Going forward

[VectorVictor]

 

 

Sorry, but I'm not buying the OP's sunshine and rainbows bull**** dance. We have a staff that regressed as the season wore on, couldn't get kids motivated, and isn't (so far) getting the job done on the recruiting trail.

 

And frankly, when you have schools (e.g. Washington...that is playing in the Peach Bowl as I type this) that can turn things around in three years...yeah, progress in Year 3 should happen, and fans would be more than justified in tossing Riley, Eichorst, et al out if there isn't substantial progress (read: Division Champion or better). Especially when there is better out there and when money will no longer be a (valid) excuse.

 

Don't forget we get our full share starting next season from the B1G. There's zero excuse to cheapen out or use Bo and Riley's buyout as a reason not to take action.

Given we got fortunate in getting the B1G West, we SHOULD be competing for divisional titles every year, and probably winning division titles most the time, but just like the Big 12 North, we can't seem to win it even though it is the much easier division of the two in the conference.

 

1.) Money shouldn't have been an issue when hiring Riley given the financial support the University has. 2.) Doesn't Riley's buyout cheapen with each passing year? So after next year it would be rather cheap?

1) I thought so to, but one of the storylines when Riley was hired was how economical his contract was. And remember we've been frozen at Big XII level funding until we had full equity in the BTN and B1G--while I would agree with you ideally, something tells me the reality is that we've been *slightly?* fiscally hamstrung. Add in ongoing capital improvement projects...and maybe we're not as flush as one would think?

 

Most important thing is if this is indeed a concern, it shouldn't be going forward.

 

2) I believe you're correct, but we're still paying Bo for another two years IIRC. Still, should be a moot point in the next few hours...

 

BTW, I'm not saying we need to act like Texass and throw $10-20m/year to Saban or anything like that. But we would do well to secure a young, upcoming talent willing to embrace our culture, and then spend high on surrounding him with top quality staff.

[Dansker]

We really don't need that great of a recruiting class. You get those high rankings by getting the flashy speedster, WR's, RB's and QB's. Nebraska has very talented RB's and WR's. The QB situation is really baffling that Nebraska can't get a legit solid quarterback, but that is a wait and see with this staff.

 

Really it's simple. Go out and get the nastiest, biggest, most determined offensive and defensive lines. You can have average playmakers, that can do great things behind a brick wall.

I totally agree 100% if we do not bring back the pipeline and have a defensive line that terrorizes opponents also, we'll never get to the promised land. I would take this and plug in a few difference makers here and there and you've got a championship caliber team right there.

 

We do need an accurate QB but I prefer one who can actually move the pocket. He doesn't have to have world class speed but he needs to be elusive and be able to scramble for a 1st down when needed e.g. DeShaun Watson/Jalen Hurts.

[Elf]

 

We really don't need that great of a recruiting class. You get those high rankings by getting the flashy speedster, WR's, RB's and QB's. Nebraska has very talented RB's and WR's. The QB situation is really baffling that Nebraska can't get a legit solid quarterback, but that is a wait and see with this staff.

 

Really it's simple. Go out and get the nastiest, biggest, most determined offensive and defensive lines. You can have average playmakers, that can do great things behind a brick wall.

I totally agree 100% if we do not bring back the pipeline and have a defensive line that terrorizes opponents also, we'll never get to the promised land. I would take this and plug in a few difference makers here and there and you've got a championship caliber team right there.

 

We do need an accurate QB but I prefer one who can actually move the pocket. He doesn't have to have world class speed but he needs to be elusive and be able to scramble for a 1st down when needed e.g. DeShaun Watson/Jalen Hurts.

 

I don't beleive we can just bring back the pipeline, I think it has to be built over several years.

 

It wasn't called the Pipeline because we had good linemen sometimes, but because we always had good linemen. Every year. I'd read Athlon and other magazines every summer and read about the question marks on our line because of graduation. We never really had those question marks because of our development process on those guys so we ended up reloading that Pipeline every fall instead of rebuilding it. Even when we had injuries, it was simply next man up and there was rarely a drop off in play.

 

I'd love to see us get back to this but its going to take time to do it right.

[chamrocck]

Until we're recruiting at an elite level (consistent top 15 classes at least), we will not be playoff contenders. And if you haven't noticed yet, that won't be happening with this coaching staff. Honestly, I'm not sure any coaching staff will be able to do that here. We simply don't have the fertile recruiting grounds nearby. Being younger, I can't explain how we did it in the past, but my best explanations are:

1) College football wasn't the factory that it is today. Kids value a program like Ole Miss (just an example) more than Nebraska because they don't care about the pageantry and tradition, they just want the best opportunity to get to the NFL.

2) We ran a gimmicky offense that required athletes and tough lineman. We didn't have to out-recruit USC, OU, UT, Florida, FSU, Miami, etc for pro-style QBs and WRs. Nowadays we do.

3) Terrific coaching staff.

 

I think the brightest future for Nebraska requires figuring out what Wisconsin and even Iowa do. They always have tough football teams, especially in the trenches. I don't think we've lacked skill players recently, but our lines have been, for lack of a better term, pussies. Wisconsin doesn't get good recruiting classes, but they have a brand, and that brand is built on their offensive line. Why can't we be the same way? Then add in the better skill players, we should be the best in the West most years.

[chamrocck]

 

Until we're recruiting at an elite level (consistent top 15 classes at least), we will not be playoff contenders. And if you haven't noticed yet, that won't be happening with this coaching staff. Honestly, I'm not sure any coaching staff will be able to do that here. We simply don't have the fertile recruiting grounds nearby. Being younger, I can't explain how we did it in the past, but my best explanations are:

1) College football wasn't the factory that it is today. Kids value a program like Ole Miss (just an example) more than Nebraska because they don't care about the pageantry and tradition, they just want the best opportunity to get to the NFL.

2) We ran a gimmicky offense that required athletes and tough lineman. We didn't have to out-recruit USC, OU, UT, Florida, FSU, Miami, etc for pro-style QBs and WRs. Nowadays we do.

3) Terrific coaching staff.

 

I think the brightest future for Nebraska requires figuring out what Wisconsin and even Iowa do. They always have tough football teams, especially in the trenches. I don't think we've lacked skill players recently, but our lines have been, for lack of a better term, pussies. Wisconsin doesn't get good recruiting classes, but they have a brand, and that brand is built on their offensive line. Why can't we be the same way? Then add in the better skill players, we should be the best in the West most years.

Great post. I am willing to let this staff have some time to recruit but I have been preaching, "if you don't have top 15 recruiting classes, do not expect to be a top 15 team". Sure there might be a good year once in awhile but we are finishing non-ranked mostly because our recruiting is lacking. You are right about Wisconsin and Iowa having a brand and maybe we will start to create that here with Riley and Co. I would also add that we need a defensive brand that is severely lacking right now. We need to stock pile tough as nails fast athletes on the defensive side of the ball. I cannot believe how much shoulder tacking I saw and whiffing in the bowl game. Defensive intensity should never be questioned with the Blackshirts.

 

[Cdog923]

Man. Lotta people still hung over from yesterday, I see.

[dvdcrr]

Theres only going to ever be 2-4 programs that can stockpile talent. Nebraska has never been one and never will be.

Our past success was due to some extra ordinary leaders who adhered to a core set of principles. For Tom Osborne it was excellence, and truth within the program. Truth trumped emotions at regular evaluation time. Weaknesses were laid bare so these could be addressed. And they were corrected. And the result was constant improvement. Players were developed to a high level.

 

Nebraska has for a decade failed to realize the fact, that we have been underdeveloping players and coaches

Frankly, bringing in someone along the lines of Alvarez as AD would do more to help NU than any coach hire except for Saban. Its called having a bulldog in the office somewhere along the line with Absolute unwaivering commitment to core principles. Wisconsin has been through 4 coaches now and every year they still look like Wisconsin (which is eerily similar to the old NU.) The reason is because they have a LEADER there devoted to core principles. And any new coach who gets there learns this right quick. If they dont like it, they can go be a beaver somewhere.

[chamrocck]

I'm a realist. If you watched Alabama and Clemson play today you realize how far ahead in talent and depth they are. Urban Meyer and Chris Petersen are great coaches and they still got whacked. I am not calling for Riley or any of his staff's head...they need and deserve time and our support. Dismissing Read and adding Williams was great. We need recruits to turn the corner. Get a Top 15 class in here. That's the most important game right now.

[teachercd]

What if Riley had gone 9-4 in his first year and 6-7 this year?

 

I know the record was better this year (mostly because in his first year Riley seemed to find ways to lose) but this 9-4 feels really bad.

[NU jumper alum]

What if Riley had gone 9-4 in his first year and 6-7 this year?

 

I know the record was better this year (mostly because in his first year Riley seemed to find ways to lose) but this 9-4 feels really bad.

This 9-4 feels the same as the Pelini yrs...decent number on paper but blown out by good teams.

[Husker Psycho]

Theres only going to ever be 2-4 programs that can stockpile talent. Nebraska has never been one and never will be.

Our past success was due to some extra ordinary leaders who adhered to a core set of principles. For Tom Osborne it was excellence, and truth within the program. Truth trumped emotions at regular evaluation time. Weaknesses were laid bare so these could be addressed. And they were corrected. And the result was constant improvement. Players were developed to a high level.

 

Nebraska has for a decade failed to realize the fact, that we have been underdeveloping players and coaches

Frankly, bringing in someone along the lines of Alvarez as AD would do more to help NU than any coach hire except for Saban. Its called having a bulldog in the office somewhere along the line with Absolute unwaivering commitment to core principles. Wisconsin has been through 4 coaches now and every year they still look like Wisconsin (which is eerily similar to the old NU.) The reason is because they have a LEADER there devoted to core principles. And any new coach who gets there learns this right quick. If they dont like it, they can go be a beaver somewhere.

 

Great comment

[teachercd]

 

What if Riley had gone 9-4 in his first year and 6-7 this year?

 

I know the record was better this year (mostly because in his first year Riley seemed to find ways to lose) but this 9-4 feels really bad.

This 9-4 feels the same as the Pelini yrs...decent number on paper but blown out by good teams.

 

Yeah, that is pretty true.

[Hayseed]

We had a thread where we talked about having a shot at getting Lamar Jackson as our QB. Would it have really mattered with our line play? I doubt it would've made that much difference. I think the combo of coaching, play calling and blocking wouldn't have given a much different result than we got from Tommy and Terrell.

[cornstar]

 

 

 

What if Riley had gone 9-4 in his first year and 6-7 this year?

 

I know the record was better this year (mostly because in his first year Riley seemed to find ways to lose) but this 9-4 feels really bad.

This 9-4 feels the same as the Pelini yrs...decent number on paper but blown out by good teams.

Yeah, that is pretty true.

I feel less optimistic about this year.

[Hayseed]

Careful. Many want to think that the only people who believe that it's hard to recruit to Nebraska are coaches who don't want to put any effort into it.

Yes,the truth that has been well documented is that Nebraska and other surrounding plains states don't have the youth population that we once had and you can't just go around the state picking up those diamond-in-the-rough beefeaters anymore. Many of the schools no longer even exist.

 

​We now have to go into enemy territory where other popular home teams recruit or down to Big 12 territory and convince kids to come to the arctic league where they're not as likely to be seen by their homies. It can be done, it's just not easy.