other football program in the nation has produced in its history." The legacy Osborne leaves behind is measured as much in the hearts of those he coached, both players and fans, as in his tangible accomplishments. Tom Osborne may, possibly, go down in history as Nebraska's most influential citizen. High School star athlete, Coach, Congressman, Athletic Director of the state's flagship sports program, his is a legacy that will resonate through this state long after his retirement. Now that Tom has retired, and (presumably) officially left the public eye in Nebraska, we can only hope he has many years left to bask in the glow of his accomplishments. If ever a man deserved to, it's Dr. Tom. "Success, as far as I'm concerned, cannot be measured in terms of wins. It's more than winning. To make an effort to win in a manner that reflects well on the university. That has a positive effect on young people." -Tom Osborne