[Husker] Leon Jackson leaves

[Matt Phillips]

Folks,

I am REALLY disappointed that Leon is leaving; much more so than I am with
Beck.  I really feel like his potential - and his time - were wasted.  It's
a shame.

Beyond being a great athlete, Leon seemed to be very much the team player,
as evidenced by his willingness to switch positions for the team.  Twice.
Also, I remember a picture from the Alamo bowl of he and Lucky holding a
trophy (?) and screaming their heads off after the game.  Meaningful for a
couple of reasons:  1) I don't think he got to play, and 2) Lucky is his
competition at IB.  So, he just seemed classy.

Plus he plays the NCAA 2007 video game...

If this becomes the norm, I'm a little less enthusiastic about the way we're
recruiting.  It seems like a business - literally, this feels like
a consulting, "up-or-out" kind of model.  I guess it works there, but I
don't know if that's ideal for a university.

And while I think his response was immature, I think Beck got
'up-or-out'-ed, too.  The coaches, IMHO, do play games with the depth
chart.  There is NO WAY that you should vault past two others on the depth
chart, burn your redshirt to play in two games, then come back and find
yourself 4th again.  The coaches already made you 2nd.  What changed?

<rant>
And yes, I think Dailey got hosed, too.  They wanted him out.  Welcome to
4th on the depth chart.  Not only very cheesy, but also passive aggressive.
Boo!

But that's old news, I know.
</rant>

The point is that it feels like we're becoming a business, a pro team, and
players are now getting managed out, and it's sad.  Or maybe I've been
naive?

It seems almost irresponsible to have 3 sophomores and 2 juniors vying for
one position, especially when only one can be on the field at a time.  You
know at least 3 people are going to hate the outcome.

One can argue that Leon shouldn't have signed; I'd counter that maybe we
should withdraw the offer?  Let the kid flourish someplace else.  Show that
you have his best interests at heart.  And don't make headlines during peak
recruiting season for 'yet another 4 star athlete leaving your program
early'.  That can't be good for your image.

Again, maybe I'm being naive...

GBR!
~m


On 8/10/06, Miller <miller.ra at sbcglobal.net> wrote:
>
> Given the obvious emphasis that Nebraska now places on recruiting the best
> talent in the country (Callahan's job security is largely tied to its
> successful pursuit), I think these type of announcements will become 1) more
> common and 2) more publisized than in the previous "old style" Nebraska
> program. Previous staffs tended to recruit more players who believed in the
> program, not themselves. As a hot shot who is staring at 3-4 on the depth
> chart for the next couple years, what's to keep them from leaving? They
> bought into football glory / NFL launch pad concepts, not contributing to a
> storied program. Furthermore, since they came in with so much bally-hoo, it
> will become a bigger deal when they leave. Hence the Sporting News coverage.
>    It will be interesting to see if Callahan will always need to rely on
> the JC route to keep up the number of players. So far he's 3 for 3 (100%) in
> needing to turn to this route to fill up his class with the superstars
> Pedersen requires for him to keep his job. The downside to the JC strategy
> of course is the reduced time within the program and the frequent need to
> replenish.
> Roy Miller
>
>
> Monty Perry <python3955 at hotmail.com> wrote:
> Nebraska RB Jackson leaves team again
>
> His latest departure was prompted by a feeling that he wasn't fitting into
> Nebraska's scheme, said Jackson's father
>
> http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=116351
>
> Monty
>
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Matt Phillips
matthew.a.phillips at gmail.com