Did NU do the right thing in retaining Bo - some opinions

[TGHusker]

3 writers - 3 opinions

 

 

 

http://athlonsports.com/college-football/nebraska-making-right-decision-keep-bo-pelini

 

I agree wt this guy - from a pure #s point of view, Bo has won possibly 9 games each year (as I noted in other posts, I don't think 9 wins is the gold standard anymore but it beats 5-7). Bo did it with a banged up team - so he probably deserves one year to correct things that appear to be systematic (turnovers, special team play, penalties, poor tackling, blowouts). One could argue that Frank got another year after his 7-7 year soisn't it 'fair' to give Bo another year? From a Bo fatigue perspective, however, I have difficulty with another year if we end up wt the same old same old - play on the field and Bo's antics.

My comments in red below

 

David Fox (@DavidFox615)

From a numbers standpoint, Pelini has probably done enough to stay. The Cornhuskers will be in position for another nine-win season if they can win what’s probably a New Year’s Day bowl game despite injuries to his entrenched starting quarterback and more. From an administrative standpoint, Nebraska is probably making a calculated move to keep Pelini for at least another year rather than wade into a coaching carousel with USC and possibly Texas. (probably more due to the $7-8 million buy out in Bo's contract) Nebraska, despite its history, can’t compete with those two schools for top coaching candidates. But I’m sure Nebraska knows what it’s in for next season. During his postgame diatribe after the Iowa loss, Pelini complained that talk about his job affected his team this season(another excuse). We can argue how much of a role Pelini could play in keeping that pressure away from his team, but it’s not going to stop in 2014. If anything, the talk about Pelini’s job is going to be worse (agree 100% - if we thought the forum boards were kept alive this year by this debate just wait until next year - I think delay just prolongs the agony). And his behavior Saturday — spouting off in his press conference and coming within inches if smacking an official with his hat (if Bo had hit the ref - we may be in the midst of a coaching search right now - I'd say he came within inches of being fired for cause - perhaps no $7m buyout - only guessing here)— only amplifies the discussion. Besides, should we really believe this team is going to get any better? ( on paper we should be better wt a more experienced D and OL but if issues aren't corrected and coaching changes made - why can we expect more than another 4 loss year? I'm always hopeful and want to believe but too much :koolaid2:in the past makes me less hopeful things will change wtout major changes in the program) Nebraska’s probably making the right move to set up the coaching search, but it’s going to come at the cost of a sideshow of a season in 2014 (again if the only reason we are mentioned on national TV is due to Bo's actions or getting blownout, or "will Bo be replaced" it will be another long year)

[MichiganDad3]

I don't have enough information to conclude if keeping Bo was the right decision. if there was no good coach available, it was the right decision. Otherwise, I believe it was a mistake.

[robsker]

I don't have enough information to conclude if keeping Bo was the right decision. if there was no good coach available, it was the right decision. Otherwise, I believe it was a mistake.

 

I would be really surprised if a better coach were not available --- really surprised. I think it was a mistake --- not because of the on-field performance (or lack thereof) so much so as the reputation of the football program...

 

Living out-of-state, based upon my seeing the perception of other football fans, when NU comes up, the response is almost uniformly the same --- they think lack of class. They think of Ritchie incognito, Bo Pelini, Carl Pelini and Suh (and, if they are older, add Lawrence Phillips in there) --- and they think very, very negatively about NU football as a result. They see temper tantrums, headset throwing, F-bomb laced tirades, angered-drenched defiant interviews, etc....

 

The point is, if a poll were taken nationally, and the question is what football program displays the least class... NU would be tops or close to tops in the poll. That the NU administration chose to retain a coach who has contributed so much to the negative perception of the program and the university is most disappointing. To me anyway, the poor coaching quality and on-field lack of results are secondary to the class of the program... which has been, and seemingly remains, compromised.

 

I see this as a mistake and speaks volumes about the AD --- and not well.

[MichiganDad3]

I see the same thing living in Michigan. I attributed much of it to the bad feelings from 1997, but that was a long time ago.

[kchusker_chris]

One guy thought the game was on a Saturday, another thinks we only have 4 national championships. Hack job.

[Whistlebritches]

Penalties, fumbles, and win/loss record aside I'm surprised he was retained. Bo's antics on Friday by itself would be enough to get almost anyone fired and he had to have been on a fairly short leash after all his crap from the years past. Yet he stays. I don't get it.

[kchusker_chris]

I see the same thing living in Michigan. I attributed much of it to the bad feelings from 1997, but that was a long time ago.

Kansas is the same way. I honestly have not run into a single supporter of Bo around KC. The only ones I hear about are on here.

[NUance]

Athletic director Shawn Eichorst apparently thinks Pelini has done enough to keep his job, which in the end is all that really matters. ---Mark Ross

This pretty much sums it up.

[Touchdown Tommie]

I don't have enough information to conclude if keeping Bo was the right decision. if there was no good coach available, it was the right decision. Otherwise, I believe it was a mistake.

 

I would be really surprised if a better coach were not available --- really surprised. I think it was a mistake --- not because of the on-field performance (or lack thereof) so much so as the reputation of the football program...

 

Living out-of-state, based upon my seeing the perception of other football fans, when NU comes up, the response is almost uniformly the same --- they think lack of class. They think of Ritchie incognito, Bo Pelini, Carl Pelini and Suh (and, if they are older, add Lawrence Phillips in there) --- and they think very, very negatively about NU football as a result. They see temper tantrums, headset throwing, F-bomb laced tirades, angered-drenched defiant interviews, etc....

 

The point is, if a poll were taken nationally, and the question is what football program displays the least class... NU would be tops or close to tops in the poll. That the NU administration chose to retain a coach who has contributed so much to the negative perception of the program and the university is most disappointing. To me anyway, the poor coaching quality and on-field lack of results are secondary to the class of the program... which has been, and seemingly remains, compromised.

 

I see this as a mistake and speaks volumes about the AD --- and not well.

 

This is bogus! I am sure if you think hard enough you can find former players who made poor decisions while they were in college. The fact is, the program is known now for Pelini's behavior. Incognito was dismissed from the Huskers, Suh did nothing over the top while at NU (maybe the 'car accident'), and Phillips is pretty legit with issues.

 

You are acting just like the press when you try and fish for players who made poor decisions and pin the University in a bad light.

[kchusker_chris]

I don't have enough information to conclude if keeping Bo was the right decision. if there was no good coach available, it was the right decision. Otherwise, I believe it was a mistake.

 

I would be really surprised if a better coach were not available --- really surprised. I think it was a mistake --- not because of the on-field performance (or lack thereof) so much so as the reputation of the football program...

 

Living out-of-state, based upon my seeing the perception of other football fans, when NU comes up, the response is almost uniformly the same --- they think lack of class. They think of Ritchie incognito, Bo Pelini, Carl Pelini and Suh (and, if they are older, add Lawrence Phillips in there) --- and they think very, very negatively about NU football as a result. They see temper tantrums, headset throwing, F-bomb laced tirades, angered-drenched defiant interviews, etc....

 

The point is, if a poll were taken nationally, and the question is what football program displays the least class... NU would be tops or close to tops in the poll. That the NU administration chose to retain a coach who has contributed so much to the negative perception of the program and the university is most disappointing. To me anyway, the poor coaching quality and on-field lack of results are secondary to the class of the program... which has been, and seemingly remains, compromised.

 

I see this as a mistake and speaks volumes about the AD --- and not well.

 

This is bogus! I am sure if you think hard enough you can find former players who made poor decisions while they were in college. The fact is, the program is known now for Pelini's behavior. Incognito was dismissed from the Huskers, Suh did nothing over the top while at NU (maybe the 'car accident'), and Phillips is pretty legit with issues.

 

You are acting just like the press when you try and fish for players who made poor decisions and pin the University in a bad light.

It's the reality though. Pelini's antics are the core, but it magnifies everything else. When a program is viewed through a negative light, negative things shine the brightest. So when you bring up Nebraska to someone outside of Nebraska, that doesnt' follow the Huskers like we do - they see things like Suh, and Incognito, and Pelini's outbursts - and they don't see things like Jack's run...which was almost as big of a story as these 3.

[Redux]

Washington job just opened up, maybe he will go there.

[Touchdown Tommie]

I don't have enough information to conclude if keeping Bo was the right decision. if there was no good coach available, it was the right decision. Otherwise, I believe it was a mistake.

 

I would be really surprised if a better coach were not available --- really surprised. I think it was a mistake --- not because of the on-field performance (or lack thereof) so much so as the reputation of the football program...

 

Living out-of-state, based upon my seeing the perception of other football fans, when NU comes up, the response is almost uniformly the same --- they think lack of class. They think of Ritchie incognito, Bo Pelini, Carl Pelini and Suh (and, if they are older, add Lawrence Phillips in there) --- and they think very, very negatively about NU football as a result. They see temper tantrums, headset throwing, F-bomb laced tirades, angered-drenched defiant interviews, etc....

 

The point is, if a poll were taken nationally, and the question is what football program displays the least class... NU would be tops or close to tops in the poll. That the NU administration chose to retain a coach who has contributed so much to the negative perception of the program and the university is most disappointing. To me anyway, the poor coaching quality and on-field lack of results are secondary to the class of the program... which has been, and seemingly remains, compromised.

 

I see this as a mistake and speaks volumes about the AD --- and not well.

 

This is bogus! I am sure if you think hard enough you can find former players who made poor decisions while they were in college. The fact is, the program is known now for Pelini's behavior. Incognito was dismissed from the Huskers, Suh did nothing over the top while at NU (maybe the 'car accident'), and Phillips is pretty legit with issues.

 

You are acting just like the press when you try and fish for players who made poor decisions and pin the University in a bad light.

It's the reality though. Pelini's antics are the core, but it magnifies everything else. When a program is viewed through a negative light, negative things shine the brightest. So when you bring up Nebraska to someone outside of Nebraska, that doesnt' follow the Huskers like we do - they see things like Suh, and Incognito, and Pelini's outbursts - and they don't see things like Jack's run...which was almost as big of a story as these 3.

 

The only thing that is brought up is Bo now. I do agree that when negative things are going on, negative things are brought up...just like when you only look for negative, you are going to surprisingly find it.

[kchusker_chris]

Washington job just opened up, maybe he will go there.

I don't see him staying. I still think we have a new coach within the next 10 days. I could be wrong, because I really can't imagine him getting any kind of job comparable to Nebraska after the week...but I'm thinking he's on his way out. If not this year, then next - so why stay? As was mentioned in this article: "it’s going to come at the cost of a sideshow of a season in 2014."

[junior4949]

I don't have enough information to conclude if keeping Bo was the right decision. if there was no good coach available, it was the right decision. Otherwise, I believe it was a mistake.

 

I would be really surprised if a better coach were not available --- really surprised. I think it was a mistake --- not because of the on-field performance (or lack thereof) so much so as the reputation of the football program...

 

Living out-of-state, based upon my seeing the perception of other football fans, when NU comes up, the response is almost uniformly the same --- they think lack of class. They think of Ritchie incognito, Bo Pelini, Carl Pelini and Suh (and, if they are older, add Lawrence Phillips in there) --- and they think very, very negatively about NU football as a result. They see temper tantrums, headset throwing, F-bomb laced tirades, angered-drenched defiant interviews, etc....

 

The point is, if a poll were taken nationally, and the question is what football program displays the least class... NU would be tops or close to tops in the poll. That the NU administration chose to retain a coach who has contributed so much to the negative perception of the program and the university is most disappointing. To me anyway, the poor coaching quality and on-field lack of results are secondary to the class of the program... which has been, and seemingly remains, compromised.

 

I see this as a mistake and speaks volumes about the AD --- and not well.

 

I really don't think NU would be tops or near tops in a national poll over least classy football programs. The reason being that we're merely an after thought to most college football fans. I'd put more money on Bama or LSU being at the top or near tops primarily because of recent success. I really doubt most college football fans outside of Nebraska and the Big 10 give us much thought at all.

 

In terms of whether it was a mistake to retain Bo or not, I believe this is a question where the answer remains to be seen. Eichorst gave Bo some rope. He'll either hang himself next year, or we'll see dramatic improvement. These really are the only two directions I see us going. We'll either see a 2007 type implosion or we'll be singing Bo praises. This is gut check time. We'll either see a laser focused Bo, or we'll see a Bo who just doesn't give a $hit. The 2014 season will answer the question.

[ronsss]

if you like not being in the top 25...keep bo