ColoradoHusk
Heisman Trophy Winner
I don't think anyone is saying that walk-ons don't deserve to be any part of the Nebraska program. In a day of 85-scholarship limits, walk-ons can provide needed depth, and there are instances of late bloomers who can become great football players. NU would be hurting even more than it already is this year if it weren't for guys like Janovich, Gangwich, and Weber.
What I don't like is they myopic attitude of SOME fans who act like the walk-on program is the sole reason why NU was successful in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. Those teams, especially the 90s teams, were successful because of the amazing talent that was brought in by Osborne and his staff. Turner Gill and Tommie Frazier were dual-threat QB's were huge recruiting gets in their classes. Osborne himself said he had to go to "speed states" to bring in more speed on defense. Damon Benning always talks about the amount of speed that TO recruited. Riley Washington was the Big 8 60-meter dash champion. Jamel Williams was a track-star in Indiana, and he played LB at NU.
I will always argue that the key to Nebraska's success in the 90's was a peak amount of in-state talent that was around in that time. If you look at those classes in the early 90s, those in-state guys were highly recruited and could have gone to any school in the country. NU also lost some of those in-state recruits to Notre Dame and others.
Osborne was able to mix in walk-ons at fullback, wingback, o-line, and other positions because of the unique offense he ran. Osborne didn't need the 6'4" WR who ran a 4.5 40, because he knew his WR was going to be blocking 90% of the time. He knew he could add 20-30 lbs to a small-town RB and make him a fullback in his system. But, Osborne knew he needed elite recruits at QB, RB, o-line and everywhere on the defense.
The walk-on situation isn't an "either-or" idea. NU needs great recruiting classes each year, and it needs to supplement the recruiting classes with strong walk-ons. I don't agree with Callahan's/Bo's view on in-state talent. I think they slow-played most of the top guys each year and tried to get them to walk-on. It will be interesting to see how Riley handles in-state talent going forward.
What I don't like is they myopic attitude of SOME fans who act like the walk-on program is the sole reason why NU was successful in the 70s, 80s, and 90s. Those teams, especially the 90s teams, were successful because of the amazing talent that was brought in by Osborne and his staff. Turner Gill and Tommie Frazier were dual-threat QB's were huge recruiting gets in their classes. Osborne himself said he had to go to "speed states" to bring in more speed on defense. Damon Benning always talks about the amount of speed that TO recruited. Riley Washington was the Big 8 60-meter dash champion. Jamel Williams was a track-star in Indiana, and he played LB at NU.
I will always argue that the key to Nebraska's success in the 90's was a peak amount of in-state talent that was around in that time. If you look at those classes in the early 90s, those in-state guys were highly recruited and could have gone to any school in the country. NU also lost some of those in-state recruits to Notre Dame and others.
Osborne was able to mix in walk-ons at fullback, wingback, o-line, and other positions because of the unique offense he ran. Osborne didn't need the 6'4" WR who ran a 4.5 40, because he knew his WR was going to be blocking 90% of the time. He knew he could add 20-30 lbs to a small-town RB and make him a fullback in his system. But, Osborne knew he needed elite recruits at QB, RB, o-line and everywhere on the defense.
The walk-on situation isn't an "either-or" idea. NU needs great recruiting classes each year, and it needs to supplement the recruiting classes with strong walk-ons. I don't agree with Callahan's/Bo's view on in-state talent. I think they slow-played most of the top guys each year and tried to get them to walk-on. It will be interesting to see how Riley handles in-state talent going forward.
