"Us Against The World"
- Thread starter Mavric
- Start date
zoogs
Assistant Coach
I think this often gets taken as putting it all on the current players, which isn't fair.
However, it's impossible to go from a guy like Bo in the leadership chair, to a guy like Mike Riley, and not have an adjustment period (for players and assistants alike). How you respond. How you follow, or deal, with the HC. What you focus on. Whether you're still focused on defending against critics of the 2014 atmosphere, as one example.
It wasn't all bad and surely it isn't all good now. The point is that Riley's (very clearly, though of course he's not going to put the last guy down) putting a different stamp on the team, which takes time to take root.
Just take the players nodding and humming along with Bo last December in that Lincoln HS auditorium, for example. Some players can't repudiate their past, positive experiences in Nebraska and it would be unfair to ask them to. They're still valuable team members and leaders with their own varying perspectives on both this staff and the last. What is exciting, though, is that new classes of Husker players are not being molded 'neath the same noxious cloud that was here before.
However, it's impossible to go from a guy like Bo in the leadership chair, to a guy like Mike Riley, and not have an adjustment period (for players and assistants alike). How you respond. How you follow, or deal, with the HC. What you focus on. Whether you're still focused on defending against critics of the 2014 atmosphere, as one example.
It wasn't all bad and surely it isn't all good now. The point is that Riley's (very clearly, though of course he's not going to put the last guy down) putting a different stamp on the team, which takes time to take root.
Just take the players nodding and humming along with Bo last December in that Lincoln HS auditorium, for example. Some players can't repudiate their past, positive experiences in Nebraska and it would be unfair to ask them to. They're still valuable team members and leaders with their own varying perspectives on both this staff and the last. What is exciting, though, is that new classes of Husker players are not being molded 'neath the same noxious cloud that was here before.
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Saunders
Heisman Trophy Winner
RedSavage
All-Conference
Haha well played. I'm not saying they are lying but I don't think they are going to be public about something that would be so negative for the fb program, if it were true. That would likely only make the situation worse.
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Saunders
Heisman Trophy Winner
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Savage Husker
All-Conference
zoogs
Assistant Coach
Look at Riley's actions; that tells you all you need to know about how he thinks a program should be run. There's no way he was going to come here and criticize the way things were done before, but how things are done now speaks volumes.
Similarly, a player who comes out dogging the previous coaches doesn't really 'get it', either. The ones that do, don't. We don't need to look too hard to see a few examples of friction simmering over last year, but we also don't need to dwell on it. Those cases appear to have been handled gently, and by year's end, re-channeled positively.
There's a weird desire in some corners to hang on to a "things aren't so different" narrative. When a parent comes out and rips Bo's style of handling his assistants, it's ignored. When a player comes out and says the right things, it's trumpeted as evidence that Bo's culture wasn't all that, or whatever. It's weird that, lost in MRI's completely forward-looking original message for 2016, is a big article and discussion about whether Bo - fired in 2014 - really was such a problematic influence here. You want toxic? Doesn't get much more clear-cut than that.
On to 2016, guys.
Similarly, a player who comes out dogging the previous coaches doesn't really 'get it', either. The ones that do, don't. We don't need to look too hard to see a few examples of friction simmering over last year, but we also don't need to dwell on it. Those cases appear to have been handled gently, and by year's end, re-channeled positively.
There's a weird desire in some corners to hang on to a "things aren't so different" narrative. When a parent comes out and rips Bo's style of handling his assistants, it's ignored. When a player comes out and says the right things, it's trumpeted as evidence that Bo's culture wasn't all that, or whatever. It's weird that, lost in MRI's completely forward-looking original message for 2016, is a big article and discussion about whether Bo - fired in 2014 - really was such a problematic influence here. You want toxic? Doesn't get much more clear-cut than that.
On to 2016, guys.
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BigRedBuster
International Man of Mystery
It's a topic that really doesn't need to be drug up again.
Either it was there and HCMR and staff has worked hard to get rid of it and the players are moving on....
Or...it was never there.
Either way, the players are moving on or trying to and we as fans should probably do that too so it doesn't remain an issue in the program.
Landlord
Banned
The truth lies somewhere in the middle. It's certainly not as obvious as the messageboard trope of "us against the world mentality", where the coaches and players are huddled in a bunker saying, "F*** the fans they suck", but at the same time there was certainly SOME kind of divide/rift, even though the players don't seem to think so. It was likely mostly subconscious and well intentioned on the part of everyone inside of North Stadium.
JJ Husker
Assistant Coach
You guys can quibble all you want about Bo creating or not creating a toxic atmosphere surrounding the team. Personally I don't give much credence to guys now saying it wasn't that bad. You know how bad it was? Bad enough that a perennial 9 win coach got fired for it. Guessing that's a pretty good indicator that things weren't all sunshine and roses.
Who is the former volleyball coach that wrote something talking about the culture under Bo? He didn't go into any specifics but he did say that there were a lot of issues in the football program that were a direct result of Bo's influence. (paraphrasing here) He's now a coaching consultant and I would think he knows what he is talking about.
I'm not saying the previous culture was the sole cause of our losing season but I do think the shift in cultures contributed to the teams performance.
Then to which other players were you referring?
For every one Alex Lewis, how many Ameer Abdullahs, Jack Gangwishes, Imani Crosses, Sam Foltzes and MRIs did we have?
Count 'Bility
Banned
Jesus. Our former coachsaid things in what was perceived as private moments. True character and feelings show in times of diress and times when you think noone is watching. Regardless what players thought, its what he thought and believed hence he's no longer here. So its ok to understand why Husker fans cringe whenthey see those words. Its ok to believe youre doing everyone a favor by just not saying it. Thatsgoes for that fan inthat convo. Just leave it alone.
Guy Chamberlin
Heisman Trophy Winner
Everybody's right.
We're making too big a thing of it.
But it was a thing.
We're making too big a thing of it.
But it was a thing.