H U S K E R D A N
February 18, 2010
RECRUITING
RULES
This year, for the first time in nearly a decade, a Husker
football coaching staff was able to carry a simple
but important message to each and every Husker prospect:
Come to Nebraska and you'll have a very real chance of competing
for and winning conference and national championships.
Think about that for a minute. Just two seasons ago,
the Nebraska football program ended the 2007 season
with a 5-7 record, fielded a defense that was ranked 112th in total
defense and surrendered an amazing 455 points for an arena football
league like per game average of almost 38 points.
For many Husker fans, the bottom in '07 was
the Oklahoma State game in Lincoln when a so-so Cowboy team led the Huskers
at the half, 38-0. Everyone sat in stunned silence as the Huskers walked
off the field that afternoon.
REMEMBER TITANIC
The Cowboys were the iceberg and the Husker football
program was Titanic. If major changes happen soon, the Husker
football program was in danger of sinking.
And now we know that Ndamukong Suh, the most
highly decorated defensive player in Husker history, had strongly considered
transferring after that tumultuous '07 season.
And as every Husker fan knows, Tom Osborne came to the
rescue in October of '07 as the interim A.D. At season's end,
Osborne fired Bill Callahan and most of his staff and in December of
2007 hired defensive guru Bo Pelini from LSU.
Pelini had shown in 2003, when he served as Frank
Solich's defensive coordinator, that he knew a thing or two about defense.
After his one year at Nebraska, Pelini spent a year as an assistant at Oklahoma
and then worked his magic as the defensive coordinator at LSU under head coach
Les Miles. And in his third and final year (2007) at LSU, Pelini
helped the Tigers win a national championship.
When he got the head coaching job at Nebraska, Bo quickly
assembled a great group of assistants who could coach. Pelini's
staff hit the ground running and were able to get the Nebraska football program
back on the winning track.
But what's all this have to do with recruiting?
Plenty.
Recruiting Rule #1
Thou shalt win. And keep winning. And Bo's
staff put the football team in position to do just
that.
In his first year as the Husker head coach, Bo's
Huskers won nine games and topped that this year with ten wins. His
first two seasons included bowl victories over Clemson in '08 and
the Huskers' first shutout bowl victory in school history, over
the Arizona Wildcats in the '09 Holiday Bowl.
Last year's record included beating Oklahoma,
winning the Big 12 North title and coming within one second
of upsetting the Texas Longhorns in the Big 12
Championship game. Nebraska should be in a great position in the
coming years to attract and retain even better talent.
Recruiting Rule
#2
Thou shall keep your staff together. Bo's staff is
one of only 12 D-1 football programs in the nation that looks this fall
to return its entire staff for the third straight year. For decades,
Tom Osborne used the tenure of his staff to keep the Nebraska football
program at or near the top of the college football world.
Rule #3
Keep repeating Rules #1 & #2.
FILM WATCHING
I think this year's crop of Husker recruits is a really
good one. However, I find it difficult and confusing for a lay person
(such as I am) to make much sense out of watching video, some of which is
so grainy it makes the Zapruder film look like an IMAX classic. And
to top it off, there's this little yellow arrow that that points to
the recruit we're supposed to go ga-ga over. But there's no way of
telling if the defenses "Mr. Big" is running through like a banshee are any
good. And does the kid who is being slammed deep into the
Friday night turf by the 6' 5" 325 pound O-lineman play
like Broderick Thomas or more like Marlo Thomas?
WASTED ENERGY
What makes the loss of defensive end recruit
Owamagbe Odighizuwa to Skippy Neuweasle at UCLA is that I had miraculously
managed to learn how to pronounce Owa's name correctly. And
for what? Sigh...
HUNTING WITH THE HUSKERS
Gerry Gray wants to invite you to a
"Hunt With The Huskers" event he is sponsoring next
month that gives Husker fans an
opportunity to go pheasant hunting with about 18 former Husker football
greats. Mark down Saturday, March 20th at the Oak Creek Sporting Club in
Brainard, Nebraska in your calendar. (BTW, Brainard is only about 52
miles west of Omaha.)
Past Husker greats who have participated in the hunt
include Joel Makovicka, Brenden Stai, Terry Connealy, Matt Hoskinson, Adrian
Fiala, Matt Davison, Erik and Zach Wiegert, Rob Zatechka, and Aaron
Graham. Several spots are still available, but you are encouraged to
register quickly. All payments must be received in full by March 1.
And yes, yours truly will be there.
For more information go to www.greatplainsmktg.com or www.oak-creek-club.com Or you can
call Gerry Gray at 402-393-0492.
WELCOME, MATT
I had a chance to visit recently with former Husker
safety Matt O'Hanlon, who came to Nebraska (after a brief stop at the University
of South Dakota) as a walk-on from Bellevue East High School in Bellevue,
Nebraska. He is one of the nicest, most unassuming people you'll ever
meet. Perhaps the best thing that can be said about him is that
most parents would like their daughters to marry someone like Matt.
(Matt's wife, Abby, who is a nurse in Lincoln, wants you to know that Matt
ain't available!)
I asked Matt about his up-and-down senior season and what
it was like after the loss to Virginia Tech in September.
"I couldn't believe people could say such things about
someone they don't even know," he lamented.
"Was it email messages or phone calls?" I
asked.
"Facebook was the worst."
I also asked him what it was like after the Oklahoma game
where he made 12 tackles and had 3 interceptions to earn Big 12
Defensive Player of the Week and was named National Player of the
Week by the Football Writers Association of America.
"As I came off the field after the game, I had tears in my
eyes. For me, it was redemption. Not a day went by that I didn't
think about the Virginia Tech game. This game kinda made up for that
one."
In addition, Matt went on to win the Holiday Bowl
Defensive MVP honors after he had five tackles and a pass breakup and returned
an interception 37 yards that set up the Huskers' first touchdown.
Matt hopes to get a tryout with an NFL team, but
if that doesn't work, he has Plan B to fall back on.
"I want to be a Social Studies teacher in high school or
teach special education. I'd also like to do some coaching," he
said.
On a side note, it was fate that Abby and Matt
met. "We had lockers next to each other in high school,"
she confessed.
"Was it love at first sight?" I asked.
"It was for me!" she grinned.
Needless to say, Abby's parents, Dale and Karen Nye
of Bellevue are also happy that Matt and Abby met.
YO ADRIAN
It was unfortunate to learn that longtime Husker
broadcaster and former Husker player Adrian Fiala was let go from the Husker
football broadcast team. Although we've never met, I've always had a
great deal of respect and admiration for Adrian. Good luck, my
friend. You have many Husker fans who are rooting for you.
2009 HIGHLIGHTS
We leave you with highlights of last year's Husker
football season.
Send your comments to [email protected]. For past Husker Dan columns, click here.