No quick fix

[otismotis08]

Quick fixes do happen, but they are not the norm. I've said many times before, with the hires that were made (and the hires not made), this program is on a long road back to national prominence. We did not hire a rock star, and we did not hire a recruiting lighting rod. We hired an experienced, steady hand and let him bring along his staff from OSU.
Will it work? We'll just have to wait and see.
How long will it take? Probably longer than any of us hope.
Should we lower our expectations? Probably in the near-term.
Should we lower our goals? Never.

 

[iROOT4nu]

What are your goals and expectations?

 

[jflores]

Quick fixes do happen, but they are not the norm. I've said many times before, with the hires that were made (and the hires not made), this program is on a long road back to national prominence. We did not hire a rock star, and we did not hire a recruiting lighting rod. We hired an experienced, steady hand and let him bring along his staff from OSU.
Will it work? We'll just have to wait and see.
How long will it take? Probably longer than any of us hope.
Should we lower our expectations? Probably in the near-term.
Should we lower our goals? Never.

I dare say Jim Tressel wouldn't have us rolling right now. I was as much on board that kind of scenario as anyone. Michigan has a rockstar coach, and a much more stocked cupboard, and far less injuries, and they don't look to be making the instant turn around either.

There's really not much Harbaugh or Tressel could do that Riley hasn't done, to mitigate the fact that we have basically no DE's outside the top 2, and for having 3 LB's on the roster 6 months ago, I think they have done a great job turning that position around.

If you have this many holes, it will take a rockstar coach time to fill them as well.

 

[jlb321]

the offensive line talent is shockingly lacking .. we have some very young guys with promise but man we are soft particularly up the middle
I'm not sure coaching can overcome these deficiencies other than getting the young guys prepared and recruit -- may need some JUCOs

we are not going to be able to run this year with the state of the offensive line

 

[St. Anger]

the offensive line talent is shockingly lacking

This. I'm just not sure how much the offense can improve unless the OL does.

 

[jflores]

the offensive line talent is shockingly lacking .. we have some very young guys with promise but man we are soft particularly up the middle
I'm not sure coaching can overcome these deficiencies other than getting the young guys prepared and recruit -- may need some JUCOs

we are not going to be able to run this year with the state of the offensive line

I think many fans, casual or not, have to get over the numbers game. There has to be context.

We won 9 games a year for the last however many years, but why did we win them. A lot of them weren't "clean" wins. We were winning games where we came back or got a lucky break or maybe the other team had a more critical injury situation than we did. We weren't out dominating our opponents and the games could have easily gone the other way.

But people look at the number 9, and just say, hey the new guy should easily get 10 or more right away. If things went totally our way this year, there's no reason we can't win ten games. I think the depth and transition have made it plain, if the injuries haven't, that everything is not going to go our way this year.

And in the larger context, this year is a transition year, probably not winning the B1G. Next year we will probably be much improved, but the schedule is much harder, the record probably won't be earth shattering, maybe a solid 9-3. The following year, we still have the difficult schedule and a young QB (which historically bodes ill for any NCAA program), so we probably won't be downing OSU with a RSFR QB. Its going to be a patience game for sure.

 

[red rover 70]

the offensive line talent is shockingly lacking .. we have some very young guys with promise but man we are soft particularly up the middle
I'm not sure coaching can overcome these deficiencies other than getting the young guys prepared and recruit -- may need some JUCOs

we are not going to be able to run this year with the state of the offensive line

Good coaching can go along way in developing and or putting training wheels on this problem. But coaches aren't miracle workers.

 

[red rover 70]

I think many fans, casual or not, have to get over the numbers game. There has to be context.

We won 9 games a year for the last however many years, but why did we win them. A lot of them weren't "clean" wins. We were winning games where we came back or got a lucky break or maybe the other team had a more critical injury situation than we did. We weren't out dominating our opponents and the games could have easily gone the other way.

But people look at the number 9, and just say, hey the new guy should easily get 10 or more right away. If things went totally our way this year, there's no reason we can't win ten games. I think the depth and transition have made it plain, if the injuries haven't, that everything is not going to go our way this year.

And in the larger context, this year is a transition year, probably not winning the B1G. Next year we will probably be much improved, but the schedule is much harder, the record probably won't be earth shattering, maybe a solid 9-3. The following year, we still have the difficult schedule and a young QB (which historically bodes ill for any NCAA program), so we probably won't be downing OSU with a RSFR QB. Its going to be a patience game for sure.

BYU was probably our toughest matchup for the season. Styles make for interesting and sometimes crazy games.

 

[nebcountry]

I definitely let enthusiasm get the best of me, and I thought I was using semi-critical thinking.

I've always believed that luck favors the prepared. You may need to be in the right spot at the right time, but you had what was needed to be advantaged in the situation.

I suppose if I look at this from an outsider's perspective: New coaches. New schemes. Basically a .500 career winning coaching staff and not up and coming. It's going to be a work-in-progress, and it may never progress.

...Should we lower our expectations? Probably in the near-term.

I've lowered mine.

 

[jflores]

I definitely let enthusiasm get the best of me, and I thought I was using semi-critical thinking.

I've always believed that luck favors the prepared. You may need to be in the right spot at the right time, but you had what was needed to be advantaged in the situation.

I suppose if I look at this from an outsider's perspective: New coaches. New schemes. Basically a .500 career winning coaching staff and not up and coming. It's going to be a work-in-progress, and it may never progress.



I've lowered mine.

Also remember that, "the enemy gets a vote" and "the best laid plans don't survive first contact with the enemy".

 

[Lincoln100]

I think many fans, casual or not, have to get over the numbers game. There has to be context.

We won 9 games a year for the last however many years, but why did we win them. A lot of them weren't "clean" wins. We were winning games where we came back or got a lucky break or maybe the other team had a more critical injury situation than we did. We weren't out dominating our opponents and the games could have easily gone the other way.

But people look at the number 9, and just say, hey the new guy should easily get 10 or more right away. If things went totally our way this year, there's no reason we can't win ten games. I think the depth and transition have made it plain, if the injuries haven't, that everything is not going to go our way this year.

And in the larger context, this year is a transition year, probably not winning the B1G. Next year we will probably be much improved, but the schedule is much harder, the record probably won't be earth shattering, maybe a solid 9-3. The following year, we still have the difficult schedule and a young QB (which historically bodes ill for any NCAA program), so we probably won't be downing OSU with a RSFR QB. Its going to be a patience game for sure.

Don't do that; It confuses the "a win is a win and a loss is a loss" crowd. You know, those posters who think a 9-3 record against the worst schedule in the country is more impressive than an 8-4 record against the most difficult schedule in the country. There are plenty of them on this site.

 

[red rover 70]

My expectations are still the same for this year. The BYU game was exactly what i thought it would be. The only difference was i thought we would get the catch and the W.

 

[red rover 70]

Don't do that; It confuses the "a win is a win and a loss is a loss" crowd. You know, those posters who think a 9-3 record against the worst schedule in the country is more impressive than an 8-4 record against the most difficult schedule in the country. There are plenty of them on this site.

^^^^ THIS ×1,000,000^^^^

 

[Mr.Scary13]

Basically Nebraska has been on self proposed probation the last few years with the way the last clown posse recruited. Riley and crew have to take a couple huge classes to build up adequate depth and then go from there. Anything positive these first two years is gravy.

Almost wish 408 were here this year just reap what he's sown the last few years with his laziness and incompetence.

 

[red rover 70]

This BYU game will serve us well when we play Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan State. I just wish we would of got the W so we wouldn't have to listen to all the BS.

 

[jflores]

This BYU game will serve us well when we play Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan State. I just wish we would of got the W so we wouldn't have to listen to all the BS.

I agree with this and the matchup of playstyles poster. If we can play soundly against the run with Wisky and Minny, neither of their QB's are going to give us fits like Hill can.

MSU may just be plain good, so I hope we do well, and maybe we'll even play well enough to win, but that seems a bit far off from where we are now.

 

[leodisflowers]

BYU was probably our toughest matchup for the season. Styles make for interesting and sometimes crazy games.

BYU was not our toughest matchup of the season. There are a few others teams that will be better than BYU that we face. MSU tops that list.

 

[otismotis08]

...and BYU wasn't at full strength either.

 

[red rover 70]

BYU was not our toughest matchup of the season. There are a few others teams that will be better than BYU that we face. MSU tops that list.

We are better suited stopping a power based running attack using play action to a tight end. Then playing an offense with a big line and playing chase the mouse till he throws a deep pass to a tall athletic stickem handed reciever. Remember our DE problem and thin linebacker group??? We are better off lining up and going forward then running and containing.

 

[nothingkevin]

Quick fixes do happen, but they are not the norm. I've said many times before, with the hires that were made (and the hires not made), this program is on a long road back to national prominence. We did not hire a rock star, and we did not hire a recruiting lighting rod. We hired an experienced, steady hand and let him bring along his staff from OSU.
Will it work? We'll just have to wait and see.
How long will it take? Probably longer than any of us hope.
Should we lower our expectations? Probably in the near-term.
Should we lower our goals? Never.

Whats the difference between goals and expectations?

 

[Tuco Ramirez]

We are better suited stopping a power based running attack using play action to a tight end. Then playing an offense with a big line and playing chase the mouse till he throws a deep pass to a tall athletic stickem handed reciever. Remember our DE problem and thin linebacker group??? We are better off lining up and going forward then running and containing.

I think you overestimate BYU or underestimate others on our schedule. I think Michigan State had one of the best offensive lines in country last year; I assume it will be similar this year. If you truly believe BYU was our biggest challenge on the schedule, then you should bet NU straight up against any of our remaining opponents, because we basically played BYU even. I would not.

I agree that we are better at stopping power based running teams. But BYU isn't the best spread team out there. They don't have a credible run threat outside of the QB who was hobbled half the game. They have tall receivers with good hands, but they don't have burners who can stretch the field or turn a 5 yard pass into a 50 yard gain. In short, outside of Hill, they lack playmakers. Defensively, the blitz packages made our run game look worse than it probably is (hopefully), but made our pass game look better than it probably is. How is Tommy going to play against a defense that tightens up the pass lanes and takes away the easy throws? It's a big question.

Just to be clear: that's not an indictment against the team or the coaching staff. It sure as heck isn't pining for Pelini. It's just the way I see it right now. We will be lucky to win nine games. We still have many, many questions to answer to get a better read on what this team is capable of. We likely have a few seasons before we can really judge the staff. This is a transition year. Folks just need to chill and understand there are costs, not just financial, to changing coaches. I believe the cost will be worth it. Otherwise we will need to pay it again in a few years.

 

[jlb321]

I think many fans, casual or not, have to get over the numbers game. There has to be context.

We won 9 games a year for the last however many years, but why did we win them. A lot of them weren't "clean" wins. We were winning games where we came back or got a lucky break or maybe the other team had a more critical injury situation than we did. We weren't out dominating our opponents and the games could have easily gone the other way.

But people look at the number 9, and just say, hey the new guy should easily get 10 or more right away. If things went totally our way this year, there's no reason we can't win ten games. I think the depth and transition have made it plain, if the injuries haven't, that everything is not going to go our way this year.

And in the larger context, this year is a transition year, probably not winning the B1G. Next year we will probably be much improved, but the schedule is much harder, the record probably won't be earth shattering, maybe a solid 9-3. The following year, we still have the difficult schedule and a young QB (which historically bodes ill for any NCAA program), so we probably won't be downing OSU with a RSFR QB. Its going to be a patience game for sure.

+1 ... this is why the game is so upsetting, the roster frankly isn't all that talented. There are not a whole lot of games where you can pencil in a W on the schedule. You cannot afford to give wins away where you had the game won

 

[red rover 70]

I think you overestimate BYU or underestimate others on our schedule. I think Michigan State had one of the best offensive lines in country last year; I assume it will be similar this year. If you truly believe BYU was our biggest challenge on the schedule, then you should bet NU straight up against any of our remaining opponents, because we basically played BYU even. I would not.

I agree that we are better at stopping power based running teams. But BYU isn't the best spread team out there. They don't have a credible run threat outside of the QB who was hobbled half the game. They have tall receivers with good hands, but they don't have burners who can stretch the field or turn a 5 yard pass into a 50 yard gain. In short, outside of Hill, they lack playmakers. Defensively, the blitz packages made our run game look worse than it probably is (hopefully), but made our pass game look better than it probably is. How is Tommy going to play against a defense that tightens up the pass lanes and takes away the easy throws? It's a big question.

Just to be clear: that's not an indictment against the team or the coaching staff. It sure as heck isn't pining for Pelini. It's just the way I see it right now. We will be lucky to win nine games. We still have many, many questions to answer to get a better read on what this team is capable of. We likely have a few seasons before we can really judge the staff. This is a transition year. Folks just need to chill and understand there are costs, not just financial, to changing coaches. I believe the cost will be worth it. Otherwise we will need to pay it again in a few years.

Tommy playing like he did in the 1st 3rd and 4th quarter is good enough to beat everybody left on our schedule. Slowing down the aggressive play of Michigan State will be key. Accurate passes, screens and play action should do the trick if Tommy can stay clean. They will load the box and dare Tommy to beat them. With smart play calling and good execution it should open up the running lanes. The B1G west is there to be taken.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

...and BYU wasn't at full strength either.

What? Playing against a qb with a broken foot and losing their best defensive player just after the half means they weren't at full strength?

 

[ckriley]

Though it's a work in progress, and you can't really jump to conclusions based only off of one game, there are certain things you look for to get an idea of what kind of team and what kind of coaches you have. And I have to say, those certain things from Saturday were very troubling.

BYU is good but they're not THAT good. It still only took one play for NU to unravel a bit. The 1st Quarter was good and Nebraska looked good, then BYU completes a long pass play and before you know it, it's 24-14.

Credit the coaches for making halftime adjustments and big props to Nate Gerry for doing what big players do: make a big play to change the complexion of the game. But that doesn't excuse all the sloppy play we say, the failure to execute multiple times, and the weird calls the coaches were making.

The bottom line is this: Mike Riley's teams have a history of head scratching losses and occasionally big wins. But he has never been a championship level coach. And he is at the end of his career, not the beginning. It's entirely justifiable to wonder if the game has passed him by, as Oregon State fans were saying. The only thing that will tell the tale is time. However, I said last year when Riley was hired we would find out pretty quick what kind of coach the team has against BYU.

And as of this moment, what we found out was concerning.

 

[jflores]

Though it's a work in progress, and you can't really jump to conclusions based only off of one game, there are certain things you look for to get an idea of what kind of team and what kind of coaches you have. And I have to say, those certain things from Saturday were very troubling.

BYU is good but they're not THAT good. It still only took one play for NU to unravel a bit. The 1st Quarter was good and Nebraska looked good, then BYU completes a long pass play and before you know it, it's 24-14.

Credit the coaches for making halftime adjustments and big props to Nate Gerry for doing what big players do: make a big play to change the complexion of the game. But that doesn't excuse all the sloppy play we say, the failure to execute multiple times, and the weird calls the coaches were making.

The bottom line is this: Mike Riley's teams have a history of head scratching losses and occasionally big wins. But he has never been a championship level coach. And he is at the end of his career, not the beginning. It's entirely justifiable to wonder if the game has passed him by, as Oregon State fans were saying. The only thing that will tell the tale is time. However, I said last year when Riley was hired we would find out pretty quick what kind of coach the team has against BYU.

And as of this moment, what we found out was concerning.

I'm not on the panic button yet. All the items that folks are throwing out as concerning are also true of teams that are plagued by depth issues, scheme transitions and youth, which we have all of. There's two major philosophical divides at this time, the timeout usage and whether to keep pounding the rock when its not working. I label them philosophical divide, because each person kind of decides for themselves what they are comfortable with, its not necessarily proven one way or the other that running the football for running's sake is necessarily better than taking some other facet of what the defense gives you. Lot of football games have been won by run-first coaches who take the short and intermediate passing game when it presents itself.

Fan bases are known to panic. The staff looks and sounds collected and knows what they want to do to correct it. That's reassuring. There's been no real hiding of the problems, the man came out with a notepad and was very specific about the things he was upset about and they've been specific about what they see on tape and want to fix (Cav's violence of hands and so forth). I dare say its way more comforting than a simple "we didn't execute" followed by a mic drop.

IMO, a lot of people are basically upset with Riley because a) he lost and b) he doesn't seem to want to conform to that particular fans view of how the problem will be solved or approached

He's the one making three million bucks to have his head on the chopping block, I'm comfortable with him deciding how the problems will be fixed rather than attempt to run NU football on a poll.

 

[jlb321]

imagine the tone change if the hail mary isn't converted -- a 1/100 probablity.

The tone is optimistic - coaches are lauded for half time adjustments, etc, etc -- when in the big picture the quality of play was the same independent of the results of the hail mary

 

[jflores]

imagine the tone change if the hail mary isn't converted -- a 1/100 probablity.

The tone is optimistic - coaches are lauded for half time adjustments, etc, etc -- when in the big picture the quality of play was the same independent of the results of the hail mary

Exactly.

 

[red rover 70]

Though it's a work in progress, and you can't really jump to conclusions based only off of one game, there are certain things you look for to get an idea of what kind of team and what kind of coaches you have. And I have to say, those certain things from Saturday were very troubling.

BYU is good but they're not THAT good. It still only took one play for NU to unravel a bit. The 1st Quarter was good and Nebraska looked good, then BYU completes a long pass play and before you know it, it's 24-14.

Credit the coaches for making halftime adjustments and big props to Nate Gerry for doing what big players do: make a big play to change the complexion of the game. But that doesn't excuse all the sloppy play we say, the failure to execute multiple times, and the weird calls the coaches were making.

The bottom line is this: Mike Riley's teams have a history of head scratching losses and occasionally big wins. But he has never been a championship level coach. And he is at the end of his career, not the beginning. It's entirely justifiable to wonder if the game has passed him by, as Oregon State fans were saying. The only thing that will tell the tale is time. However, I said last year when Riley was hired we would find out pretty quick what kind of coach the team has against BYU.

And as of this moment, what we found out was concerning.

So now we're taking talking points from Oregon State fans???? We literally are fielding a working team of about 50 players thanks to Mark Pelini. We couldn't even rotate in a second team on the offensive line for Christ sake! Wake up and quit bitching.

 

[red rover 70]

AND WE SHOULD OF WON THE GAME!!!!??????!!!!!

 

[ckriley]

No, we are not taking talking points from Oregon State. It's no different than if Nebraska fans warned YSU fans about what they might be getting with Pelini. They aren't talking points, they are observations from years of watching how the coach operates.

 

[red rover 70]

No, we are not taking talking points from Oregon State. It's no different than if Nebraska fans warned YSU fans about what they might be getting with Pelini. They aren't talking points, they are observations from years of watching how the coach operates.

In other words TALKING POINTS. Pelini had no business coaching at Nebraska. Riley has been at one place where he had talent compared to the general league. And he won two Grey Cups and went 6-2 in thr playoffs. Oregon State and San Diego didn't have the same talent compared to the league it played in. The game hasn't passed him bye??? His talent guaranteed that he would always be playing from behind! Good god!!!

 

[Tuco Ramirez]

imagine the tone change if the hail mary isn't converted -- a 1/100 probablity.

The tone is optimistic - coaches are lauded for half time adjustments, etc, etc -- when in the big picture the quality of play was the same independent of the results of the hail mary

The tone might be more optimistic, but the observations would be the same.

 

[nebcountry]

imagine the tone change if the hail mary isn't converted -- a 1/100 probablity.

The tone is optimistic - coaches are lauded for half time adjustments, etc, etc -- when in the big picture the quality of play was the same independent of the results of the hail mary

I agree. Hope thrives on positive results, even if the overall situation is only marginally better.

For your viewing pleasure, Kirk Gibson hobbling around and cracking a monster 3-run homer to win game 1 of the 1988 world series.

 

[Rocky Mtn Husker]

I love the spin. Blah blah blah. I'm still cautiously optimistic too. Play the games and then we'll see. Yeah maybe we don't have the talent after all but dumb play calls in critical moments is hard for any talent to overcome. I saw some good things too so hopefully they can build on the positives. GBR

 

[Bugeater]

Bob Devaney turned around a disaster his first season at UNL, could he have done the same in 2015? Not that this year is like 1962, but great coaches turn things around quickly, as has Urban at tOSU. And yes, I recognize the great talent at tOSU he has to work with, but he turned them from floundering good to great in a hurry. I'm hoping Riley and the staff can find a way to do just that at Nebraska.