OWHThe Blackshirts: Riley wanted to know how Osborne and former defensive coordinator Charlie McBride handed out the black practice jerseys typically given to NU's defensive starters. It became, well, a total mess under Bo Pelini, who usually handed them out during the season until 2013, when he handed them out before the season to a handful of players, then took them away after a month of games because the defense couldn't have played any worse. It became a reward instead of an identity.
"The one thing I'll try to copy that (Osborne and McBride) did is when they issue them it was midway in fall camp," Riley said. "That sounds good to me. To do it any sooner than that would be phony from our staff."
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Recruiting[/SIZE]: Riley outlined Nebraska's recruiting plan to Osborne — an emphasis on the 500-mile radius with additional areas of recruiting around the nation — and asked him to "be blunt" about its makeup.
"It sounded to me like that's how they did it," Riley said.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Offensive philosophy[/SIZE]: Riley said he knows wind and weather can be a factor in the Midwest; he coached at Winnipeg in the Canadian Football League and built his team "around our grass field, the wind and the weather we had."
"He thought it was important that a team run the ball," Riley said of Osborne. "If you're a team that has to count on throwing 60 times per game, some games that might be difficult."
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