[NU Sports] Football experiment

[Jeff Beamsley]

The other NU is an interesting case, but the difference in admissions 
standards probably introduces enough variability that when they do 
return to national prominence any comparison to our NU will be called 
into question. 

There are others on this list who know a whole lot more about Husker 
football than I do, but I don't think that Solich was going to be the 
long-term guy.  Looking at the sorts of high-powered offenses that 
Nebraska has to play every year, I don't know if the option-based attack 
that had served them so well for so many years was going to continue to 
effective in the future.  Though it took some courage, they chose to 
blow it all up and start over rather than make incremental changes.  So 
it isn't surprising that they struggled this year with kids who didn't 
fit the new system. 

The other issue is that they are looking to recruit the top athletes in 
the country.  Those kids have a lot of choices.  They are all thinking 
about playing on Sundays.  Particularly the skill position kids want 
programs that will showcase their talent and best prepare them for the 
transition to the NFL.  What better choice than to bring in an NFL coach 
with the expectation of running an NFL farm team.  So I'm not at all 
surprised that Callahan has a great recruiting class.  All of those kids 
are going to get a chance to play early.  They are going to NFL prep 
school, and they will be the first graduating class in a new chapter of 
NU history. 

Whether or not this is good in the larger context of college football is 
another discussion. But I have no doubt that Callahan will have a 
competitive team on the field sooner rather than later.

Jeff


Tom Maycock wrote:

>>We now have a real world opportunity to test the "cost" of firing at
>>a 
>>couple of institutions (ND and Stanford) that have high academic 
>>standards (yes ND has become a lottery school).  So let's see what 
>>happens. 
>>    
>>
>
>Academics aside, there's actually a similar test case already under way
>at Nebraska. The program had declined under Solich, but had rebounded
>significantly last year with a new set of assistant coaches. But,
>citing declining recruiting results, the AD determined the turnaround
>in '03 wasn't enough to justify keeping him, and he was shown the door
>after a 9-3 season. I'm sure you recall the criticism that followed.
>
>The short term results were even uglier than most expected--first
>losing season in approximately forever (longer than I've been alive).
>The offense was the expected square-peg/round-hole affair all season,
>but the defense also took a surprising nosedive. Questions arose about
>whether the current defensive players had "bought into" the new system
>and staff, etc.
>
>I don't think there's much question in Husker land that Solich and his
>staff would have produced a better record in 2004. The question is, of
>course, whether the misery of the transition will be worth it. Early
>reports have the Husker recruiting class ranked #1 in the country. 
>
>Tom
>
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