I’ve made it clear in the past how I felt about Bo Pelini, not so much as a coach, but as a human being. Little has changed as a result of the “melt down” in Pasadena. If anything, my view of him has flipped a bit. My view of his coaching abilities is slipping, whereas he has redeemed himself some in my eyes human being wise, by actually answering questions and vowing to change things and work until things ‘get fixed’.
Saying you’re going to try different things and actually doing different things are not the same thing. Remember when Pelini and company said they were going to be more aggressive and attacking this year? Granted, EVERY coach says they’re going to be more aggressive in the coming year. I’ve yet to hear a coach say “We’ve been too aggressive defensively in recent years. This year we’re just gonna hang back and chill....”. Just like no coach has ever said “Yep, our recruiting class this year sucks, we really didn’t get the guys we needed, and the guys we did get? Yeah, they’re bums...”.
Prior to this season, I lost a lot of followers on twitter due to my less than optimistic take on the upcoming season. How DARE I question the defensive genius of Bo Pelini? Now, two weeks into the season, every radio show I’ve listened to since the UCLA game is filled with Nebraska fans who demand that Pelini be fired.
I think the whole thing is funny, but I need to say this now, in case things get worse (and they very well could). I’m no fan of Pelini’s complex, think first then react defenses, or his insistence that the defensive line lines up a yard off the ball. (That image is a photoshopped exaggeration of the truth but only by about a yard.) I’m not a fan of the two gap scheme either, or the inability to defend against a mobile quarterback..... but that’s not what this blog is about....
I also find it maddening that coach thinks by moving a few underclassmen into the rotation, things will somehow get better. Keep in mind he had all of winter conditioning, spring ball, and late summer two-a-day practices to decide on the guys who are starting on defense. The guys that are failing so badly.
I think he had to have known things were gonna be bad this year on defense even while he said things like, “This year’s defense is light years ahead of where we were last year”.
I don’t think it’s just the players though. I find it hard to believe that Rice’s defense is as talented as ours, even though there was only 7 yards difference between the two when playing UCLA. After all Rice gave up 646 yards against UCLA, while our beloved “Blackshirt” defense gave up 653 yards. Oh, did I fail to mention that powerhouse Rice did statistically BETTER against UCLA? Oops,...my bad...
With that evidence one would have to think that part of the problem has to be the scheme and if we’re talking scheme then you have to talk head coach.
Lets say the angry radio show callers (and the illogical part of my brain) get what they want. Pelini is fired, sacked, dismissed, let go, #@$% canned outta here.
That will be the third coach in a row that only lasted four or five years before being let go. Gone are the days where the coaching staff had hundreds of years of combined experience at Nebraska. And I hate to break it to my fellow Nebraska fans, but who do we get for the money we’re willing to pay them to come and coach at Nebraska?
Last time we went outside of the former coach/player realm to get somebody it was a disastrously long and embarrassing search. Highlighted by fueled up jets left on the tarmac in places like Arkansas returning to Lincoln empty. Granted that search was led by Steve Pederson, the same guy who has now hired like 40 coaches for Pitts football team in the last three years.....but I don’t see Osbourne having much more success. Why? Because we’re Nebraska. I know we think we’re still hot stuff, but outside of the state, not much thought is given to our football program. We’re getting close to the point where the kids we’re recruiting weren’t even born the last time Nebraska won a national championship and in a few short years we will be to the point where we’re recruiting players who weren’t even born the last time Nebraska won a CONFERENCE championship.
Okay, so outside of the program is a no go. How about within the program? A former player or coach? Well, we’re running out of guys there too. Turner Gill? Just got fired after a horrible 2ish year run at Kansas and he’s more of an offensive guy anyway. Same goes for Scott Frost, plus he has no head coaching, or if memory serves me correctly.....no coordinator experience even. Frank Solich would never come back and who would blame him?
Very long term, I see Nebraska like an Iowa/Michigan State, or an Illinois. A traditional Big Ten school that finishes in the middle of the Big Ten (or worse in Illys case), but still has cache in name and name only. Taking turns between them bubbling up to compete in the conference once every ten years or so; even then not making much noise nationally though.
What I’m getting at, is that Nebraska is headed for mediocrity, with or without Pelini. I thought this was the case before we joined the Big Ten and I’m thinking this is more and more the case as the years go on. I picked Nebraska to go 8-4 before the season started and lost followers in the process, but now 8-4 is looking pretty damn good. We should take those while we can get them.
I realize I’m being very “chicken little” about the sky falling on Nebraska’s football future. Believe me, I really really hope I’m wrong. The good news is, I’ve always been this way. The bad news is, I’ve never been to the point where I am now. The point where I can see a not too distant future where we’re struggling to make bowl games and swapping out new coaches a couple times a decade.
More good news is that big programs with the facilities that Nebraska has rarely go away forever. Even current Juggernaut, Alabama, had its lean years. Michigan is still arguably on the mend, but won a BCS game last year. Hell, even Notre Dame, which most everyone had given up on turning into their old selves, won 9 games last year and is looking really good this year.
I must admit the sadistic part of me finds it fun to watch Pelini squirm a little....but hoping we get bad enough that he gets fired? That would be even worse, especially long term. We should be careful what we wish for. Otherwise, we could end being as good as Purdue/Iowa/Illinois, and wishing and hoping for the 8 or 9 win seasons which we used to be so unhappy with.
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