I am convinced...

[Hoosker Du]

After being at the game, and then rewatching it...this is exactly like the Miami game, except with us being on the other side of it. Miami got bored and allowed us back in the game, and we got bored and allowed Southern Miss back in the game.

We had just scored near the end of the 3rd quarter and were up by 29-7 (just 1 point less than Miami's 23 point lead). Throw in a couple turnovers, an onside kick, a BS PI call or two, and a team that we are much better than looks liked they belonged.

I could sense it while at the game. The crowd was dead, just chatting amongst themselves, and I'm sure the team felt very little emotion too. They were just finishing out the game.

I'm not dismissing the poor defensive performance, but consider that they had shut them out for 2 1/2 quarters. Teams lose motivation when they are up big. It happens. We are just fortunate enough that we turned it back on enough to win the game.

 

[planored]

That is what the naysayers said about our comeback so they should be able to accept this.

 

[Hoosker Du]

That is what the naysayers said about our comeback so they should be able to accept this.

They is no doubt in my mind that Miami got bored and got sloppy. We obviously put ourselves in a hole in Miami by dropping passes the first two series, and things snowballed from there, but Miami became disinterested just like we did on Saturday.

It doesn't make our comeback any less exciting or important in terms of the character of the team, because this type of thing happens more than a few times each season. A team gets way up for a game, gets a big lead, and become complacent. Then the team that's getting pounded scores, and gets some inspiration.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

I don't really think that is the case. USM at one point had scored 1 time in 5 red zone chances. Nebraska offense also stalled, but they were at least able to get FG's out of most of the drives. USM moved the ball well most of the game. There is no reason that the Nebraska defense should have been losing interest. To me, it looked far more like their offense got better at converting in the red zone later in the game.

And, as you said...the turnovers and onside kick also didn't help Nebraska.

 

[Lincoln100]

I don't really think that is the case. USM at one point had scored 1 time in 5 red zone chances. Nebraska offense also stalled, but they were at least able to get FG's out of most of the drives. USM moved the ball well most of the game. There is no reason that the Nebraska defense should have been losing interest. To me, it looked far more like their offense got better at converting in the red zone later in the game.

And, as you said...the turnovers and onside kick also didn't help Nebraska.

That's interesting. I think it just has to do with Mike being a nice guy (since that is why he was hired), and feeling bad about beating them so badly in the first half, so he let them get close to make them feel better. That's what nice guys do.

 

[Hoosker Du]

I don't really think that is the case. USM at one point had scored 1 time in 5 red zone chances. Nebraska offense also stalled, but they were at least able to get FG's out of most of the drives. USM moved the ball well most of the game. There is no reason that the Nebraska defense should have been losing interest. To me, it looked far more like their offense got better at converting in the red zone later in the game.

And, as you said...the turnovers and onside kick also didn't help Nebraska.

Don't forget the BS PI call at the goal line. All I know is that despite getting burned, when it came down to keeping them out of the endzone, our defense did it for 2 1/2 quarters. And after going up 29-7, there was that letdown. It was palpable in the stadium.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

Don't forget the BS PI call at the goal line. All I know is that despite getting burned, when it came down to keeping them out of the endzone, our defense did it for 2 1/2 quarters. And after going up 29-7, there was that letdown. It was palpable in the stadium.

I am back and forth on that penalty. Kind of depends on who you are cheering for I guess. He clearly gave him a push..probably a little push--but if you are a ref and you see a CB with a pushing motion and the WR falling down--the ref will normally make that call.

 

[newAD]

I am back and forth on that penalty. Kind of depends on who you are cheering for I guess. He clearly gave him a push..probably a little push--but if you are a ref and you see a CB with a pushing motion and the WR falling down--the ref will normally make that call.

That was a better acting job than Anna Nicole Smith pretending to love a 90 year old rich guy.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

That's interesting. I think it just has to do with Mike being a nice guy (since that is why he was hired), and feeling bad about beating them so badly in the first half, so he let them get close to make them feel better. That's what nice guys do.

He certainly wasn't hired for his impeccable win/loss record. Unless Eichorst was really impressed with his 30-33 record the past 5 years.

Maybe he was such a nice guy that he hired his best buddy to be the defensive coordinator. That will help teams feel better when they play Nebraska for years to come.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

That was a better acting job than Anna Nicole Smith pretending to love a 90 year old rich guy.

You don't think that looks like true love? I agree it was probably an acting job, but you cannot do that as a CB, he will get called most of the time for that.

 

[Lincoln100]

Makes sense Gator

 

[barney44]

Or maybe we just didn't put enough points on the board in that game. That tends to happen when you kick FG's for most of the first half. We had no problem getting in to the red zone, putting it in the end zone 3 out of 10 or so trips isn't too good when your pass defense is as bad as it gets. We had a potential 42 point first half yet we didn't put the game away then and there because of our cute play calling in the red zone.

 

[Crushinator]

That's interesting. I think it just has to do with Mike being a nice guy (since that is why he was hired), and feeling bad about beating them so badly in the first half, so he let them get close to make them feel better. That's what nice guys do.

That's true. I'm not a nice guy, but I tried it once. Immediately afterward I had a good cry and could sing 3 octaves higher! Thank goodness I gave that habit up.

 

[Hoosker Du]

Or maybe we just didn't put enough points on the board in that game. That tends to happen when you kick FG's for most of the first half. We had no problem getting in to the red zone, putting it in the end zone 3 out of 10 or so trips isn't too good when your pass defense is as bad as it gets. We had a potential 42 point first half yet we didn't put the game away then and there because of our cute play calling in the red zone.

Of course we left points on the field, which would have broken their will. But the same thing happened tonight with Green Bay and KC. KC was outclassed tonight and got behind big. Then Green Bay let down and let 'em come back. This isn't anything new.

 

[dinglefritz]

He certainly wasn't hired for his impeccable win/loss record. Unless Eichorst was really impressed with his 30-33 record the past 5 years.

Maybe he was such a nice guy that he hired his best buddy to be the defensive coordinator. That will help teams feel better when they play Nebraska for years to come.

Cmon. You know full well why Riley was hired. Eichorst was deeply involved with the Spurrier hire at South Carolina and Riley was a guy back then that they looked at for that job due to multiple recommendations from football people they trusted. Riley wasn't interested in that job. When it was apparent that Bo needed to go, Eichorst already knew everything he needed to know about Riley and it was just a matter of seeing if he was interested. I have ZERO doubt that Riley was the name at the top of Eichorst's list of potential hires from the moment he took the NU job. EVERY AD worth his salt has that list of names no matter what the current situation is because never knows if his head coach might bolt or do something stupid. I believe we were lucky to get Riley. I think he is the perfect guy at the right time to eventually heal a lot of wounds. He's said all the right things. He's doing all the right things IMO and he and his assistants are handling the critical questions about as well as anybody I have every seen. My first reaction to the hire was "huh?". That changed very quickly when I did the research. I love the hire and am looking forward to see where he can take us over the next 3-4 years.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

Cmon. You know full well why Riley was hired. Eichorst was deeply involved with the Spurrier hire at South Carolina and Riley was a guy back then that they looked at for that job due to multiple recommendations from football people they trusted. Riley wasn't interested in that job. When it was apparent that Bo needed to go, Eichorst already knew everything he needed to know about Riley and it was just a matter of seeing if he was interested. I have ZERO doubt that Riley was the name at the top of Eichorst's list of potential hires from the moment he took the NU job. EVERY AD worth his salt has that list of names no matter what the current situation is because never knows if his head coach might bolt or do something stupid. I believe we were lucky to get Riley. I think he is the perfect guy at the right time to eventually heal a lot of wounds. He's said all the right things. He's doing all the right things IMO and he and his assistants are handling the critical questions about as well as anybody I have every seen. My first reaction to the hire was "huh?". That changed very quickly when I did the research. I love the hire and am looking forward to see where he can take us over the next 3-4 years.

See that is the problem. There is no reason that Eichorst should have considered Riley to be the top guy for the job.

Just a little bit better than a career .500 coach, not a great recruiter and is in his 60's. Nebraska deserved better. Riley might have been okay...but when he brings his best buddy, Banker along...it is a recipe for disaster. He has already proven me right. Ended a 29 game season opener win streak and got the program off to the worst start in 34 years. Let that sink in for a moment. Worse than Bill Callahan EVER did and he had 2 losing seasons in 4 years.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

See that is the problem. There is no reason that Eichorst should have considered Riley to be the top guy for the job.

Just a little bit better than a career .500 coach, not a great recruiter and is in his 60's. Nebraska deserved better. Riley might have been okay...but when he brings his best buddy, Banker along...it is a recipe for disaster. He has already proven me right. Ended a 29 game season opener win streak and got the program off to the worst start in 34 years. Let that sink in for a moment. Worse than Bill Callahan EVER did and he had 2 losing seasons in 4 years.

The issue is that, if Dingle is right, we hired a coached based off information from a decade ago. Maybe he should have asked himself to consider the last five years or so. The reality is that this decision is now water under the bridge. If we can get these kids coached up and stop with the boneheaded stuff that can be controlled--penalties and clock management...issues that were a big deal at OSU--we can still be OK. The West looks like it will be easy pickings over the next few years so we may be alright.

 

[TS568]

See that is the problem. There is no reason that Eichorst should have considered Riley to be the top guy for the job.

Just a little bit better than a career .500 coach, not a great recruiter and is in his 60's. Nebraska deserved better. Riley might have been okay...but when he brings his best buddy, Banker along...it is a recipe for disaster. He has already proven me right. Ended a 29 game season opener win streak and got the program off to the worst start in 34 years. Let that sink in for a moment. Worse than Bill Callahan EVER did and he had 2 losing seasons in 4 years.

Nah, Callahan LOST to Southern Miss his first year and a couple weeks later got drilled 70-10 in Lubbock. That's a worse start- W/L be damned.

 

[Soda Popinski]

See that is the problem. There is no reason that Eichorst should have considered Riley to be the top guy for the job.

Just a little bit better than a career .500 coach, not a great recruiter and is in his 60's. Nebraska deserved better. Riley might have been okay...but when he brings his best buddy, Banker along...it is a recipe for disaster. He has already proven me right. Ended a 29 game season opener win streak and got the program off to the worst start in 34 years. Let that sink in for a moment. Worse than Bill Callahan EVER did and he had 2 losing seasons in 4 years.

This is the problem with you guys constantly undermining Riley. You claim that Nebraska deserved a better head coach, but there was no other glaringly obvious grand slam candidate! There were a few others that would've brought different things to the table, but nobody was an obvious grand slam, so now you're just acting like spoiled brats complaining because you didn't get your guy.

 

[inWV]

Nah, Callahan LOST to Southern Miss his first year and a couple weeks later got drilled 70-10 in Lubbock. That's a worse start- W/L be damned.

The difference is that Cally was trying to put a square offensive peg into a round hole. And his defense that first year showed signs of what would happen in his last year. Our current offense has adapted to what the coaches are trying to do. Defense is a different story, although it is hard to judge whether it is players, coaching or scheme, given that we are are far from full strength. I am not a big Xs and Os guy, but the defensive scheme works for other programs. Our pass defense was good last year, but teams had a tendency to run hog wild on us (understatement emoticon needed).

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

This is the problem with you guys constantly undermining Riley. You claim that Nebraska deserved a better head coach, but there was no other glaringly obvious grand slam candidate! There were a few others that would've brought different things to the table, but nobody was an obvious grand slam, so now you're just acting like spoiled brats complaining because you didn't get your guy.

I didn't have a guy. Just because no one immediately stands out as a grand slam hire doesn't mean you have to strike out going for a bunt.

 

[Soda Popinski]

I didn't have a guy. Just because no one immediately stands out as a grand slam hire doesn't mean you have to strike out going for a bunt.

Nice, so your solution is the Peterson method. Ask 25 guys that were never taking the job then settle on a long shot.

 

[inWV]

This is the problem with you guys constantly undermining Riley. You claim that Nebraska deserved a better head coach, but there was no other glaringly obvious grand slam candidate! There were a few others that would've brought different things to the table, but nobody was an obvious grand slam, so now you're just acting like spoiled brats complaining because you didn't get your guy.

For all of the drama surrounding the BP tenure, the guy won a decent percentage of his games. Some candidates self-select out of a pool with our expectations and that is a good thing. Doubt we were going to get a "big fish". Other than that, I expect that those dug into the college football thing all had their particular guy that was just a stone cold lock to be "the guy".

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

Nice, so your solution is the Peterson method. Ask 25 guys that were never taking the job then settle on a long shot.

Yes, if I was the AD, I would be floating this job to a lot of coaches agents to gauge interest. I would get a list of good candidates and then interview them. Then, if everything else in the world failed, then and only then, would I have talked to Riley. I also would not have allowed Riley to bring Banker. Take it or leave it. You don't like it...enjoy having another shitty year at Oregon State.

 

[G0B1GRED]

Quit feeding the troll....

 

[inWV]

Yes, if I was the AD, I would be floating this job to a lot of coaches agents to gauge interest. I would get a list of good candidates and then interview them. Then, if everything else in the world failed, then and only then, would I have talked to Riley. I also would not have allowed Riley to bring Banker. Take it or leave it. You don't like it...enjoy having another shitty year at Oregon State.

Or if you are the AD and just fire a coach who won over 70% of his games, you just might worry about a search twisting in the wind as rumors of candidates surface and decline (whether they were actually seriously interested or considered is beside the point), with players still waiting to play a bowl game. Serious angst in the fanbase, with a national media focused on the drama.
Eichhorst went with a guy who had solid credentials and great credibility within the coaching community. A safe pick. Nothing more, nothing less.

 

[Lincoln100]

Quit feeding the troll....

Noooooooooooo! Please keep feeding him; reading his posts are my comic relief. He makes me laugh.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

Or if you are the AD and just fire a coach who won over 70% of his games, you just might worry about a search twisting in the wind as rumors of candidates surface and decline (whether they were actually seriously interested or considered is beside the point), with players still waiting to play a bowl game. Serious angst in the fanbase, with a national media focused on the drama.
Eichhorst went with a guy who had solid credentials and great credibility within the coaching community. A safe pick. Nothing more, nothing less.

Who cares about rumors, a meaningless bowl game and fans having angst. Not sure if you are paying attention lately, but the national media isn't overly concerned with the Huskers these days. Getting the right hire is more important.

Riley is a 93-80 career coach...losing season 3 of his last 5 years and 6 times in 14 years. There is nothing solid or safe about the hire. Those do not align with Nebraska winning standards.

 

[G0B1GRED]

LOL Turner Gill > Mike Riley. Please continue........

 

[leodisflowers]

LOL Turner Gill > Mike Riley. Please continue........

I cringe at thinking about Turner at Nebraska. He was great for the University as a player and an assistant, but head man.... Not for me.

I wish we could just let it play out. Was Mike Riley the splash hire we all thought we would get? No.... But it is done, and now we have to see where we go from here. Nebraska hasn't been relevant for awhile and so it is funny to see all of the craziness about the first 4 games. I'm just glad we didn't put our Big Red Blinders on and hire Turner of Scott. I think Scott could be an option later on, but let him go get his feet wet. All of these back and forth is tiresome. Lets discuss football.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

LOL Turner Gill > Mike Riley. Please continue........

I know one thing, Oregon State has a better football coach this year, than they had last year. Just saying...that would have been a better hire for Nebraska. You miss out when you rush to make a decision instead of being thorough.

 

[G0B1GRED]

I know one thing, Oregon State has a better football coach this year, than they had last year. Just saying...that would have been a better hire for Nebraska. You miss out when you rush to make a decision instead of being thorough.

False. Is that because he went 19-7 with Bret Bielema players in 2 years at Wisconsin (who went to 3 straight Rose Bowls before he got there)? Or because he was 30-31 as a head coach before that? (since you like to bring up Rileys record so much)

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

False. Is that because he went 19-7 with Bret Bielema players in 2 years at Wisconsin (who went to 3 straight Rose Bowls before he got there)? Or because he was 30-31 as a head coach before that? (since you like to bring up Rileys record so much)

Wait, do I get to randomly throw out good years of Riley's. He BUILT Utah State into a winner. Utah f'n state. You think recruiting to Oregon State is hard, trying recruiting to Utah State. For fun, lets compare the past 5 years they coached...should be a big enough sample size:

Riley 30-33
Andersen: 41-23

Not even close.

 

[G0B1GRED]

Now lets compare conferences...... Pac 12 or Mountain West? Which conference would be easier to win games in?... Answer: Mountain West. Now we're talking recruiting..... Which in state school would be tougher to recruit against, Utah or Oregon?.... Answer: Oregon. You throwing out records doesn't prove anything, even Bo could have coached those teams at Wisconsin to a 19-7 record.

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

Keep making excuses to dismiss facts. Riley was not able to build/sustain any kind of success in his entire career. Andersen teams continue to improve. Taking over a Utah State team that has always been awful and build them up is far more difficult than taking over an Oregon State team that had recent success with Erickson. By the way, in just 4 years he won 11 games at Utah State..something Riley hasn't done in 14 years.

If you think you only have to recruit against one school, you are out of your mind. You have to recruit against everyone...so your excuses are laughable.

Your last sentence...even though you can't prove it, I agree with 100%. Bo absolutely would have done that well at Wisconsin. Bo would have done better at Oregon State. Bo is a flat out better coach than Riley. Record speaks for itself.

 

[huskerbaseball13]

Keep making excuses to dismiss facts. Riley was not able to build/sustain any kind of success in his entire career. Andersen teams continue to improve. Taking over a Utah State team that has always been awful and build them up is far more difficult than taking over an Oregon State team that had recent success with Erickson. By the way, in just 4 years he won 11 games at Utah State..something Riley hasn't done in 14 years.

If you think you only have to recruit against one school, you are out of your mind. You have to recruit against everyone...so your excuses are laughable.

Your last sentence...even though you can't prove it, I agree with 100%. Bo absolutely would have done that well at Wisconsin. Bo would have done better at Oregon State. Bo is a flat out better coach than Riley. Record speaks for itself.

I would have enjoyed watching Bo try and recruit to Oregon State. I also laugh how people continue to point out Erickson ignoring the fact that he was left with some pretty good talent after Riley's first run. If record speaks for itself...are you concerned with the Gators hiring Jim McElwain?

 

[Hoosker Du]

Keep making excuses to dismiss facts. Riley was not able to build/sustain any kind of success in his entire career. Andersen teams continue to improve. Taking over a Utah State team that has always been awful and build them up is far more difficult than taking over an Oregon State team that had recent success with Erickson. By the way, in just 4 years he won 11 games at Utah State..something Riley hasn't done in 14 years.

If you think you only have to recruit against one school, you are out of your mind. You have to recruit against everyone...so your excuses are laughable.

Your last sentence...even though you can't prove it, I agree with 100%. Bo absolutely would have done that well at Wisconsin. Bo would have done better at Oregon State. Bo is a flat out better coach than Riley. Record speaks for itself.

I would have enjoyed watching Bo try and recruit to Oregon State. I also laugh how people continue to point out Erickson ignoring the fact that he was left with some pretty good talent after Riley's first run. If record speaks for itself...are you concerned with the Gators hiring Jim McElwain?

Can you imagine Bo trying to stop Oregon on a yearly basis? LMAO!! That would have Keystone Cops comical..

 

[Nebraska Gator II]

I would have enjoyed watching Bo try and recruit to Oregon State. I also laugh how people continue to point out Erickson ignoring the fact that he was left with some pretty good talent after Riley's first run. If record speaks for itself...are you concerned with the Gators hiring Jim McElwain?

I don't think Riley stocked the cupboard with his first two years at Oregon State. I am certainly too lazy to go back that far and check recruiting rankings.

To answer the last part...HUGE concern. I didn't really like that hire at all either. Had one good year at CSU as a head coach. Was a good OC at Bama...but there appeared to be better candidates out there. However, I do like what he has done so far.. getting Foley's lazy arse to build an IPF, upgrade the players housing, hiring additional staffing to help with game planning and recruiting. We will see how he does as a coach. So far, nothing too impressive.

 

[huskerbaseball13]

I don't think Riley stocked the cupboard with his first two years at Oregon State. I am certainly too lazy to go back that far and check recruiting rankings.

To answer the last part...HUGE concern. I didn't really like that hire at all either. Had one good year at CSU as a head coach. Was a good OC at Bama...but there appeared to be better candidates out there. However, I do like what he has done so far.. getting Foley's lazy arse to build an IPF, upgrade the players housing, hiring additional staffing to help with game planning and recruiting. We will see how he does as a coach. So far, nothing too impressive.

That Oregon State team is not winning close to 11 games without Ken Simonton. McElwain will do fine at UF...but just goes to show hiring a head coach is not an exact science. NU could have went for a young coordinator again like Scott Frost but that would have proved to be just as risky as hiring Riley. Doubtful that NU was going to be hiring anyone away on the BCS level with a great record.

 

[G0B1GRED]

"Riley was not able to build/sustain any kind of success in his entire career." - Nebraska Gator II...... He didn't build anything at Oregon State?