[Husker] Re: If you're going to make comparisions (was Re: Character)

[Bob Beach]

On 2/27/2005 at 10:29 AM Mike Jaixen wrote:

>>The facts show otherwise, Bob.  Osborne went 5-5 in
>>the 80's against OU.  Did you mean the 70's? 
>>Osborne's first 6 years:



    I didn't mean TO literally couldn't beat Oklahoma.  What I should have said is TO struggled with OU most of his career but over the TO years NU typically didn't get blown out.


>>As for recruiting "slipping", let's look at Solich's
>>last 2 seniors compared to other schools in the Big
>>XII as drafted by the NFL. (These were guys recruited
>>by Solich)



    I don't have time to research the subject of recruiting at this point.  As a result I don't have facts and figures but I don't see how Solich had as good of recruiting classes as happened in the past.  Possibly his last one was better than the rest of his.  For one NU isn't as deep as it was in the 80's and 90's.  I know this is not positive proof but I have to believe any of TO's teams from the 80's and 90's would beat Solich's 02-03 teams many more times than they would lose.  Anyway I am not the lone wolf crying in the wilderness.  There are many people concerned about recruiting during the Solich years.  Call reporters and sportscaster idiots if you want but they do have a certain access to things the average fan doesn't have.  I was listening to The Average Joe's Sports Show with Bill Doleman about a month ago.  The topic, for whatever reason, was what got Solich fired.  At the top of the list of all three people on the show was recruiting and there was a lengthy discussion.  That is just one example.  


     Anyhow, what the original subject was before all this got going was an opinion that Osborne possibly could have been ousted prior to the 90's had it not been for his character.  I don't find that even a remote possibility unless the law was broken or he was found guilty of NCAA infractions.  I don't think one could say Bob Devaney was a man of principled character and he seemed to keep his job.  He ran a clean program but his life off the field was at times questionable.  The only time there was anything close to the Boo Birds out was in 67-68.  The reason?  He finished 6-4 both those years after winning at least nine games in 62, 63, 64, 65, and 66.  Then in 69 he won nine games and on through the rest of his career he won at least nine and he was fine.  Not only did he win at least nine he won two National Championships and everyone thought he was wonderful.  His job stability and two year instability had nothing to do with character.  It was all about winning.  


Bob Beach
The more one knows the more one realizes how much there is one doesn't know.