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OT: did the Big Ten kill Nebraska football?

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Pitt_Boss

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An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.

Since Nebrasksa has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
 
Pitt_Boss said:
An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.

Since Nebrasksa has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
Click to expand...
Nebraska-Oklahoma was a great rivalry for a long time. The Big 12 would definitely be a better fit for football. The $ is better in the Big 10, but what difference does it make to a crazed football fanbase if you are stuck in mediocrity. Nebraska football is everything to that state.
 
Pitt_Boss said:
An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.
Since Nebraska has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
Click to expand...

A big thing with NU is all the TV exposure everybody else gets now, too. Back in the day (pre ESPN and allowing all CFB games to be televised) of very selective TV appearances, "darling" schools like NU were one of the programs that got as much TV exposure as allowable.

Now? Great players from populated and prominent HS football hotbeds gon't have to go to the drab middle of nowhere (aka Lincoln, NE) to get the exposure, recognition and attention they all seem to crave.

Those guys can get what they want in nicer places and without having to endure 4 years in Nebraska.

The B1G sure hasn't seemed to have helped them on the field. Maybe financially it has? Only they can decide if it was all worth it.
 
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Yep and most were saying it at the time. Much like Maryland, eggheads outside of athletics saw negative indicators and felt pressure to adapt. Both needed a change but panicked.
 
Pitt_Boss said:
An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.

Since Nebrasksa has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
Click to expand...
The paramount reason for the demise of NU football is the former AD, SP, destroyed their program just as he did here at PItt. We are still not out of the mess that he created but at the very least H. Lyke and HCPN have provided leadership and stability and perhaps in another several years a solid foundation for the program will have been established. At NU S. Frost may be the one to deliver respectability, stability and winning for their fan base. I don’t think that staying in the Big 12 would have made any difference, their football won and loss record would probably been very much the same .
 
oldpanther said:
The paramount reason for the demise of NU football is the former AD, SP, destroyed their program just as he did here at PItt. We are still not out of the mess that he created but at the very least H. Lyke and HCPN have provided leadership and stability and perhaps in another several years a solid foundation for the program will have been established. At NU S. Frost may be the one to deliver respectability, stability and winning for their fan base. I don’t think that staying in the Big 12 would have made any difference, their football won and loss record would probably been very much the same .
Click to expand...
I disagree about the conference affiliation. The Big 10 wants Michigan and Ohio State to hold the spotlight. They could care less about Nebraska getting the attention. The Big 12 would be pushing Texas, OU, and Nebraska as the Big 3. Their recruiting would improve in the Big 12, and the schedule would be easier.
 
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No backyard for recruiting. When underclassmen were permitted to enter the draft the days of Nebraska footbal being a national power ended.

You must have depth. You can't build it without a base in your back yard.
 
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Any decline this big is not just one thing.

There is plenty to go around: the retirements of Osborne, Tenopir, and that staff; the conference move especially making it harder to recruit tornado alley; the fact you can't just juice up your line anymore; the Callahan hiring; and the decline of in-state talent (they used to routinely have walk-ons and other locals as major contributors even from rural Nebraska, the South East, etc, not just the two cities. The state is actually growing but almost entirely from immigration and Latinos aren't playing football at the same rates.)
 
Pitt_Boss said:
An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.

Since Nebrasksa has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
Click to expand...
Hmmm. Didn't a certain Steve Pederson fire Frank Solich and hire Bill Callahan? Thought so. There's a large part of your answer.
 
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Pitt_Boss said:
An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.

Since Nebrasksa has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
Click to expand...

No jackass Pederson did!
 
Frost has the personality of a clam. Plus he will find that programs the like of Wisky, Iowa, NW are more than capable now than the good old Nebraska dubious find the building recruiting and Texas connections.
 
It was Steve. Nebraska hadn't seen a losing season for 42 years, and then Steve comes in and bam, Bill Callahan and losing season right off the bat. They are still in recovery mode, just like Pitt. And SoufLincoln4Life and CrazyHusker can't blame the fan support there.
 
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HailtoPitt said:
It was Steve. Nebraska hadn't seen a losing season for 42 years, and then Steve comes in and bam, Bill Callahan and losing season right off the bat. They are still in recovery mode, just like Pitt. And SoufLincoln4Life and CrazyHusker can't blame the fan support there.
Click to expand...
Yep
12 years later

it’s about bill Callahan coaching 3 years
 
It's a terrible thing to say, but the truth is, the stars in college football are all African-American nowadays. In Nebraska's heyday, that wasn't the case. Young urban males aren't going to flock to Nebraska for 3-4 years, no matter who the coach is, so long as they have alternatives. Not happening.
 
Pitt_Boss said:
An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.

Since Nebrasksa has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
Click to expand...

The Big Ten is the only P5 conference without a presence in a mega-recruiting state (FL, TX, CA). They lost Texas recruiting in the Big Ten. Game, set, match.
 
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Mike Rozier, Tommy Frazier, Lawrence Phillips, etc ... in Nebraska’s heyday in the 80s and 90s, most of their big-time stars were black ...

Nebraska has had bigger issues with non-qualifiers, getting away from a style that they had perfected and either being unreasonable with coaches or making poor choices.
 
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oldpanther said:
The paramount reason for the demise of NU football is the former AD, SP, destroyed their program just as he did here at PItt. We are still not out of the mess that he created but at the very least H. Lyke and HCPN have provided leadership and stability and perhaps in another several years a solid foundation for the program will have been established. At NU S. Frost may be the one to deliver respectability, stability and winning for their fan base. I don’t think that staying in the Big 12 would have made any difference, their football won and loss record would probably been very much the same .
Click to expand...
Not to defend Pederson, but the football program at Pitt was well destroyed before he got here. Pitt's Administration destroyed it.
 
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The Steve can strike quickly



5af9ebf6b7c10.image.jpg
 
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TheChair said:
Mike Rozier, Tommy Frazier, Lawrence Phillips, etc ... in Nebraska’s heyday in the 80s and 90s, most of their big-time stars were black ...

Nebraska has had bigger issues with non-qualifiers, getting away from a style that they had perfected and either being unreasonable with coaches or making poor choices.
Click to expand...
Like Jefferson, they only flew in for the games.....and also knew where to go to get Earth Wind and Fire tickets.
 
Pitt_Boss said:
An off-week topic watching Oklahoma-Texas. Did the move to the Big Ten kill Nebrasksa football? I know there were issues with ADs, coaches, etc...but ultimately is playing in the Big Ten what destroyed Nebraska football?

I feel like in the Big 12 they have some built-in advantages. Really only Oklahoma and Texas could match them in prestige, tradition, program strength...and Texas has been down some. But Nebraska could pencil in being one of the top teams in the conference and that led to a cycle of success (fan interest, recruit interest, etc.). Sort of UCF in their conference or Villanova in basketball, better to be a big fish in a small pond.

Since Nebrasksa has no natural recruiting base and depended on their "prestige" to lure recruits, I'm not sure they can ever get back to being a top 10 team, except for an odd magical season.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. Nebraska will never be what it once was.
 
TheChair said:
Mike Rozier, Tommy Frazier, Lawrence Phillips, etc ... in Nebraska’s heyday in the 80s and 90s, most of their big-time stars were black ...

Nebraska has had bigger issues with non-qualifiers, getting away from a style that they had perfected and either being unreasonable with coaches or making poor choices.
Click to expand...

They had African-American skill guys, but 90% of their roster, at least, was white. You do that nowadays, and you can't even play D-II. It's tough to recruit for them, I'm sure.
 
I agree the program was in crappy shape when Steve got here THE FIRST TIME, he killed it in his second stint. BUCK TOOTH CLUELESS ELITEST NORDY should have NEVER allowed him to fire Wannstedt or hire anyone after that!
 
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SisadaPITT said:
I agree the program was in crappy shape when Steve got here THE FIRST TIME, he killed it in his second stint. BUCK TOOTH CLUELESS ELITEST NORDY should have NEVER allowed him to fire Wannstedt or hire anyone after that!
Click to expand...

I don't agree that Nebraska was in a crappy state before Steve got there. Their win totals the previous 5 seasons were 12, 10, 11, 7 and 10. Programs sink because stupid people are allowed to make stupid decisions. Steve was hired (stupid decision) and then he was allowed to hire Bill Callahan (stupid decision) and tried to completely change their program's idenity. Steve then extended Callahan at the absolute worst time, another stupid decision. It's unbelievable how highly paid people can be so idiotic. Once they got rid of Steve, Pellini came in and while he wasn't a great coach, still managed to win at least 9 games every year. Once Pellini got the boot, Nebraska made another all time bade decision and hired Mike Riley. Can't blame Steve for that decision, but it was certainly a baffling Steve-like hire.
 
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pittdoc57 said:
They had African-American skill guys, but 90% of their roster, at least, was white. You do that nowadays, and you can't even play D-II. It's tough to recruit for them, I'm sure.
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That's just wrong.
1. Their portion of African American players were higher than you remember. The offensive line was almost always all-white and heavily in-state, but the defense was about what you'd see from most national title contenders (see links to pictures below)
2. Teams that are whiter than Nebraska (Wisconsin, Iowa, Stanford, etc.) have won more games than them since the Nebraska decline as well.

http://www.huskerj.com/Misc/Schedules/MSched1990Poster.jpg

http://www.huskerj.com/Misc/Schedules/MSched1998PosterD.jpg

https://nbccollegefootballtalk.files.wordpress.com/2019/06/gettyimages-314070.jpg?w=594&h=343&crop=1
 
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The Pitt Administration did hurt the Pitt Football Program for many years and Steve Peterson was also a big reason the program has taken longer to get established in recent years.
 
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MarshallGoldberg said:
That's just wrong.
1. Their portion of African American players were higher than you remember. The offensive line was almost always all-white and heavily in-state, but the defense was about what you'd see from most national title contenders (see links to pictures below)
2. Teams that are whiter than Nebraska (Wisconsin, Iowa, Stanford, etc.) have won more games than them since the Nebraska decline as well.

http://www.huskerj.com/Misc/Schedules/MSched1990Poster.jpg

http://www.huskerj.com/Misc/Schedules/MSched1998PosterD.jpg

https://nbccollegefootballtalk.files.wordpress.com/2019/06/gettyimages-314070.jpg?w=594&h=343&crop=1
Click to expand...
That's not surprising; there's absolutely nothing that guy writes that's true.
 
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HailtoPitt said:
I don't agree that Nebraska was in a crappy state before Steve got there. Their win totals the previous 5 seasons were 12, 10, 11, 7 and 10. Programs sink because stupid people are allowed to make stupid decisions. Steve was hired (stupid decision) and then he was allowed to hire Bill Callahan (stupid decision) and tried to completely change their program's idenity. Steve then extended Callahan at the absolute worst time, another stupid decision. It's unbelievable how highly paid people can be so idiotic. Once they got rid of Steve, Pellini came in and while he wasn't a great coach, still managed to win at least 9 games every year. Once Pellini got the boot, Nebraska made another all time bade decision and hired Mike Riley. Can't blame Steve for that decision, but it was certainly a baffling Steve-like hire.
Click to expand...

I was talking about our program the first time that POS was hired by the Northeastern Elitist Nordy
 
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