SI column

[np_husker]

From www.si.com written by Mark Beech

 

The 'system' isn't the problem

Ex-NFLers Wannstedt, Callahan are failing in college

Posted: Wednesday September 21, 2005 11:26AM; Updated: Wednesday September 21, 2005 11:26AM

 

A few weeks ago, my colleague Austin Murphywrote in SI that the Sept. 5 tilt between Miami and Florida State (won by the Seminoles in a 10-7 barnburner) was a game that set offensive football back several decades. If that's true, then the boundaries of time travel were severely tested Saturday by Nebraska's shockingly awful 7-6 victory over Pitt. It was a game of startling ineptitude, featuring more penalties (15) than points scored (13), as well as a bizarre game-winning field goal attempt in which the Panthers' kicker caught an errant snap off of his holder's helmet and threw an incomplete pass.

 

How to explain such shenanigans? There's always plenty of blame to go around, but there's no way to avoid laying most of it at the feet of the respective coaches, Pitt's Dave Wannstedt and Nebraska's Bill Callahan. Both have extensive NFL head-coaching pedigrees. Both were expected to do great things in their current jobs. And now it's clear that both are failing.

 

We keep hearing that the problem is the kids aren't getting the system. Pitt, which scrapped the wide-open attack of former coach Walt Harris, is 0-3 after starting the year ranked in the top 25. Panthers quarterback Tyler Palko, a star last fall, is currently the 95th-rated passer in the country and has thrown one touchdown against four interceptions. Nebraska is in its second year of learning the West Coast offense, with no visible progress. Callahan's team was 5-6 in 2004, and though the Huskers are 3-0 at the moment, folks in Lincoln can't be happy with a passing offense ranked 108th.

 

Tell me, why haven't I heard the "not getting the system" excuse at Notre Dame? New coach Charlie Weis made a name for himself in the NFL as an offensive genius, after all. Why haven't I heard it from Florida, where coach Urban Meyer has taught his complex spread option offense to a bunch of kids who weren't even recruited to play it? If you believe Meyer, he isn't even all that happy with the way his team is running the thing -- yet the Gators still beat an excellent Tennessee team Saturday night.

 

We haven't heard "not getting the system" from either of those schools, for the simple reason that Weis and Meyer haven't just installed a system. They have taught it. The trouble I see for Pitt and Nebraska is I don't think either program is in the hands of men capable of much more than stewardship. There's little in the head-coaching pedigrees of Wannstedt and Callahan, who both have won championships at the collegiate and professional levels as assistants, to suggest they are the kind of head coaches who make teams better.

 

Let's start with Wannstedt. In six seasons with the Chicago Bears, who, to be fair, weren't that good before he showed up, Wannstedt went 41-57. During that time, he participated in some truly awful draft-day decisions (anyone remember Curtis Enis?) and presided over some truly awful teams. He did better in Miami a few years later, going 43-33, but most of those wins came with Jimmy Johnson's players. By the time Wannstedt left, nine games into the 2004 season, things were falling apart.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wannstedt made his name as a defensive coordinator. His offensive coordinator in Pittsburgh is Matt Cavanaugh, who served in a similar capacity last year for the Baltimore Ravens -- the same Ravens whose passing offense ranked 29th in the NFL in 2004. Gone are the four-receiver packages and pro-style pass patterns that Harris had the Panthers running in 2004 -- when Palko threw 24 touchdowns and just seven interceptions. Pitt fans aren't quite sure what has taken their place, except that nothing seems to be working right now.

 

Like Wannstedt, Callahan established himself as an assistant. A student of the West Coast offense, he took over the Raiders after Jon Gruden left for Tampa Bay in 2002. With a team of established veterans -- including Tim Brown, Rich Gannon and Jerry Rice -- Callahan led Oakland to the Super Bowl XXXVII, which it lost 48-21 to the Buccaneers. The next season, after a few injuries and a little adversity hit, the team collapsed like a wet taco. Callahan was fired less than a year after reaching the pinnacle of his profession.

 

Undaunted, the powers-that-be in Lincoln brought him in to replace Frank Solich, who had had the temerity to go 9-3 in 2003. Solich lost his job because the school didn't think his option game -- the same one he had been coaching under Tom Osborne for decades -- was capable of winning national championships. Callahan promised to start winning, and soon, with a West Coast attack.

 

After the Huskers finished 5-6 and ranked 81st in the country in passing offense last fall, fans were told that it was exceedingly hard to turn a running team into a passing team. Things were supposed to be different this fall, with strong-armed quarterback Zac Taylor. Things are different, all right, but not in the way fans in the Corn Belt were hoping. Nebraska ranks 106th in total offense, 104th in passing. And that 3-0 record has come at the expense of Maine, Wake Forest and pitiful Pitt.

 

Of the two men, I suppose Wannstedt has a better chance of turning things around this year. He has great talent at quarterback and receiver, whether he's comfortable with it or not. I'll be curious to see how things go in a few years, when he plugs his own recruits into his own system. I could always be wrong, but I expect that Pitt will muddle through those seasons, like Wannstedt's teams always do.

 

As for Callahan, I don't know if he has much more time. Against Pitt, the Cornhuskers were called for six procedure penalties, two for setting up with only six men on the line of scrimmage. Nebraska looks lost out there, which is not a vibe I get when I watch Notre Dame or Florida. I know these Huskers were recruited to run the ball, and Callahan might have more success if he tried to do more of that, but something tells me his problems go deeper.

[DaveH]

Typical SI article on NU. Mildly accurate.

 

FWIW, Weiss came into a team that didn't run a whole different system.

[np_husker]

I agree with what you say about SI, but I have to admit that I'm frustrated with the fact that we are seeing pretty much zero improvement from week to week. In fact, we might be taking a few steps backwards.

[roadrat]

I'm sure SI would rather write about the failures at NU than any successes. There are some truths to the article but the fact is the 3-0 record is a result of scheduling by Steve Pederson more than anything else.

[BigRedJake]

I love it how the media can't help but portray Solich's firing in a way that makes Nebraska look as stupid as possible. God forbid we give Nebraska the same respect we give everyone else. I don't really have anything to say though. How is this any different that any other anti-Callahan article? Other than the fact that it compares a second year, 3-0 coach with a first year, 0-3 coach. That's not a very fair comparison for either, is it?

[KState Wildcat]

I love it how the media can't help but portray Solich's firing in a way that makes Nebraska look as stupid as possible. God forbid we give Nebraska the same respect we give everyone else. I don't really have anything to say though. How is this any different that any other anti-Callahan article? Other than the fact that it compares a second year, 3-0 coach with a first year, 0-3 coach. That's not a very fair comparison for either, is it?

This is not an attack on Jake but read some of the articles that were posted in here when it was announced that Solich was leaving. It just takes SI a couple of years to figure out what is really going on. NU's D has never left, however the WC offense has never been completely sold to the Husker Faithful. It is hard to change the only way a program wins. And I still don't understand why it was changed. I'm glad it did but don't understand. You just don't wear teams down anymore. Fullback dive in the fourth quarter was one of the most unbelievable calls NU could have. D lines could not compete. KState has improved since 89, but it still never found a way to beat NU until they changed from bruiser to finess. You now run a Texas style offense, how have they done?

[formerfan]

How is this any different that any other anti-Callahan article? Other than the fact that it compares a second year, 3-0 coach with a first year, 0-3 coach. That's not a very fair comparison for either, is it?

I would say that it is a very fair comparison, as billy c is supposed to be a "West Coast Offense guru" and his offense is the worst in 1A football. And this is after 2 years of having him around

 

While I am not big on SI or the media in general and how they portray the entire state of NE, I think that this writer hit this one straight out of the ball park!

[Hunter94]

i agree, it is bias, but what is not is the pitiful offensive performance.....having an 8 lb. playbook is not a guarantee that the kids can learn it......i will quit carping for now and be patient for 2-3 more games, but if there is no noticable improvement i will be all over cally's coaching/playcalling.......no matter how good or bad the players, there should be OBVIOUS IMPROVEMENT HALF-WAY THROUGH THE SEASON!

 

 

hunter

[cubhusker23]

no matter how good or bad the players, there should be OBVIOUS IMPROVEMENT HALF-WAY THROUGH THE SEASON!

Or how about the 4th game of the season. I've had more fun watching soccer, which is really sad.

[hoyamannn]

i agree, it is bias, but what is not is the pitiful offensive performance.....having an 8 lb. playbook is not a guarantee that the kids can learn it......i will quit carping for now and be patient for 2-3 more games, but if there is no noticable improvement i will be all over cally's coaching/playcalling.......no matter how good or bad the players, there should be OBVIOUS IMPROVEMENT HALF-WAY THROUGH THE SEASON!

 

 

hunter

I'm DEFINITELY waiting for some improvement, but bring in Chris Leak or Brady Quinn to run the offense, Florida's O-line they have in place or any of their receivers and we're much better off.

 

SI and the rest of the national media are always ready to jump on NU when things aren't going great. Look at what they did to TO when LP played "Captain Caveman" back in 95.

 

Hopefully we get things rolling somewhat and start putting some nice drives together in the coming weeks, because God knows we'll need to against IA St and TTech. But most realistic Husker fans are aware that the real evaluation of this team will come in the next 2 years when BC has the players he wants for his system.

 

On that note, if he continues to struggle, I wouldn't be opposed to having him ousted. And at least whoever replaces him isn't going to have dust and cobwebs in the cupboard like Frank left!

[formerfan]

FWIW, Weiss came into a team that didn't run a whole different system.

True, but billy c has 5 of HIS qb's, most of the wr's that get touches are HIS wr's, most of the rb's are HIS rb's. These are guys brought in to run HIS system, and they arent getting the job done.

[Pedro Guerrero]

Brady Quinn and Chris Leak have also been starting at QB in D1 for 3 years or more. I think it is a little easier to put in a system with a QB that has played as much as these two.

[DJR313]

Typical SI article on NU. Mildly accurate.

 

Yeah, states a lot of facts, and they are ugly. I will reserve judgement till the end of the season on Callahan, but right now it isn't looking too good. SI may be right on Callahan, Wannstedt, or both, but if I had a nickel for every time they are wrong, then I would have a s**tload of nickels.

[Pedro Guerrero]

but if I had a nickel for every time they are wrong, then I would have a s**tload of nickels.

Like when Zona was going to win the NC. Or when OU was going to be the greatest team ever. Didn't they have Oregon State pre season #1 one year? Retards.

[AR Husker Fan]

***SNIP***

 

NU's D has never left, however the WC offense has never been completely sold to the Husker Faithful. It is hard to change the only way a program wins. And I still don't understand why it was changed. I'm glad it did but don't understand. You just don't wear teams down anymore. Fullback dive in the fourth quarter was one of the most unbelievable calls NU could have. D lines could not compete. KState has improved since 89, but it still never found a way to beat NU until they changed from bruiser to finess. You now run a Texas style offense, how have they done?

Hmmmm...

 

The reason the offense changed wasn't due to some kind of University-wide decision. Finding a coach who not only is willing to run it, but is able to do so correctly is difficult. And you don't go into a coaching search dictating what offense should be run. Philosphy, yes - specific offense, no. The change came with the coach - the coach didn't come after the change. Also, it is difficult to recruit to a option offense these days - every kid out there thinks he's "going to the next level" and thinks that he needs a pro-style offense to get there. There is some truth that that, though - while it seems self-evident for quarterbacks and recievers, it's also true for lineman. The pros want lineman who can pass-block.

 

And I suspect that the reason Husker Nation is not sold on it is two-fold - first, it isn't producing the way it should, and second, Husker Nation has for decades identified the team with a physical, run-oriented offense. There are those who would never want to abandon that, even if it was dominating. And when it isn't, it's just that much more difficult to win over long-time fans.

 

If the offense ever gets off the ground, then you'll see Husker Nation accept it. To paraphrase formerfan, Husker Nation wants dominance - they don't much care whether it's run-dominated, pass-dominated, or balanced.