Terry Pettit lays the smack down on coach Riley haters *** MUST READ ***
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Very well said and really nailed the reason for change in my mind. That mindset takes time to absolve from any organization and we as fans of Huskers football should allow time for changes to take hold. I am N
Well, look there. A very well respected and highly successful former NU coach speaking out in support of the coaching change that was made. Do y'all still think Pelini wasn't/isn't a cancer that won't easily be cut out?
I agree with his point on Pelini. However, what I struggle with is that the same administration that allowed Pelini to continue that behavior for years is still in place. The head of Volkswagen was fired and I assume the middle execs/management that allowed it has or will be fired too.
Why does NU administration get a pass on hiring Pelini and allowing him to create an environment like that? Are they not held accountable as well? If you are going "cut out a cancer" don't you want to cut out all of it to prevent it from coming back?
Holy freaking crap! Has anyone ever seen another (former or current) coach at the same school go out on a limb like that? I have never seen that before.
Are you shitting me BigRedPimp. They had to essentially force TO out to bring in Eichorst to fire Bo.
I'll give you that Harvey may have meddled too much with football, but you are flat out wrong
I'll give you that Harvey may have meddled too much with football, but you are flat out wrong
I actually agree with what you are saying but the fact of the matter is that Perlman is on his way out the door and Eichorst wasn't involved in the hiring of Pelini.
So we are back to liking Eichorst now? I'm losing track of the herd movement during these volatile times.
I agree with everything he said, but the title of this thread is misleading. The statement was about Bo and the need to get rid of him, not laying any smack down to Riley haters. Unless, of course, we're still dealing with the mentality that criticism of Riley = praise for Bo.
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The argument isn't whether or not Pelini should have been fired. The argument is whether or not Riley should have been hired. Pettit is addressing the first question, but he doesn't provide an answer to the second.
Agreed. OP is trolling.
Make no mistake the only part of the administration that kept Pelini from getting fired was Osborne and it was Osborne's decision to hire Bo despite the warnings of one of his most trusted former assistants. For whatever misguided reason he stubbornly refused to do what he needed to do for over 3 years. IMO, it was all about power, money and being right. Tom was loyal to a fault to the assistants with NU ties to the point of putting up with the indefensible from a guy and his Youngstown cronies that had ZERO ties or allegiance to Nebraska. Pettit's words should have been uttered by Tom looooong ago and Tom should have been the one to pull the plug. IF he had, we wouldn't have the terrible division that exists now and on top of that he could have been the guy to make a hire of a guy that would have been given EVERY benefit of the doubt for a great number of years just the way Pelini was. Instead we've got a lynch mob mentality from a bunch of misguided "fans".
I haven't seen many posts mention Harvey's accountability in this situation. He's the one constant in the ever changing athletic department so I wondered if he was being scrutinized. Maybe not worth it since he's retiring. Will be interesting to see if/how any impact to athletic department in the future once he's gone.
Didn't say I liked Eichorst, I said he was brought in to fire Bo, and he did it. Probably one year too late.
There is still on talk radio after games and during the week a large number of people that call in and reference 9 win Bo and why we fired him to hire Riley. That is why Pettit's letter is relevant.
Bo was hired to "fix the defense". He failed. Riley has been hired to fix the culture. That is going to take more than one season. There was no way we were ever going to be more than a 9 win division runner-up team with the toxic culture Bo built. From all accounts, the recruiting structure and effort that has been put forth is way ahead of what had been done for the last 7 years but that is going to take some time to show up on the field.
It's because Pelini was a cancer in every sense of the word. And he poisoned his players worst of all.
Good stuff out of Petit. I still have my concerns in regards to the coaching aspect of this staff but no doubt they are facing an uphill battle currently in regards to flipping the culture.
I believe he is suggesting that Riley is good for the cultural change that is required.
HP's accountability amounts to giving the fans what they wanted back when he brought Tom back as AD. From there it was ALL Tom. He had complete control of football. HE made the decision to hire Bo but for whatever reason wouldn't correct his decision way back when Bo told him to F off over canning Carl. Tom should have ended the fiasco right then and there.
I hope that the players come together and an epiphany is found amongst the group. I don't want any players to leave. I want them to become whole and play with heart and determination for themselves, for coach Riley and for the University.
It;'s extremely important remember that a chancellor has waaaayyy more on his/her plate than athletics.
Been thinking about this since I read it a short while ago. That letter could not have come at a better time and if I ever run into Mr. Pettit, I will thank him and tell him I admire him for taking that kind of stand. That was awesome.
We can and will have both a good culture and good winning record.
While Pettit's message is partly that Bo needed to go it also includes support for Riley, as well. Pettit didn't say that Riley was the "correct hire" but he does point out that it will take some time to develop a more positive culture in the NU football program due to the cancerous culture Bo created. Point being, give Riley some time. He even went so far to say that Pettit, himself, was nearly run out of town after his second year as head VB coach at NU. Quite frankly, how can anybody definitively state that Riley should/should not have been the chosen hire so early into his stint, especially when you take into account the mess he inherited, culture wise?
I agree with you. However, I would venture a guess that the football community is waaaaaayyy more vocal to Harvey (for better or worse) than the academia community. I would also guess that football was top of mind during the move to the B10.
Actually it is dead on. Pettit is setting the record straight to the people questioning Riley.
I know. You want your candy now or you'll throw yourself down on the floor and kick and scream. Its going to take at least two years IMO to get guys recruited and on the field that can make a difference. We are recruiting some JUCOs to try to help us at DE and linebacker, but you can't fix our O line over night. Hopefully some of the guys redshirting can step in and make a difference right away. I expect us to have a winning record and go to a bowl next year. Then it all depends on recruiting these next two years.
On this message board, you've got 1 person calling for heads immediately, and 10 people telling them no way it will happen. (Somebody can count the actual numbers and correct me if they wish). The motivation for keeping the coaching staff probably differs, but the recommended path is the same for at least the near term. Surprisingly, so far in this thread I see no mention of replacing the staff immediately or at the end of the season. So, are we trying to convince ourselves that we are correct?
Personally, I don't see the need for any more "celebrity" opinions. And the more of these that keep getting put out there, it's starting to make me think there really are legitimate fires under Eichorst's/Riley's rear ends (like approaching well-done as opposed to medium rare).
Personally, I don't see the need for any more "celebrity" opinions. And the more of these that keep getting put out there, it's starting to make me think there really are legitimate fires under Eichorst's/Riley's rear ends (like approaching well-done as opposed to medium rare).
There is no reason we can't have both. Gotta cure the cultural issues, first, to be able to make advances in other areas.
Pettit got it exactly right. For that reason I'm not expecting any kind of the same success we are used to until 2019 at the earliest. Bo's players will have to be all gone before our team will be cancer free. For establishing the kind of culture we need I still think Riley is an awesome hire. I don't know if people are patient enough to give him the time he needs to get things back to where we want them to be but I can assure you if fired Riley won't fock everything up like Bo did.
I just wanted to point out some typographical/maybe mental errors. Before the season, many said "it'll be great THIS year". After the season started, that changed to "it'll be great NEXT year". You put "two years" in your statement. It might just be better to put "three years" or maybe "four years", heck maybe "ten years".
I don't know the right answer, but what if we go through another 2-3 years "rebuilding" to Riley's way and we go 9-4 consistently afterwards? No way was Pelini's way the best way, but what if Riley's nice way is 9-4 as well? Will Husker fans feel better or worse?
I think we are being told to trust the process, again. Like we were with Cally, Pelini, now Riley. Tough spot for Riley or any coach as the instability creates even more impatience.
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