This is asinine. Why would Bert want to voluntarily leave Arky? He has a $15M buyout. He is already squarely on the hot seat, so if he is going to leave, he is going to make sure that he gets fired. Jeff Long should be begging other schools to take him to save that $15M.
Hey, don't shoot the messenger. The man I know told me there's been grumblings in Fayetteville and talk of waiving his buyout. Rumor is he does want out ASAP, so him getting fired is a serious possibility. Arkansas draws comparisons to Nebraska as far as recruiting goes and winning, on the job pressure. Nebraska would definitely be even more stressful for Bielema. And unless Kirk Ferentz retires, the only other possible window of opportunity is with Nebraska.
Do I like Bret? No. I wouldn't go near him as he is damaged goods. But people need to remember, he whipped us badly in 2012 and he also was coaching at KSUcks in 2003 when Pelini had his crybaby moment after a 38-9 shellacking. He found his footing in the B1G however, he did not like working for Barry Alvarez under his micromanagement style.
Obviously he has a serious eye for talent and development as he recruited Monte Ball, Melvin Gordon, Russell Wilson, and a ton of other guys who are in the NFL. I think if given a shot, he would do better in Lincoln than Fayetteville.
Personally, I think he'd be an upgrade over Riley. I don't see Scott Frost coming here. I don't see him leaving UCF. I think he really believes he is building something special and sees his school as the FSU/Florida/Miami alternative. It's rather exciting, and I'm rooting for his success.
I also do not see us opening the check book to get a guy like Chip Kelly, either. However, he could become our Nick Saban. You just never know with coaching hires until you realize you caught lightning in a bottle. Nebraska was fortunate to have that happen twice, back-to-back. The current continuity of Wisconsin, their defense, their offensive prowess, draws a lot of comparisons to what Nebraska used to be like in the Big 8.
It sucks to say, but, if we want to be the cream of the crop in the West, we have to model our team after Wisconsin and go back to our own roots. Recruit beefy offensive linemen, throw in a talented back or two, talented tight ends, and either a dual threat game manager/playmaker in the Russell Wilson mold.
This will create 10 win seasons and a division title every 2 years or so and maybe a few runs at the CFB playoff. Bielema knows how to develop talent so does Mike Riley but, the difference is Bielema has championships on his resume.
