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Starting to feel like bad timing to have to replace a coach

Red_Symptoms

Redshirt Freshman
Oct 30, 2016
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Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
 
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In Ruhl's defense, in the first 2 years at Baylor he was rebuilding. In 2019 Lost to OU twice and #6 Georgia in Sugar bowl. He has played in 3 CCG's and has won one. He is not my #1 but deserves strong consideration. My concern is his leaving to look for greener pastures. I think he would be a solid hire. When kids know you were coaching in the league, they take note of that. They know you know how to get them there. On the last note, the Baylor teams that have been in CCG's the last years and winning one were his recruits.

Lance has 6 NC's at the D-3 level from Whitewater Wisconsin... He knows how to win in thecold.
 
Op, I'd just say it's the Frost effect we're living with now. He seemed like such a sure fire hire that everybody and their grandma's cat rallied around. He proved us all wrong in so many ways it's disgusting.

So of course not everyone will be happy within die hard groups like on forums here. But I think most people would accept anyone from the grouping of names we've been hearing as you listed, minus BOB...

Mickey pulling off the impossible would hands down be the most unifying option on the table. Just not so sure it's likely unfortunately.

I still wonder on Jamie Chadwell. That offense looks like it was built specifically for Nebraska, yet it's in a mid major program in Carolina instead. People are weary about him due to being perceived as "another Frost" aka coming from G5. But he's proven multiple years to be the real deal there, unlike Frost. Imo, we'd be foolish not to seriously interview him and feel him out as another serious contender on the table of options.
 
When is a good time? You are looking for a unicorn that doesn’t exist. There is never going to be a day that Nick Saban or someone of that caliber will come out and say ‘I’m available and I want to coach Nebraska!’ Almost everyone thought the timing was perfect when Frost was available. It actually was, but still failed. It’s all risk, and hopefully we find the most qualified candidate to mitigate that risk and succeed. And fyi, despite the crush many have on him at the moment, MJ is the biggest risk of all. And one that could set us back the most.
 
I have to disagree. There are at least four names you listed above that every team in America other than Alabama would make a serious run at if they had vacancies. Starting with Urban Meyer.

Of course you're right. I guess I didn't word that very well. I meant of the coaches we can get. Meyer & Fickell could go anywhere but I don't think they'd come here. Who is the slam dunk for Nebraska?

edited the OP to reflect that question better. Thanks!
 
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Honestly, none of the coaches out there are exciting me too much. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
O'Brien was at Penn State for two years and had a winning record in both years despite the turmoil and despite numerous starters transferring out. Do I want him? No.
 
Honestly, none of the coaches out there are exciting me too much. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
gruden
 
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I look at it differently. It seems like there are a ton of good options, with very little competition for the best candidates.
This is exactly where I'm coming from. I was just thinking this morning that this was a pretty good time to have a vacancy. Coaches like Urban Meyer and Matt Rhule are available while the "glamour jobs" like USC, Texas, Miami, etc. are filled.

NU's toughest competition is Wisconsin. It's just a matter of would those coaches actually want to come to Nebraska, and does Trev Alberts actually try and get them?
 
Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
Myer, Holtz, Spurrier and Saban all failed in the NFL and between them they have around 12 national titles. I wouldn’t put too much stock in Rhule’s time at Carolina at least in a negative way.
 
Some people mention Mickey a lot, and while I like him I really hope we don’t make him head coach. Why, because there’s more chance to keep current staff if Mickey is the head guy and I don’t want any of the current coaches retained. Even Fisher.
 
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Some people mention Mickey a lot, and while I like him I really hope we don’t make him head coach. Why, because there’s more chance to keep current staff if Mickey is the head guy and I don’t want any of the current coaches retained. Even Fisher.
What if he wins all the remaining games before a hypothetical timeline in TA's mind? Say the next 3 games since there is another bye week (Purdue, Illinois, Wisc).
 
What if he wins all the remaining games before a hypothetical timeline in TA's mind? Say the next 3 games since there is another bye week (Purdue, Illinois, Wisc).
If we run those 3, or more, I’d be good keeping him and I do like him. My only worry is keeping any of the staff as I don’t think any of them are getting it done. Maybe Becton only.
 
Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
Very thoughtful.

But at the end of the day, is there ever a good time?
 
Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
There's never going to be a good time to hire a head coach because every yr. there will be many many university-peers to compete with. Thats just the way it is
 
Honestly, my biggest fear is that MJ does just well enough to warrant serious consideration (like 6-6 pre-bowl), doesn't get selected, then leaves or isn't retained and at "New HC" first sign of struggle it will be "We're paying $8M for this??? We should have just hired Mickey" and the fanbase divides again. There are no slam dunks, no sure things, with MJ or anyone else. We can't be emotional about this hire, and have to trust that Trev won't be either. It's an exciting time to be a Husker fan! Kind of like waiting for Christmas morning again. :)
 
Honestly, my biggest fear is that MJ does just well enough to warrant serious consideration (like 6-6 pre-bowl), doesn't get selected, then leaves or isn't retained and at "New HC" first sign of struggle it will be "We're paying $8M for this??? We should have just hired Mickey" and the fanbase divides again. There are no slam dunks, no sure things, with MJ or anyone else. We can't be emotional about this hire, and have to trust that Trev won't be either. It's an exciting time to be a Husker fan! Kind of like waiting for Christmas morning again. :)
I assure you, despite some of the fan narrative, Mickey still has a ways to go before he is in the coaching conversation. And 5-6 wins will get him an interview, but that is simply out of respect. Sentiment clouds reality.
 
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Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
What about the Iowa coach hopefully he will be available
 
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I think MJ is gonna get the job..

The question I brought up the other day about OC candidates may be more pressing than I originally thought. I also think MJ will make other staff changes, and maybe even sooner than later..

I can see a scenario where MJ hires a new OC and/or other staff positions in November or maybe even earlier.

He has the ability and blessing to do this, and would play into his evaluation as well.

I suspect we will start to see staff change announcements between now and Thanksgiving.
 
Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
Rhule was a great college coach. We would be lucky to get him but he’s getting paid over 800k per month to play golf over the next 5 years so he may just sit things out
 
I think MJ is gonna get the job..

The question I brought up the other day about OC candidates may be more pressing than I originally thought. I also think MJ will make other staff changes, and maybe even sooner than later..

I can see a scenario where MJ hires a new OC and/or other staff positions in November or maybe even earlier.

He has the ability and blessing to do this, and would play into his evaluation as well.

I suspect we will start to see staff change announcements between now and Thanksgiving.
That would be the key for Mickey if he gets the job. IF that happens I’m very comfortable with Trev assisting in the search for a few new assistants. I kind of think Busch might want to go back to special teams but it’s just a guess. In theory one could roll with the staff we have already. Personally I’ve become a big Whipple fan.
 
Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
ESPN analyst Greg McELroy predicts Rhule will end up a TV analyst in 2023 because he's not interested in current college jobs that are open.
 
I think MJ is gonna get the job..

The question I brought up the other day about OC candidates may be more pressing than I originally thought. I also think MJ will make other staff changes, and maybe even sooner than later..

I can see a scenario where MJ hires a new OC and/or other staff positions in November or maybe even earlier.

He has the ability and blessing to do this, and would play into his evaluation as well.

I suspect we will start to see staff change announcements between now and Thanksgiving.
But wouldn't the good assistants be working between now and Thanksgiving?
 
But wouldn't the good assistants be working between now and Thanksgiving?
Probably, but just like with Head coaches, the time table is being pulled forward. I think you will start seeing some assistants make moves before the season is done.

Signing day is earlier, and guys want to know who they are going to play for.. it pulls all these decisions forward in my opinion.
 
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People who are uncomfortable with the coaching search are mainly just coming to the realization that the coach we’ve wanted to “buy” for the last 20 years actually doesn’t exist.

sure urban is sitting out there but he’s not a realistic option. Our competition this year mainly seems to be Wisconsin and Auburn, but a coach like Urban can wait a wait a year or two to nab his ideal spot.

the rest of the available candidates don’t match people’s expectations that we should be buying to a coach with multiple conference titles and perhaps even a national championship appearance because “we are Nebraska “.

All of those guys have real risks. Most of them have ceiling below the natty level but we’d be more than happy with than 3-9. People want the bob stoops story, or the nick saban at LSU story, but there’s no young bob stoops or nick saban sitting out there.
 
I think MJ is gonna get the job..

The question I brought up the other day about OC candidates may be more pressing than I originally thought. I also think MJ will make other staff changes, and maybe even sooner than later..

I can see a scenario where MJ hires a new OC and/or other staff positions in November or maybe even earlier.

He has the ability and blessing to do this, and would play into his evaluation as well.

I suspect we will start to see staff change announcements between now and Thanksgiving.

Do you think there is a win total MJ needs to hit to get the job? And if so what do you think it is?
 
That would be the key for Mickey if he gets the job. IF that happens I’m very comfortable with Trev assisting in the search for a few new assistants. I kind of think Busch might want to go back to special teams but it’s just a guess. In theory one could roll with the staff we have already. Personally I’ve become a big Whipple fan.

Whipple’s QB and offense made a huge jump from year one to two to three at Pitt. I would love to see what he and Casey and Palmer could do with a good OL. But his health issues may not allow it to happen. Have to think Joe Brady would be MJ’s first call when looking for an OC.
 
People who are uncomfortable with the coaching search are mainly just coming to the realization that the coach we’ve wanted to “buy” for the last 20 years actually doesn’t exist.

sure urban is sitting out there but he’s not a realistic option. Our competition this year mainly seems to be Wisconsin and Auburn, but a coach like Urban can wait a wait a year or two to nab his ideal spot.

the rest of the available candidates don’t match people’s expectations that we should be buying to a coach with multiple conference titles and perhaps even a national championship appearance because “we are Nebraska “.

All of those guys have real risks. Most of them have ceiling below the natty level but we’d be more than happy with than 3-9. People want the bob stoops story, or the nick saban at LSU story, but there’s no young bob stoops or nick saban sitting out there.
Yup. I've been thinking for a while that none of the names I keep seeing mentioned here and elsewhere would ever go to Nebraska. Most big name coaches today want to go to a place where it's easy to recruit and there's already loads of talent on the team and built-in advantages. The only thing missing is a good head coach. They aren't interested in rebuilds.

And NU is a rebuild project. In addition to that, Nebraska has very unique challenges that none of the other blue bloods face.

That being said, the advent of NIL and the transfer portal does change things, and it's possible someone like Rhule or Aranda would look at Nebraska today in the way they may not have looked at in years past.
 
Op, I'd just say it's the Frost effect we're living with now. He seemed like such a sure fire hire that everybody and their grandma's cat rallied around. He proved us all wrong in so many ways it's disgusting.

So of course not everyone will be happy within die hard groups like on forums here. But I think most people would accept anyone from the grouping of names we've been hearing as you listed, minus BOB...

Mickey pulling off the impossible would hands down be the most unifying option on the table. Just not so sure it's likely unfortunately.

I still wonder on Jamie Chadwell. That offense looks like it was built specifically for Nebraska, yet it's in a mid major program in Carolina instead. People are weary about him due to being perceived as "another Frost" aka coming from G5. But he's proven multiple years to be the real deal there, unlike Frost. Imo, we'd be foolish not to seriously interview him and feel him out as another serious contender on the table of options.
Damn.....couldn't agree more....great post, imo.
 
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Honestly, none of the coaches out there appear to be a slam dunk for Nebraska. I'm not trying to say that any of them are bad coaches, but bad as Frost ended up, at least at the beginning the large majority of fans were excited and on-board hoping for the best. Now in 2022, I feel like whoever the pick is it will be similar to Riley when there was a lot of immediate resistance from a good chunk of the fan base. This is because there are so many question marks surrounding a lot of the top coaches.

  • Matt Rhule. What's his current reputation? Failure. He got fired for losing too much. How's that going to excite kids today for recruiting? At Baylor he never beat a ranked team.
  • Urban Meyer: Great coach. Huge question marks on his health and commitment. I don't see him being interested in a rebuild. If he goes back to college coaching, it's going to be for a talented team in a great recruiting market.
  • Matt Campbell: Another good coach, but he's in year 7 now (I believe) and his offense stinks. That loss to KSU at home was ugly. I don't see him flipping the switch here at Nebraska. I see him at best as a stabilizing force that gets us back to bowl games but I don't don't see championships.
  • Lance Leipold - Honestly, I like a lot of what I see from this guy. Kansas was an absolute door mat when he got there, I think they had gone two years or something like that without even winning a game and has turned things around quickly. The only thing that concerns me here is that Frost did the same thing at UCF. At least Leipold has an extra year of consistency and much more HC experience if you throw in his time at Buffalo. Also, I like the fact that he is already used to recruiting in the Plains. Was a former Nebraska coach. But is this a big enough "name" to unify the Husker fan base?
  • Bill O'Brien - Another good X's and O's guy. Stabilized PSU, but was only there for one season. How much do we really know about that season? Made devastating personnel decisions in the NFL that set the Texans from being a consistent playoff team to a doormat. Can he evaluate talent?
  • Dave Aranda - Let's tap the brakes here. He has only 3 years of HC experience, and one good season.
  • Luke Fickell - He's a great coach, no doubt. But he's an Ohio guy that appears to love Cincinnati. His son is going to school there and he's got a good thing going, with a recent invite to the Big 12 and great recruiting territory. Maybe he's waiting for OSU to open up? Last year Oklahoma, LSU, Notre Dame were all available. Would he really want to uproot his family for Nebraska???
  • Chris Klieman - He appears to have fixed Adrian somewhat, and avoided the 4th quarter blunders that plagued Adrian's time here...although the fix seems to be using his legs and not his arm. Anyway, as far as his HC tenure at KSU...outside of this season all his other ones would be considered fireable at Nebraska, although I guess 8-5 would be a big improvement. Does he have a higher ceiling than that?
  • P.J. Fleck - No. Please no.
  • Dave Doeren - He's had success at NC State but has it been great? They've only finished ranked twice in 9 years. Not a big name in my opinion and we can do better.
  • Troy Calhoun - I would love a guy like this; restore the traditional running game. When he was the OC for Wake Forest they led the ACC in offense. Got 4000 yards passing out of Matt Schaub in his one year as a NFL OC. I think the guy is a great coach who could consistently win the West, but again I'm not sure there would be unified support in Nebraska. I think people are looking for that big name.

Is there really a slam dunk candidate out there? Honestly, I kind of just hope that Mickey can win the West, I think he would get the support of Husker nation. Unfortunately, he is in such a bad spot as far as our talent goes that it's almost an impossible scenario.
You’ve already found your coach, he is currently on a 2 game win streak. If Mickey gets this team to 6 wins total the search for the next HC is over, finished, kaput.
 
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