I WANTED MIKE RILEY TO SUCCEED!

[TheMeanFarmer]

I can't see a way he and his staff weren't fired at the end of this season.  But this isn't the way I wanted this to go.

 

I wanted you to be the Tom Osborne of the 2000s.

 

Instead I can't decide whether I am pissed about what happens on the field, ecstatic that your tenure is over, or confused at how it went down.

 

 

Either way God Speed in your new life.  I hope you are a Husker fan for life.

 

TMF.

[HuskerMav11]

We all wanted him to succeed. It's unfortunate he didn't. But that's the nature of the beast.

[Landlord]

Indeed. Riley will forever have a fan in me - it takes a special kind of man to go through this the way he has with his head high, never jumping out of character.

[I AM FOOT FOOT]

Exactly right,Mike Riley is all class.

[ColoradoHusk]

I understand Mike was great and nice with the players, media, and approached things in a classy manner.  However, that same approach led him to be too lenient with the players and there was no accountability with the team.  I am not saying it needs to be one way or the other, because there can definitely be a middle ground.

[Blackshirtsguru]

I think the guy would be ideal for a D2 school.  He is a class act and kids really like him.

[ColoradoHusk]

9 minutes ago, Blackshirtsguru said:

I think the guy would be ideal for a D2 school.  He is a class act and kids really like him.

Well Oregon State was pretty much thought of as a D2 school before Riley got there. 

[Crashman44b]

I have no doubt MR did the best he could. I can't throw enough nice words his way. I find it sad that some people are celebrating his firing. I think about all the people that have to relocate and their kids that have to start at new schools etc etc....Guess I wouldn't make AD. Good luck MR.

[California Husker]

I wanted him to succeed too. I was rooting for him to win all the way through yesterday...I knew he was gone, but I wanted him to win...even if it was in his one last game, because I am a Nebraska fan. If he succeeded, my beloved Huskers succeeded. But I said when he was hired that you shouldn't hire a career .500 guy. That career .500 wasn't because he was a new coach trying to turn around a program. He had been coaching for a long, long, time before he came to NU. His past coaching was a large sample size. So, he ends up 19-19. Who's surprised? 

So, Riley shouldn't have been at Nebraska...Nebraska deserves better. I wish him well, but I couldn't care less how nice he is. Time to move on. 

[Bigred_inSD]

He is a great guy, I feel bad for him.  The ginger assassin brought him because he wanted a nice guy and the anti Bo.  

 

I hope Riley coaches somewhere, even at a high school he could really make a positive impact on many lives. 

[1994 Husker]

...It’s a complete enigma wrapped in a riddle to me how in the world Mike Riley, having Mr Bear Bryant as a coach, didn’t pick up on how a program is built and sustained..how did he go from playing under that hard man...and then once a coach himself,  gravitates to finesse, timid, no structure and accountability atmosphere he certainly believes in..? Basketball on football field type mindset..2nd or 3rd and 8...call up a 4 yard pass.! That mindset/paradigm to the game just kills me..

 

I won’t miss him as a coach..I will say he was classy and handled his being held accountable very professional, I commend that 

Edited November 26, 2017 by Depressed Husker

[HuskerJax]

I really wanted him to be successful too, I think everyone did. Imagine the fairy tale if he would have been the one to resurrect the program. Nice, total class, greatly respected, comes in and makes a blue blood back into a national power and rides off into the sunset. It would have been awesome. I wish him nothing but the best, now it’s time to move on.

[beorach]

I'm surprised to read that anyone posting here could believe that everyone supported MR at any point.  I was concerned that we hired a guy who seemed to be on the hot seat at a lesser program but I gave him a chance even after things didn't start well.

[zoogs]

Same. Mike Riley was always a class act, through the good and the tough times. Much respect and I'm really, really sorry for him that it didn't work out better. Thanks for the years here, Coach.

[San Diego Husker]

MR was the wrong hire right off the bat (you just don't hire a career 500 coach at NU with as many seasons under his belt as MR had).  I watched his act in San Diego.  Three years and I think he won 3-5 games total.  His leaving SD running back to OSU was a blessing for the Chargers.  I stopped watching NU play after the team literally rolled over and played dead against Ohio State.  I was surprised their white pants were yellow stained..  they all looked like they would rather be home playing Xbox. 

 

Mike is class, and he did hire some fairly good coaches, however he hired some really crappy ones as well!!  his best were the D-line, WR, and Safeties coaches.  Diaco and the O-line coach were by far his worst. 

 

I was thinking, MR would be pretty good as an ambassador for a university (have no idea if those even exist).  That is where his "nicest coach in America" talent lies.

 

One last shot at the Bo-haters, I bet you would take 9-3 right now wouldn't you??  For the record, I was not a fan of Bo's sideline behavior and his behavior after being fired was a bore.  That said, I hope everyone can agree going forward, you just don't fire a 9-3 coach unless their is legal issues involved.