The Mike Riley Presser

[QMany]

 

 

Expectations for Mike Riley as of 12/5/14:

1. Must get to a bowl game every year (2015 may be tough sledding, but it is a must given the pile of crap division we are in)

2. Play for and WIN a conference title in the next 3 years.

3. Be in the playoff once in the next 5 years.

Really? Who would you have hired to replace Bo back in 2010?

Mike Riley was available.

[Igetbored216]

 

 

 

These are just my raw emotions. Please, don't flame.

 

I feel like Eichorst just hired a guy that is un-fireable due to his niceness. Like, he's fire-proof.

 

This feels like an admission that domination on the field is a thing of the past, and the only thing left to cling to is some kind of ethereal spirit of Tom Osborne's "niceness." It was like Riley forced himself to say "...and win championships, too" in the presser.

 

For the record, Mike - The booster illuminati will eat you alive, one way or the other. <---Those are not MY feelings towards Mike, but is the reality of the situation if he doesn't win conference titles.

I think he is stepping into a pretty difficult situation. We fired a guy who won 9+ games each year and had people on both sides of the issue. The Callahan/Pelini transition went much easier because almost everyone was done with BC. This transition will be a little tougher because there were still strong supporters of Bo....perception.

The hire was nothing anyone thought so of course people are going to be nervous about this hire.

 

The more I keep reading and hearing about this cat, I am pretty excited. I have to disagree with you that he will be eaten alive by the illuminati. The players will back this dude and he will bring in some solid coaches....I really hope!

 

Stay the course my man!!!

 

I dont think there were that many Bo supporters left. Whats going to make this transition difficult is the hire itself. We would all be singing a different tune had we landed a proven winner. We got the exact opposite and now everyone is "hoping" what we did is right. "Hope" is not a strategy (unless you are running for president). By making this hire the pressure cooker just got hotter for the simple fact that this guy is coming into an environment now were people are already skeptical. At the first sign of trouble this thing is going to turn on its head. Had we hired a proven winner that would not be the case.

 

Again, I hope I am wrong.

 

 

But you're making the assertion that Mike Riley isn't a proven winner. Given the significant disadvantages Oregon State faced in the Pac-12--probably the less talented team when compared to all but 2 or 3 teams (Wazzu, Colorado, maybe Utah), 93-80 is pretty solid, and a record I don't believe BP could have achieved. Mike is now the head coach at Nebraska, a team that talent wise, is probably the 3rd or 4th best team in the conference (Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State) but coaching wise probably had one of the worst staffs in the conference.

 

It is within reason to assume that Mike will come in here and win. He has all the intangibles and now has the resources.

 

 

As I stated in a different thread, Bo definitely didn't leave the cupboards bare. His last two years of recruiting have been solid, and this year's class was leaning in that direction too. There are plenty of athletes on both sides of the ball just waiting to be developed.

[74Hunter]

 

Did we kill the previous staff before they even played a game yet? I don't recall that ever happening.

 

From my recollection, the 2 previous staffs were highly scrutinized before they played a game, iirc.

 

I,could be wrong, but to the best of my recollection they were.

[RedSavage]

These are just my raw emotions. Please, don't flame.

 

I feel like Eichorst just hired a guy that is un-fireable due to his niceness. Like, he's fire-proof.

 

This feels like an admission that domination on the field is a thing of the past, and the only thing left to cling to is some kind of ethereal spirit of Tom Osborne's "niceness." It was like Riley forced himself to say "...and win championships, too" in the presser.

 

For the record, Mike - The booster illuminati will eat you alive, one way or the other. <---Those are not MY feelings towards Mike, but is the reality of the situation if he doesn't win conference titles.

I have a similar feeling. It's been stated before but this seems in part to be a move to eliminate the rift between the fans and the program - bring in a guy so nice he's hard to dislike, regardless of his performance. Where my concern lies is that we potentially hired another guy who is going to be more of a father figure/friend, than coach. I'm not saying he will turn out this way but we all saw how well that worked out with the last coach we had.

[teachercd]

Thought it was a positive presser. Assuming I can take everything at face value....

 

The good;

1. Definitely seems like a nice guy. Reminds me a lot of Tim Miles. Came off much more humble than some prior coaches.

2. I like that he's more concerned with coaching to players' strengths versus be married to a scheme.

3. Like that he wants to be open with the fans and media. (Whether or not that will me practice access is still an outstanding question.)

4. Sounds like he's open to not only keeping some current staff, but also to look for some guys that are even better than what he's had.

5. Embraces the tradition of the program. Seems to believe that the program is at a level more like Bob's and Tom's Huskers versus its current state. However....

 

The nitpicking:

1. This is kind of all encompassing, but I got the impression that this is kind of a whirl-wind romance versus Mike performing what I'd consider a high level of due diligence. I'm just unsure if he truly understands the fishbowl that is Nebraska football.

2. If things really happened as quickly as described, I have to soften my stance a bit on this, but I really hoped/thought he already better knew exactly who will be part of his staff.

3. He didn't seem seem as comfortable behind the mike as I would've expected due to his vast experience. Again, nitpicking. Overall, thought he did well.

Yep

[hskrpwr13]

 

3. He didn't seem seem as comfortable behind the mike as I would've expected due to his vast experience. Again, nitpicking. Overall, thought he did well.

 

I'd bet he hasn't slept more than a couple hours a night in a week. I can't imagine the transition that guy is juggling right now....

 

Good point! Wouldn't be surprised if he's running on merely caffeine and adrenaline right now.

[Igetbored216]

 

 

Did we kill the previous staff before they even played a game yet? I don't recall that ever happening.

From my recollection, the 2 previous staffs were highly scrutinized before they played a game, iirc.

 

I,could be wrong, but to the best of my recollection they were.

 

I could see this being true with Callahan, as he took over for a coach that won nine games. I would have a hard time believing that there was much scrutiny when Bo came in, given the circumstances, especially before they even played a game.

[It'sNotAFakeID]

 

 

Did we kill the previous staff before they even played a game yet? I don't recall that ever happening.

From my recollection, the 2 previous staffs were highly scrutinized before they played a game, iirc.

 

I,could be wrong, but to the best of my recollection they were.

 

 

Cronyism.

[billdozer15]

 

 

Expectations for Mike Riley as of 12/5/14:

1. Must get to a bowl game every year (2015 may be tough sledding, but it is a must given the pile of crap division we are in)

2. Play for and WIN a conference title in the next 3 years.

3. Be in the playoff once in the next 5 years.

Really? Who would you have hired to replace Bo back in 2010?

 

I thought Bo fit the bill for what we were looking for. Stop the bleeding on defense and the blowouts. He did that for about 2 years and then his inexperience came through. Those goals are not unattainable. In fact our goal should be to win the conference every 3 years or so. Im not lowering my expectations because we hired a guy who has never done any of those. Bo never did any of those either and that is why he is kicking bricks.

[carlfense]

Kill....no. However, there were doubters due to Bo not having previous head coaching experience. Hunter and myself are just very skeptical based on previous results. What this program needed was a proven winner. We cannot afford another botched hire, we are on the edge of falling into a football abyss if we dont win something meaningful soon. Hiring a proven winner would have given this program a steroid shot. What we got was a viagra pill that will wear off in a couple hours.

No . . . what this program needs is a hire who will win here. His results at Oregon State don't mean sh!t if he can win at Nebraska.

 

I completely agree that we need to win something meaningful soon and Riley has a better shot at that than one recently departed coach.

 

Just crazy to me that the biggest Bo defenders who swore that "THIS IS THE YEAR!" (every year) are so pessimistic. Let him coach a couple games here first, eh?

[HuskerfaninOkieland]

Is there a link to watch a replay of the presser? I missed it

[carlfense]

Those goals are not unattainable. In fact our goal should be to win the conference every 3 years or so. Im not lowering my expectations because we hired a guy who has never done any of those. Bo never did any of those either and that is why he is kicking bricks.

Oh, it's not the goals themselves that I was questioning. I think those are pretty reasonable. Number 3 might be a long shot but it's not out of the question.

 

If you were holding Bo to those same standards that's fair.

[JJ Husker]

 

For a guy who is so well respected around coaching and media circles, he knows NOBODY on the staff?

I think that says more about our staff.

 

 

Ya, nobody is adding Beck or Paps to their Rolodex list.

[74Hunter]

 

Expectations for Mike Riley as of 12/5/14:[/size]

 

1. Must get to a bowl game every year (2015 may be tough sledding, but it is a must given the pile of crap division we are in)

2. Play for and WIN a conference title in the next 3 years.

3. Be in the playoff once in the next 5 years.

 

Considering that we were 2 incomplete passes from playing in Indy this weekend, I'd venture to say that this staff has 2 years to win the conference and be in the playoffs.

 

The talent is there. The resources are there. The fan base is there. The program is in great shape, it just needs a shift in culture.

[Dr. Mantis Toboggan]

 

 

For a guy who is so well respected around coaching and media circles, he knows NOBODY on the staff?

 

I think that says more about our staff.

Ya, nobody is adding Beck or Paps to their Rolodex list.

Kansas seems to have Beck on their's. McDonald's and BK also reached out to Paps according to several sources