Coaching Board

[Cash68847]

I don't necessarily disagree with anything that you said. However, just winning will cure any and all of those concerns. Nebraska fans can pretend to be better than other fan bases, but at the end of the day, we just want to win. Hugh Freeze wins.

I can’t see Turd ever hiring Hugh. Moos probably would have. We should probably make a list of realistic coaches.

 

[BIGSTICK67]

The next hire is going to have to thread a very thin needle. First and foremost they have to be a good coach, obviously. But it's going to take some very good PR to keep the fans onboard when/if Frost has to be fired. That's why I don't think anyone with scandals in their past or a flashy "look at me" persona will get chosen.

For example, if we hired Hugh Freeze, a large segment of the fanbase would immediately say "we fired the struggling hometown hero in favor of the guy who got caught paying players and hiring prostitutes, we're now a shady win-at-all-costs program, I'm out." If we hired Lane Kiffin a segment of the fanbase would say "this guy has been a flaky sleaze earlier in his career, I'm out."

I'm not even necessarily arguing in favor of those opinions, but they have to be considered with this next hypothetical hire. The fanbase is going to be some mixture of apathetic, defeated, depressed, and angry if the Frost era goes down in flames. For understandable reasons, he was built up as The Great Last Hope for NU football and the final link to the glory years after two decades of mediocrity and failure. It's obviously hard for people to give up on that, and it will probably be hard for people to get back up off the mat after we have to admit to another failure - the most painful one yet - and reset.

So it's gonna be tough to get it right, and to be honest I am in the camp of people who don't think we are an attractive job anymore. That doesn't mean we just stick with what isn't working, but I do think it means the upper ranks of the coaching world will have zero interest. We have money and facilities and fans, but those two decades of failure are starting to weigh prettyyy heavily at the same time. It's easy to say "we have to hire a proven P5 coach," but if a P5 coach is a proven success I don't know that NU will look like an upgrade to them. That will leave us with mediocre or unsuccessful P5 coaches, hot up and comers from the G5/FCS level, or coordinators. A kinda scary crapshoot.

All that leads me to think our best bet going forward will be with a confident (but drama free) guy with a solid fundamentals-driven system that he knows how to teach like the back of his hand, and for once a willingness to bring in the very best assistants he can find. I genuinely think a lot of NU fans are going to be going through the stages of grief for awhile after this is all said and done, it's gonna feel like it's alllllll over to quite a few people. I don't foresee them get lifted out of the doldrums by a young flavor-of-the-week or anyone who seems shady or inauthentic. I CAN see them starting to regain hope by watching somebody humbly come in and keep their head down and start putting solid fundamentally sound and smart teams on the field. Who is that person? I have absolutely no idea. Could this entire post be full of shit by Thanksgiving weekend? Of course.

And this is what's wrong with Nebraska. Maybe not so much the administration because it finally seems they have big swinging dicks that know what the hell they're doing. Sometimes our fanbase can be so dumb and sanctimonious. Meanwhile in the 90's.

 

[Black Dean]

I can’t see Turd ever hiring Hugh. Moos probably would have. We should probably make a list of realistic coaches.

Thats why I didn’t have Freeze on my list

 

[Cookiemonster]

Do not want Malzahn. Would be Riley level IMO.

 

[Bootleg11]

Do not want Malzahn. Would be Riley level IMO.

I don’t think Malzahn is the answer but don’t do that to him. The guy beat Saban 3 times and was 68-35 at Auburn

 

[MtnHusker]

It finally feels like there are grown ups in the room. (And yes I realize how many insisted that was the case last time as well.) Turd just has a much more calculated demeanor than did Moos and even Eichorst and Pederson for that matter.

Another huge advantage Turd has going for him is that he is a Husker Legend plus is on good terms with many of the bigger boosters. It makes a big difference when you don't have to battle with the Boosters also. It is tough for outsiders, whether they are the Athletic Director or a Coach, to get the support of some Nebraska fans and Boosters. I know I have many Husker Friends and Relatives that seem to only want to support former Huskers or people with Husker ties as a coach or Athletic Director. It is hard for some to accept change or outsiders into their Husker World.

I'm on record as being disappointed when I hear we hired Turd. Thought there were more qualified candidates. But gotta say he has impressed me with how he has handled things so far plus my close minded Husker friends and relatives give him their full support because he is a Husker Legend. If he can pull Husker Nation together plus help our football team turn things around then it was a great hire.

 

[Cash68847]

Thats why I didn’t have Freeze on my list

I want lane but I know Turd won’t hire him either. I would also interview Leonhard. I think the guy will be a good head coach when he gets his shot. I know many don’t want an assistant to get the head coaching job here, but I’m open to different possibilities.

 

[BIGSTICK67]

Another huge advantage Turd has going for him is that he is a Husker Legend plus is on good terms with many of the bigger boosters. It makes a big difference when you don't have to battle with the Boosters also. It is tough for outsiders, whether they are the Athletic Director or a Coach, to get the support of some Nebraska fans and Boosters. I know I have many Husker Friends and Relatives that seem to only want to support former Huskers or people with Husker ties as a coach or Athletic Director. It is hard for some to accept change or outsiders into their Husker World.

I'm on record as being disappointed when I hear we hired Turd. Thought there were more qualified candidates. But gotta say he has impressed me with how he has handled things so far plus my close minded Husker friends and relatives give him their full support because he is a Husker Legend. If he can pull Husker Nation together plus help our football team turn things around then it was a great hire.

This is an excellent post and couldn't agree more.

 

[Ext. 55]

Unrealistic:

Urban Meyer
Bob Stoops
Lane Kiffin


Hot Coaches Elsewhere:

Luke #2ndChoice (Cincinnati)
Jamey Chadwell (Coastal Carolina)
Kalen DeBoer (Fresno State)
Dave Doeren (NC State)
Dave Clawson (Wake Forest)

Big 12 Leftovers:

Matt Campbell (Cockeyes State)
Dave Aranda (Baylor)
Gary Patterson (TCU)
Mike Gundy (Oklahoma St)
Chris Klieman (Kansas St)
Lance Leipold (Kansas)

Hot Coaches Elsewhere:

Luke #2ndChoice (Cincinnati)
Jamey Chadwell (Coastal Carolina)
Kalen DeBoer (Fresno State)
Dave Doeren (NC State)
Dave Clawson (Wake Forest)

Hot Assistants:
Bill O’Brien (Alabama OC)
Brent Venables (Clemson DC)
Jim Leonhard (Wisconsin DC)
Marcus Freeman (Notre Dame DC)
Dan Lanning (Georgia DC)

#2ndChoice
O’Brien
DeBoer

Easy

 

[Cookiemonster]

I don’t think Malzahn is the answer but don’t do that to him. The guy beat Saban 3 times and was 68-35 at Auburn

No thanks. Guy doesn’t have it.

 

[Baron Winnebago]

I want lane but I know Turd won’t hire him either. I would also interview Leonhard. I think the guy will be a good head coach when he gets his shot. I know many don’t want an assistant to get the head coaching job here, but I’m open to different possibilities.

I'm not necessarily opposed to an assistant, but it's nice to see assistants who have worked for multiple successful head coaches. Coordinators can be great, but lot more variance in them because you've never seen them put together a staff

 

[Black Dean]

I want lane but I know Turd won’t hire him either. I would also interview Leonhard. I think the guy will be a good head coach when he gets his shot. I know many don’t want an assistant to get the head coaching job here, but I’m open to different possibilities.

bingo about Leonhard

 

[Fargo Husker]

I don’t think Malzahn is the answer but don’t do that to him. The guy beat Saban 3 times and was 68-35 at Auburn

Would be interested in hearing you expound on your thoughts re: Malzahn since I know you’re actually a coach and know more about actual football than me.

 

[Bootleg11]

Would be interested in hearing you expound on your thoughts re: Malzahn since I know you’re actually a coach and know more about actual football than me.

I like Malzahn. He’s a good coach.
Expectations at Auburn are ridiculous because of Saban. Eight years is a long time at Auburn when you are trying to keep up with the instate rival who’s coach is the greatest coach ever. He averaged over 8 wins a year there but after that 8 years you’ve made enough enemies it was probably better for all parties that he was let go.

I don’t know if he would be a good fit in the Big 10.

 

[huskerj12]

And this is what's wrong with Nebraska. Maybe not so much the administration because it finally seems they have big swinging dicks that know what the hell they're doing. Sometimes our fanbase can be so dumb and sanctimonious. Meanwhile in the 90's.

Oh yeah I hear you, longterm the only important thing is winning and establishing a modern version of NU for this century. Our fanbase puts up so many ridiculous barriers/fears of modernization that we currently have an Irish jig from 1908 as our 4th quarter pump up song.

But my post was just in PR terms, just kinda trying to feel the pulse of the fanbase in this moment and over the next several months. There's no doubt that a giant chunk of NU fans view the football program as a giant extended family, and they want to feel "safe" with the person in charge, and feel like he is trustworthy and authentic and fits in with the family. That's why some people are so obsessed with NU ties that they bring up Zac Taylor as a possible replacement with a straight face, and that's also why Frost's failure is going to be so painful for the fanbase's psyche. He was the final link to that original "family" ownership that people passed down from generation to generation and that we've been so desperately trying to get back to for the past 20 years. For better or worse, that's how the lore of NU football has played out up until now.

Maybe this is totally defeatist but I just sense that a lot of people have been slowly washing their hands of the whole thing over the past 6-7-8 years. It's become easier to quit reading the paper, listening to the radio or podcasts, and easier to stop going to games or even watching on Saturdays. My dad and his friends aren't that old, but they're old enough to have been huge fans coming of age in the 70s, 80s, and 90s, watched games together, traveled to away games, etc., passed it down to their kids in the 90s/00s, but by now they're all kinda like "well we had our time, too much shit has changed, we're seeing the same drama play out over and over at this point, why keep spending time and energy on this, let's go golfing on Saturdays."

Frost's failure is going to feel like a last gasp, and IN MY OPINION replacing him with someone who has been a sleaze in the past, or is a new flash in the pan, will probably solidify a lot of peoples' decisions to just close the book. That doesn't mean they won't come back if the sleaze/flash in the pan guy turns out to be a good coach haha, I know I plan to stick with my fandom no matter what happens, but I don't know. It just feels like there's a chance NU football is on the edge of a cliff and the next hire (if needed) is going to be a tricky one.

 

[DrinkItIn]

Another huge advantage Turd has going for him is that he is a Husker Legend plus is on good terms with many of the bigger boosters. It makes a big difference when you don't have to battle with the Boosters also. It is tough for outsiders, whether they are the Athletic Director or a Coach, to get the support of some Nebraska fans and Boosters. I know I have many Husker Friends and Relatives that seem to only want to support former Huskers or people with Husker ties as a coach or Athletic Director. It is hard for some to accept change or outsiders into their Husker World.

I'm on record as being disappointed when I hear we hired Turd. Thought there were more qualified candidates. But gotta say he has impressed me with how he has handled things so far plus my close minded Husker friends and relatives give him their full support because he is a Husker Legend. If he can pull Husker Nation together plus help our football team turn things around then it was a great hire.

Nice post. Totally agree. I also believe that the only person that can fire one Husker Legend would be another Husker Legend. If Frost is going to get fired, Turd is about the only person that would appease most of the masses. There is no way an outsider AD could fire Frost without a shitton of backlash IMO.

 

[David Webb]

Nice post. Totally agree. I also believe that the only person that can fire one Husker Legend would be another Husker Legend. If Frost is going to get fired, Turd is about the only person that would appease most of the masses. There is no way an outsider AD could fire Frost without a shitton of backlash IMO.

I would disagree. People aren’t stupid - well some are. Four losing seasons in a row, legend player or not, you aren’t going to get much sympathy for being fired. You might get 10% of the fans that think he should get more time and are upset. The only people that really matter are the big-time donors.

The blowback comes if you hire someone like Mike Riley, or the hiring process is run in a Pederson manner.

 

[DrinkItIn]

I would disagree. People aren’t stupid - well some are. Four losing seasons in a row, legend player or not, you aren’t going to get much sympathy for being fired. You might get 10% of the fans that think he should get more time and are upset. The only people that really matter are the big-time donors.

The blowback comes if you hire someone like Mike Riley, or the hiring process is run in a Pederson manner.

That is hard to argue against. I am probably jaded by the people on FB and RSS that are always white knighting for Frost and blaming everyone but the HC himself.

It's amazing to me how many people seem to be a bigger fan of Frost than of the actual program. It's like they would rather be a 6-6 Team with Frost than a 9,10,11 win team with an outsider as a coach.

People say they are scared of starting over and going through another rebuild. Well, welcome to college football in this day and age. Coaches don't stick around outside of a handful. Sure you have Saban, Dabo etc...but Fisher left FSU for A&M? It's all about the $$.

The problem with NU is the fact Frost is the first coach we have paid top dollar for. He is not working out so far. If he continues to fail he will obviously be replaced. As you mentioned, as long as NU doesn't hire another Mike Riley and goes after a proven commodity, I believe a lot of skepticists would be shocked at how fast this program could be turned around.

 

[huskerj12]

I believe a lot of skepticists would be shocked at how fast this program could be turned around.

Honestly, with the talent we have right now if we could just get the right guys on the field and teach them to not run into each other Three Stooges style we could be in pretty good shape.

 

[vailhusker]

Huh I could have swore they had more.. You are right. Show me for not actually counting and just going off first blush.


I am a fan of having your OL having an OL and OL/TE. I just think I would rather have 2 guys there vs 1 guy coaching 5 starters and 1 guy coaching 1 starter.

In your defense they had Bo Wilson, Matt Anderson, and Jimmy Fritzsche transfer and Ezra Miller and Nouili aren't on the scholarship list.