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Shatel: NU assistant shows 'tremendous' loyalty


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How far would you go for loyalty?

 

Some of us like to think we would do anything. Rick Kaczenski found out. He had to make a choice between mentor and alma mater. He laid his character out on a courtroom table for all to dissect like a science class frog.

 

You may not know Kaczenski yet. He's the new defensive line coach for Nebraska. This is his story, the story of the kind of person Bo Pelini wants on his staff. And, more than whether he'll coach a two-gap scheme, this is what you need to know about Coach Kaz.

 

The story starts in Erie, Pa., a blue-collar town north of Pittsburgh, a town full of tough, hard-working people, a town where high school football is everything.

 

It's Joe Moore country.

 

The late Moore has been called college football's greatest offensive line coach. Of course, here in Nebraska we know that to be Milt Tenopir, the former Husker O-line mentor. Moore was the western Pennsylvania version, a former high school coach in Erie, who went on to coach at Pitt and Notre Dame, where he recruited a small, hard-nosed center from Erie's Cathedral Prep High.

 

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"Hopefully, I didn't upset any Notre Dame people. It weighed on me. It still weighs on me. I said, if I just tell the truth, I'm going to be OK."

 

He did of course. But he then adds this for emphasis: "But to be honest with you, if I needed to lie for Joe Moore, I would have lied for Joe Moore."

 

After practice on Saturday, Pelini said he had never heard that story. But it didn't surprise him.

 

"To me, it shows that he's a tremendous person with tremendous character," Pelini said of Coach Kaz. "Those are the type of people you want to surround yourself with."

 

Did this strike anyone else here as an odd thing for either Pelini or Kaz to say/admit? If I remember right, lying for your coach has gotten some people into trouble in the past.

 

Interesting.

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"Not here to put my stamp on Nebraska, Nebraska puts the stamp on you" !!!

 

I don't know if I should give the credit to Shatel, Kaczenski, or someone else, but this quote from the article stood out to me. If only all Husker coaches and players lived by this mantra...

 

I think what makes the older players (Devaney & Osborne players) different is because I think they felt this way. And I strongly believe Bo Pelini is trying his damndest in a world of "me, me, me" to recreate this way of thinking. The focus is being placed back on a team being more than the sum of its parts.

 

p.s. I can't wait to see our defense this year. Or our offense...special teams...cheerleaders...marching band...Runza/Valentino's vendors...parking attendants...CAN YOU FEEL IT!!!

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"So that means there won't be any one-on-one drills in the dark at the Hawks Complex?"

Shouldn't that read Husker Complex?

 

Just hope Kaz and Bo develop a strong bond and he stays a few years.

 

T_O_B

G>B>R

The Hawks Complex is the indoor practice facility for the football team.

 

If you were being sarcastic then I apologize for ruining it.

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"So that means there won't be any one-on-one drills in the dark at the Hawks Complex?"

Shouldn't that read Husker Complex?

 

Just hope Kaz and Bo develop a strong bond and he stays a few years.

 

T_O_B

G>B>R

The Hawks Complex is the indoor practice facility for the football team.

 

If you were being sarcastic then I apologize for ruining it.

 

Thanks man appreciate the info.

T_O_B

G>B>R

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