[Husker] Good effort...not enough to keep Callahan

[Pat Gaule]

The kids played their hearts out, and I am extremely proud of every one 
of them.  As far as I'm concerned, they have nothing to be ashamed of.  
They did not quit and gave it their all.  You can't ask for anything 
more than that.  Sam Keller and Joe Ganz deserve a lot of credit. Ganz 
looked very cool under pressure at the end of the game.  The defense 
stayed aggressive and only seemed to run out of gas when the offense got 
conservative and sputtered in the 2nd half.  None of this should be lost 
or fogotten, even in the comments that follow.

The coaches had a good gameplan and executed it for most of the game, 
but the collapse at the end of the game is unacceptable.  When your 
teams have never won a game when trailing at halftime, you'd better be 
able to maintain a 2-touchdown lead in the 2nd half.  Unfortunately, 
Callahan couldn't do that and we're now in the midst of the worst losing 
streak in almost 50 years.  We're in a position where we must win 2 out 
of our next 3 games just to break even and secure a bowl bid.  *If* NU 
plays like they did today in the final 3 games, they may be able to get 
2 more wins, but the intensity shown today has been the exception and 
not the rule.  None of the remaining teams are going to overlook 
Nebraska like Texas may have done today - it is going to be very 
challenging down the stretch, but I'm more confident in this team than I 
was last week, even if I still don't think they will get 6 wins..  Then 
again, I never imagined that Nebraska would have a lead in the 4th 
quarter against Texas.

As far as what this game means for Callahan's future - I remain 
unconvinced that the coaching staff can turn it around.  It's never fair 
to judge a coach based on one game, but that goes both ways.  One 
horrible loss should never be cause for a coach's dismissal, but one 
gutsy performance is hardly a surefire sign that the staff has turned 
the corner, especially when it's still a loss on the scoreboard.  Once 
in a great while, Callahan and his staff have come up with a great 
gameplan, but it's far too rare to keep this blind squirrel around.

The facts:
*Callahan is now 23-20 against division 1-A teams

*Callahan is 14-15 in Big 12 play (14-16 if you include the postseason 
Big 12 Championship Game last year)

*Despite gusty play by the defense for most of the game, the 2nd half 
collapse still lead to 539 total yards for Texas, which should drop them 
to around 107th in total defense. Only two BCS conference teams are 
lower: Syracuse and Minnesota.

*At this point, the absolute best cast scenario for Callahan is that he 
finishes 8-5 by winning the last 3 regular season games and a potential 
bowl matchup.  That would still be the 3rd worst record at Nebraska 
since 1962.  If that weren't bad enough, here are the 5 worst season 
records since Devaney came to town:
#1: 2004: 5-6, Callahan
#2: 2002: 7-7, Solich
#3: 2005: 8-4, Callahan
#4: 2006: 9-5, Callahan
.
.
#5: *2007: 4-5, Callahan

*: 2007 has already clinched a spot on this list and it's just a matter 
of where.  Any way you slice it, Callahan has been responsible for 4 of 
the worst records in the last 45 years of Nebraska football.  That's 
pretty damning when you consider that he's only been here for 4 years!

Anyone who questions the heart of these players is wrong, and anyone 
that goes up to players and screams obscenities at them is a complete 
moron that should be ashamed of themselves.  With the right coach, I 
think this team could have been great this year.  Unfortunately, 
Callahan is not the right coach.  I will say this:  I feel a lot more 
excited about the remainder of the season.  Regardless of what happens, 
I do not want to see Callahan standing on NU's sidelines next year.  
However, I think this team has a realistic chance of making a bowl, 
which is something the kids deserve, even if Callahan won't be coaching it.