Fire Satterfield

Pernell puts the blame of our offensive woes squarely at the feet of Satterfield.  Quoted in part below.     I just hope Satterfield doesn't become Rhule's Cosgrove.  

https://www.si.com/college/nebraska/football/jeremy-pernell-matt-rhule-and-nebraska-football-face-a-pivotal-offseason

All three quarterbacks had issues with not being on the same page with receivers on route concepts, and there were several times when the quarterback and running back weren't in sync on option/zone read plays.

Miscues and inexplicable play calls in the red zone were also a regular occurrence. These are all coaching issues.

For the majority of the season, Nebraska couldn’t scheme much open in the passing game and the quarterback run game was the only reliable component of Marcus Satterfield's offense.

It's no secret I questioned Satterfield's hire as offensive coordinator. But I've also tried to stay neutral in my analysis. I've gone back and watched his offenses at Temple and South Carolina to try and formulate a more complete picture of his coaching. Not only were his offenses pedestrian, but they were bland and unimaginative.

The best predictor of future success is past results. That's a big reason I'm so skeptical that Satterfield will ultimately work out. In six seasons as an offensive coordinator, his offenses have ranked 88th, 97th, 60th, 104th, 40th and 121st in scoring, and 74th, 117th, 96th, 110th, 72nd and 116th in total offense. Three different teams. Three different conferences. Same inept results.

There's an assumption the offense will experience a sizable jump in Year 2 because the majority of contributors are set to return. On the surface, I can understand the optimism. Typically there's major growth between the first and second years playing in a system.

But delve deeper. It'd be one thing if Satterfield had a track record for prominent offenses, but he doesn't. This isn't some anomaly you can blame on injuries and be confident things will change after he gets "his" recruits and more talent on the roster. That hasn't been the case with him. Despite having NFL quarterbacks at Temple and South Carolina, Satterfield's offenses never took off at either place. Even after he experienced his most significant Year 2 improvement with the Gamecocks, he was on the hot seat.

No matter. Matt Rhule doesn't plan to make a change at offensive coordinator. He made that clear following the Maryland game.

It doesn't come as a surprise. Rhule’s continued support of Satterfield corresponds with the belief he has in his process of development. From his perspective, what kind of message would it send to his team if he punted on a coach after one season? Just because results don’t arrive immediately, Rhule isn’t going to rush his process. That goes for coaches and players alike.

A lot of extenuating circumstances  played a part in the offense being so inadequate. Along with the injuries, it was also the first time this staff went through the rigors of the Big Ten. There's always a learning curve in your inaugural go-round. The coaches are still in the early stages of building their roster. They should be given another recruiting/portal class to get more of their players in place.

So even though I don't have high hopes for Satterfield long-term, I understand why Rhule won't make a change after one season.

The question, however, is will Rhule consider adding an established coach this offseason to give Satterfield some help? Keep in mind special teams analyst Josh Martin filled in for Bob Wager on an interim basis this season after Wager "resigned" following his arrest for DUI in late July. Will Rhule make that move permanent, or decide to tweak some things?

I would suggest a different course of action. I would augment the staff by adding a proven quarterback developer and reassigning Satterfield to the tight ends. I'd include the opportunity to be co-offensive coordinator in order to entice a prominent candidate.

Remember, Rhule tried to hire Los Angeles Rams offensive assistant Jake Peetz last December to be his QB coach. Peetz was LSU's offensive coordinator in 2021 and coached QBs for the Raiders (2016-17) and Panthers (2020) under Matt Rhule after initially joining his staff to coach running backs in 2019. He's been the Pass Game Specialist under Sean McVay since 2022. After seriously considering the offer, Peetz decided to stay with the Rams. Does Rhule take another swing or target someone else? I think it's a smart move.
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TGHusker said:
Pernell puts the blame of our offensive woes squarely at the feet of Satterfield.  Quoted in part below.     I just hope Satterfield doesn't become Rhule's Cosgrove.  

https://www.si.com/college/nebraska/football/jeremy-pernell-matt-rhule-and-nebraska-football-face-a-pivotal-offseason
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If Satterfield is allowed to stay this offseason, one more season of his incompetence is all that will be necessary to kill Rhule's tenure. Things move quick in recruiting thanks to the portal, and reputations are easy to obtain and difficult to overcome. 

Also, when just about *everyone* is saying the same thing re: Satterfield, and the same criticisms levied against him at South Carolina have followed him to Lincoln...it's not a coincidence. Cut bait and find a new OC (and WR coach, and maybe O-Line coach) to breathe life into this offense...preferably one that knows how to teach ball security. 

But the real question is, do we use the term Sattergrove or Cosfield until Satterfield (and/or Rhule) are replaced? 

 
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Can’t believe this thread still has contributors. Thought everyone would’ve sobered up by now and realized there was basically nothing Satt could do with this QB room and decimated receiver corp. Just run the ball doesn’t work when the opponent knows that is all you can attempt. Unless you think Satt is coaching them to throw horribly and without any field awareness and to inexplicably drop balls while running then it might be best to hide your lack of understanding from the rest of the board.

Maybe I’m slow on the uptake but I find it very hard to crucify the guy when he had absolutely nothing to work with. Yes there were many questionable play calls but I’d like to see somebody here complaining figure out something/anything that could’ve possibly worked.

Having said that…I wouldn’t miss him if he were to be let go.

 
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I normally start the blame with the staff and then work down to the players. I think you could maybe lay quite a bit of blame on Satterfield for Sims' problems, but then again he only played two games. We were probably one false start by an offensive lineman and an Anthony Grant fumble away from winning that one regardless.

But yeah, since the staff pretty clearly saw Sims as the starter from even before the spring game, I can lay some blame on Satterfield for Sims not being ready. But also Sims is just not a very good player.

It's harder for me personally to lay much more blame on Satterfield for the stuff Haarberg struggled with because he was actually the 3rd string QB but played as the 2nd string guy because of Purdy's injury.

 
JJ Husker said:
Can’t believe this thread still has contributors. Thought everyone would’ve sobered up by now and realized there was basically nothing Satt could do with this QB room and decimated receiver corp. Just run the ball doesn’t work when the opponent knows that is all you can attempt. Unless you think Satt is coaching them to throw horribly and without any field awareness and to inexplicably drop balls while running then it might be best to hide your lack of understanding from the rest of the board.
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This point also suggests throwing games was a possibility from the abundance of head scratcher picks and drops in key moments. Gambling isn't just for the fans, said Pete Rose. Well, he might not have actually said that, but he sure walked that walk.

 
Undone said:
I normally start the blame with the staff and then work down to the players. I think you could maybe lay quite a bit of blame on Satterfield for Sims' problems, but then again he only played two games. We were probably one false start by an offensive lineman and an Anthony Grant fumble away from winning that one regardless.

But yeah, since the staff pretty clearly saw Sims as the starter from even before the spring game, I can lay some blame on Satterfield for Sims not being ready. But also Sims is just not a very good player.

It's harder for me personally to lay much more blame on Satterfield for the stuff Haarberg struggled with because he was actually the 3rd string QB but played as the 2nd string guy because of Purdy's injury.
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I almost believe, given all that we have heard, that was by default.  He was the only one healthy at QB in the spring and fall.  HH wasn't even on the radar at QB in spring.  

 
JJ Husker said:
Can’t believe this thread still has contributors. Thought everyone would’ve sobered up by now and realized there was basically nothing Satt could do with this QB room and decimated receiver corp. Just run the ball doesn’t work when the opponent knows that is all you can attempt. Unless you think Satt is coaching them to throw horribly and without any field awareness and to inexplicably drop balls while running then it might be best to hide your lack of understanding from the rest of the board.

Maybe I’m slow on the uptake but I find it very hard to crucify the guy when he had absolutely nothing to work with. Yes there were many questionable play calls but I’d like to see somebody here complaining figure out something/anything that could’ve possibly worked.

Having said that…I wouldn’t miss him if he were to be let go.
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I'm in a similar camp as you- ill chalk it up to insane injuries plus first year struggles.  That article tho posted above also included this stat that gave me pause:

"The best predictor of future success is past results. That's a big reason I'm so skeptical that Satterfield will ultimately work out. In six seasons as an offensive coordinator, his offenses have ranked 88th, 97th, 60th, 104th, 40th and 121st in scoring, and 74th, 117th, 96th, 110th, 72nd and 116th in total offense. Three different teams. Three different conferences. Same inept results."

Hard to argue with stats- similar to the Jeff Sims story.  Sims was a turnover machines, comes here and guess what, morphs into a turnover nightmare.  I'll remain optimistic a full offseason and influx of talent can help Satt but hot damn, the stat I pasted above gives me a disdain towards this hiring decision I haven't felt before.

 
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