The debate is over... right?
- Thread starter Branno
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Hilltop
New member
Kind of a fun read from the past... Obviously the situation is different but it's interesting to read how much perspectives can change with time.
"January 2, 1979Nebraska: Is it time for a coaching change (1979 version)?By Samson McKettlecornBugeater Daily NewsIf you are a Husker fan, you have a Sooner wishbone hangover this morning. Again. But this year it seems like a strange dream in which you swear that your beloved Huskers beat the Oklahoma Sooners on Friday this year, sparing you from choking on that proverbial wishbone the day after Thanksgiving for the sixth year in a row. But the dream is real, and Coach Tom Osborne’s first win against the Sooners as head coach seems a moot point after drawing the Sooners for a rematch in the Orange Bowl – and losing.But let’s be positive, the Huskers did beat them in November, when they came to Lincoln ranked #1 in the nation! Yes, the Sooners fumbled six times. Yes, it looked like the Sooners won even though they didn’t. Yes, Billy Sims made our defense look like a 8-man Nebraska high school defense were trying to tackle him. If this Sooner-domination of the Huskers continues, it may become Sooner Magic. Yikes.Let’s assess the state of the football program. After starting this decade with two national championships, the already legendary Bob Devaney passed the reigns to his protégé, Coach Osborne. It’s worth noting, he did so with a championship staff and recruiting classes that come from back-to-back national titles.First six years of Coach Osborne? Lots of wins, yes. The competition? Well… OK, so it’s not just Oklahoma that has the Cornhuskers number; so does Missouri. Four losses to the Tigers in the past six contests. Ouch.The truth is that most Husker faithful agree: The losses to Missouri feel like someone just stole our combine tires; the losses to Oklahoma feel hopeless. Perhaps loosing six of seven to the Sooners is enough. How many more Oklahoma (or Missouri!) losses are needed before we realize that Tom Osborne is not Bob Devaney?What if a change is needed now? What if?"
"January 2, 1979Nebraska: Is it time for a coaching change (1979 version)?By Samson McKettlecornBugeater Daily NewsIf you are a Husker fan, you have a Sooner wishbone hangover this morning. Again. But this year it seems like a strange dream in which you swear that your beloved Huskers beat the Oklahoma Sooners on Friday this year, sparing you from choking on that proverbial wishbone the day after Thanksgiving for the sixth year in a row. But the dream is real, and Coach Tom Osborne’s first win against the Sooners as head coach seems a moot point after drawing the Sooners for a rematch in the Orange Bowl – and losing.But let’s be positive, the Huskers did beat them in November, when they came to Lincoln ranked #1 in the nation! Yes, the Sooners fumbled six times. Yes, it looked like the Sooners won even though they didn’t. Yes, Billy Sims made our defense look like a 8-man Nebraska high school defense were trying to tackle him. If this Sooner-domination of the Huskers continues, it may become Sooner Magic. Yikes.Let’s assess the state of the football program. After starting this decade with two national championships, the already legendary Bob Devaney passed the reigns to his protégé, Coach Osborne. It’s worth noting, he did so with a championship staff and recruiting classes that come from back-to-back national titles.First six years of Coach Osborne? Lots of wins, yes. The competition? Well… OK, so it’s not just Oklahoma that has the Cornhuskers number; so does Missouri. Four losses to the Tigers in the past six contests. Ouch.The truth is that most Husker faithful agree: The losses to Missouri feel like someone just stole our combine tires; the losses to Oklahoma feel hopeless. Perhaps loosing six of seven to the Sooners is enough. How many more Oklahoma (or Missouri!) losses are needed before we realize that Tom Osborne is not Bob Devaney?What if a change is needed now? What if?"
Isle of View
New member
Luckily TO had a great AD.
Where did you find this? I googled Samson McKettlecorn and got zip.
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Hayseed
New member
It’s funny, but nothing Osborne did even compares to the dismal state we’re in now.
Also, they didn’t know how to spell ‘losing’ back then either.
Hayseed
New member
It probably is him pulling our leg. There was no internet then, why the stage name? Smells like a hoax.
Undone
New member
I think the biggest problem we're seeing is Diaco's huge deficiencies in his defensive scheme.
Unless he really drastically overhauled his defensive philosophy, which he almost surely wouldn't, I don't ever expect that Riley will be able to beat even Wisconsin.
How in the **** do we get so unlucky to have two defensive minds back-to-back with the "bend but don't break" nonsense?!
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Mavric
Yoda
Speaking to the comments/observations about Riley's demeanor, it's been reported by several media guys that Riley had decided not to send the coaches out recruiting early this week - it was never explained clearly but I'm assuming his decision was to keep the coaches around until after the last practice then they could go. But the Williams basically had to talk him into letting them leave early to get a jump start on things and use it as a long recruiting weekend. They were able to make visits yesterday and be across the country for games today.
That doesn't necessarily mean anything about anything. But if one were to draw a conclusion that he didn't think it was that necessary it would be hard to argue against it.
That doesn't necessarily mean anything about anything. But if one were to draw a conclusion that he didn't think it was that necessary it would be hard to argue against it.
flfmrredfan
New member
Whether or not this is real, it does describe rather accurately, the mood back then towards Osborne's program by fans and boosters. History also tells us it was around this time that Osborne was contemplating the offer at Colorado. I remember Devaney was constantly defending Osborne to detract from all the wolves howling, although it's understandable why: Osborne was his pick after all. As Isle of View posts, Devaney was wise, and he was proven correct in choosing Osborne to succeed him as HC.
Looking back, Solich's first six years compares very favorably to Osborne's first six, except he was in the MNC game where Osborne had to wait until his 10th year to get into the title game. I never cease to be amazed at how fans try to compare Solich's first six years to Osborne's years in the '90s, when he and his staff were at their peak.
Hilltop
New member
The above article was tagged onto an Omaha World Herald article in the comment section. The person claimed it was real- no clue if they were telling the truth but it does fit the attitude at that frame in time. I personally believe Riley would "improve" if given more time. I'm however not convinced that his level of improvement would get us back to where we want to be. I don't believe we will ever know that answer though. As a father I do like what Riley represents so wish him the best going forward and will be in the stands cheering the boys on the rest of the year. GBR
ColoradoHusk
Donor
Riley has shown to be the same coach at Nebraska that he was at Oregon State for 15 years. I don't know how he would "improve" at age 64 and nearly 20 years into coaching. It's time to end this failed experiment. Riley is a nice guy, but a terrible fit as Nebraska head coach.
Undone
New member
What I'm pretty consistently seeing is that Riley doesn't actually do much in-game coaching. His coordinators are coaching. If Diaco continues on with his passive 3-4 defensive scheme I honestly don't believe Riley will even achieve winning the West.
Langsdorf probably actually has a decent shot at getting the offense to a place where we're "winning the game we're supposed to win," but Diaco's defense (if left unchanged from this season) puts us in a place where we're again going to be manhandled by Michigan, Wisconsin, and Ohio State.
Mike has failed to bring in a good staff. He could fire Cavanaugh, he could attempt to force Diaco to change things up, but I just don't see him team being competitive at winning the conference at any point.