Tom Osborne interview

[Husker.Wed.]

Hadn't seen this posted, SIAP. TO seemed annoyed it got out he had lunch with HCMR. He also seems to be defending Bo. Whatever, TO is Nebraska football and we could all hope to be 1/10th the man he is, but I wish he would let the Bo-thing go.

TO Interview

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Huh? First he was simply being honest about what he and Riley talked about. Why does everything have to be a slap to Riley?

Second, if his goal was to defend Bo would he really say, "I thought Bo Pelini's defense was really well-suited for the Big 12 because we used a lot of nickel and dime defense. And he had some great guys like Eric Hagg and other guys who could go in there and they were kind of hybrid linebacker types who could really cover. Then you got in the Big Ten where people are really lining up and tanking it at you and had a fullback and tight ends, and it was a little different style. I think adjusting to the Big Ten was an issue. We probably were still in a state of flux on how to approach that, so it is interesting because there is a lot of variation."

 

[mkbrkloster]

If you don't think his comments were in defense of Bo, you need live in a different world that I do.

 

[WestCoastCornhusker]

Originally posted by Husker.Wed.:

Hadn't seen this posted, SIAP. TO seemed annoyed it got out he had lunch with HCMR. He also seems to be defending Bo. Whatever, TO is Nebraska football and we could all hope to be 1/10th the man he is, but I wish he would let the Bo-thing go.

wow, he is still defending that dirt bag. What was Bo's record against BCS schools and ranked teams Tom?

Didn't think so.

 

[MichHusker]

TO was a great coach, but has no business serving as an administrator or AD. It simply is not his forte. He is too thin-skinned for the role and cannot tolerate the concept of his picks (god forbid) being wrong. Keep some of these things in mind:

1. In 1997, unbeknownst to then AD Bill Byrne, TO announced his retirement and Solich as new HC. This was an AD decision, but he waited until Byrne was traveling in the air to announce and make it impossible to put the toothpaste back into the tube. Byrne knew TO was stepping down, but had no details on timing and any announcement, or that TO would essentially "name" Solich as his replacement in his announcement. When Byrne landed and reporters asked him about Solich as the new HC, he was completely caught off-guard. Byrne left shortly after this fiasco.

2. In 2003 when then AD Pederson fired Solich, TO was vocally displeased. So much so, he got pissy and privately told UNL to remove his name from the field. He settled down on that issue, but still groused about it for years in his own off-handed way until he was put in as AD with the understanding he would pick Bo as the new HC.

3. In 2014, when SE fired BP, we know TO was also displeased but it was not in the media as much because he was no longer AD. Yet what did he do? He took the opportunity to issue a press release - as a private citizen - with a very lukewarm welcome and enough said to make sure people knew this was not his idea. Just like with Solich, we are now going to hear him grousing about it for years to come, in his off-handed way (like this interview).

TO comes across as humble ... inside it is quite the opposite.

Michigan has had the same issues for years with Lloyd Carr and his influence and dislike for Harbaugh. They finally pushed that element out this past year (took getting rid of an AD).

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Originally posted by mkbrkloster:
If you don't think his comments were in defense of Bo, you need live in a different world that I do.

I must. Because if saying about our defensive coordinator/head coach, "I think adjusting to the Big Ten was an issue. We probably were still in a state of flux on how to approach that," is supporting him then I must have missed the irony.

If Tom pointing out, "Under Bo Pelini, we didn't win a national championship or a conference championship, and so often the focus is on what you haven't done" is supporting him, then I'm not sure I want that support.

Osborne is saying that the bar is raised pretty high, something that many fans now want to diminish based upon the five page long thread about what constitutes success.

 

[siegsker]

Tulsa Tom arguing that people are making a mountain out of a molehill.

Now that is funny.

 

[Sooner_or_Later]

to quote Bill Callahan "What a crusty old fart"

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Originally posted by siegsker:
Tulsa Tom arguing that people are making a mountain out of a molehill.

Now that is funny.

All you have to do is say, "TO" and this board starts frothing at the mouth and having multiple conniptions. Hopefully at some point there will be cyber dosages of Xanax to calm the irrational mob.

 

[sparky62]

Originally posted by mkbrkloster:
If you don't think his comments were in defense of Bo, you need live in a different world that I do.

I agree.

This post was edited on 3/5 11:44 AM by sparky62

 

[Archie Graham]

So tired of this kind of crap from TO.

 

[sparky62]

Originally posted by Archie Graham:
So tired of this kind of crap from TO.

Shaking my head when I read the interview. He almost seemed peeved that MR let the cat out of the bag that they had lunch.

 

[Nate004]

Originally posted by sparky62:

Originally posted by Archie Graham:
So tired of this kind of crap from TO.

Shaking my head when I read the interview. He almost seemed peeved that MR let the cat out of the bag that they had lunch.

Yeah, I don't get this at all. What would Tom pefer, MR "Not" use every resource available to him to make the program look better? Of course MR wants this interview out in public. Its good for everyone involved. Tom should have declined this interview, it really did nothing but him look bad.

 

[HuskerNate79]

Originally posted by MichHusker :


TO was a great coach, but has no business serving as an administrator or AD. It simply is not his forte. He is too thin-skinned for the role and cannot tolerate the concept of his picks (god forbid) being wrong. Keep some of these things in mind:

1. In 1997, unbeknownst to then AD Bill Byrne, TO announced his retirement and Solich as new HC. This was an AD decision, but he waited until Byrne was traveling in the air to announce and make it impossible to put the toothpaste back into the tube. Byrne knew TO was stepping down, but had no details on timing and any announcement, or that TO would essentially "name" Solich as his replacement in his announcement. When Byrne landed and reporters asked him about Solich as the new HC, he was completely caught off-guard. Byrne left shortly after this fiasco.

2. In 2003 when then AD Pederson fired Solich, TO was vocally displeased. So much so, he got pissy and privately told UNL to remove his name from the field. He settled down on that issue, but still groused about it for years in his own off-handed way until he was put in as AD with the understanding he would pick Bo as the new HC.

3. In 2014, when SE fired BP, we know TO was also displeased but it was not in the media as much because he was no longer AD. Yet what did he do? He took the opportunity to issue a press release - as a private citizen - with a very lukewarm welcome and enough said to make sure people knew this was not his idea. Just like with Solich, we are now going to hear him grousing about it for years to come, in his off-handed way (like this interview).

TO comes across as humble ... inside it is quite the opposite.

Michigan has had the same issues for years with Lloyd Carr and his influence and dislike for Harbaugh. They finally pushed that element out this past year (took getting rid of an AD).

TO was also peeved about Perlman's unsanctioned hiring of Eichorst, which is why many don't think it was a coincidence that TO announced his stepping down while Perlman was observing Yom Kippur.

 

[mkbrkloster]

Fine Tom, let's put the entire context into this discussion. I have added bold and my take as to what I interpret Tom means:

"I don't know what reasonable is. It's a trade-off. Obviously there is a lot of passion surrounding football. Here we've had over 50 years of consecutive sellouts, and with that kind of interest and that kind of passion, inevitably there are going to be some pretty high expectations. So you take the good with the bad, and there is no question that expectations are high. ... A .500 season is not good in the eyes of most fans, and unfortunately a 9-3 or a 10-4 season at times are not perceived as very good. "

My take: Notice he said "unfortunately" 9-3 and 10-4 seasons aren't good enough for NU, meaning that he thinks those seasons should be good enough.

"However, having looked at a lot of football this last year, examined a lot of schedules and looked at a lot of teams, you have to realize that in the last seven years we've won either nine or 10 games per year, and I think there are only three or four schools in the country that have been that successful over that period of time."

My take: Again, 9-3 and 10-4 should be good enough in his eyes. In fact, for him, it puts us in the elite category of the top 3/4 schools in the country in the past 7 years.

"So you have to say that the bar is raised pretty high and expectations are pretty high. Under Bo Pelini, we didn't win a national championship or a conference championship, and so often the focus is on what you haven't done. I heard that for 21 years - "Well, you haven't won a national championship" - then we did win some."

My take: I heard the same crap that Bo heard for 21 years, then we finally won some championships. NU wasn't patient enough. One problem here is that Tom did win conference championships prior to his national championships, Bo didn't.

"But the focus is so often on what you have not done. I'm not sure we didn't maybe win one against Texas a few years ago when they put a second back on the clock. That's about as close as you can come without winning one."

My take: Even though we didn't win a conference championship under Bo, I'll count that one as a championship for him.

"Then we almost beat Oklahoma a few years ago, too. So I guess you take the good with the bad, but there's pretty high expectations."

My take: Again, being close counts, in my book, when it comes to me judging Bo. So you see, we really have 2 (conference) "championships".

 

[litespeedhuskerfan]

I've read that article twice, and I just don't see what some of you are seeing. I see a guy just answering some questions and trying not to throw anyone under a bus. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[The Dankness]

Tom has become a very bitter man towards the current NU administration. I believe this all trickles down from his spat with Harvey. Sad that innocent people like Eichorst and now Riley can't catch a break from the legend.

Notice how thin he was at giving any acknowledgement or praise to Riley at all in the interview. Riley has done nothing but say nice things and show the utmost respect for everything Tom did. The least he could do is reciprocate that with some encouraging words about the new head coach who obviously looks up to him.

Really sad that Tom can't be the bigger man and reach out and give the new guy some props.

Tom can't bring himself to admit he hired a guy who couldn't get it done and won't be caught giving any praise to the guy who replaced his pick. Really sad and I am a bit ashamed.

Always a legend and you have to respect the guy for what he did while wearing the headset, but everything he's done since has been very questionable in my book.

 

[jflores]

"My take: Again, being close counts, in my book, when it comes to me judging Bo. So you see, we really have 2 (conference) "championships"."

History really will dictate whether it was wise or not. Like with the Solich deal, people were mixed on whether it was a good thing to do or not, especially outside the fan base. Its been generally accepted over time, that it wasn't a smart thing to do because of the results that we got with Callahan.

If Riley is a smashing success, no ones really to flame Eichorst for what he did. Especially old guys at coffee shops in Fremont, who will tell the tale of an AD who dared strive for excellence. If Riley ends up being a chump hire like Callahan, then its only going to reinforce the stupidity of of constantly being on the cusp and hopefully playing upward, rather than whole ball of wax or go home mentality. Might be a bit of talk about how Eichorst wasn't established enough for the job, and how the NU fans steered him around by the nose and all that.
This post was edited on 3/5 12:47 PM by jflores

 

[The Dankness]

I just remembered another thing....

Tom has always preached about college football being about the students and the university and such...everyone can pretty much agree on that.

What does he do as AD? He moves the students of the university farther away from the field to the corner of the stadium and diminishes the experience. Also got ride of block seating. All for maybe an extra $1 million in donation seats. I don't think it was worth it and when I had the opportunity to bring this point up to him at the time in person, he brushed it off and basically told me to pound sand. Pretty funny.

 

[siegsker]

Originally posted by Tulsa Tom:

Originally posted by siegsker:
Tulsa Tom arguing that people are making a mountain out of a molehill.

Now that is funny.

All you have to do is say, "TO" and this board starts frothing at the mouth and having multiple conniptions. Hopefully at some point there will be cyber dosages of Xanax to calm the irrational mob.

TO is a legend and we all love his accomplishments here.

That doesn't make him above criticism, though. TO went damn far out of his way to protect Bo while Bo was here, even when he was no longer the AD. When Riley was hired, TO released a curt one line statement saying something to the effect of "I don't know him, I hear he's a good guy. Wish him luck." Riley, who has been nothing but effusive in his praise for TO and Nebraska, talks about his lunch meeting and TO makes it seem like it was another private conversation that should not have been in the papers. But, when it comes to how hard Bo had it with expectations and how close he came to winning conference championships, TO has a lot to say even still.

I can understand that he is bitter. I hope you can understand why some of us are disappointed in seeing this from TO.

 

[otismotis08]

God Bless TO.

God Bless HCMR.

God Bless the Big Red.

 

[NikkiSixx]

I think it's difficult to try to judge Tom, especially when we haven't walked in his shoes.

I personally didn't find the interview offensive, but you can tell he's still upset about the way things happened over the last couple of years.

HCMR is no young pup, he knows what he is doing. If anything, the lunch was really about 2 things. Pay some respect to Tom, and to ask about the traditions. Nothing to make a big deal about really.

 

[dinglefritz]

Originally posted by litespeedhuskerfan:

I've read that article twice, and I just don't see what some of you are seeing. I see a guy just answering some questions and trying not to throw anyone under a bus. Nothing wrong with that.

If anything I see that article to some degree as a slap at Bo and his inability to adapt to B1G offenses. The part about "still trying to adapt" in particular. How many years should it take a DC to adapt to what other teams are throwing at you game after game and year after year.

 

[Wasker77]

A lot of you guys maybe right. TO just might be a bitter old man, but I think those critical of his response to Riley's hiring are blowing it out of proportion. I don't think Tom probably knows too much about Mike. How long are we going to be obsessed with Bo? Three years from now when a linebacker doesn't cover a running back coming out of the backfield running a wheel route who then catches a pass that goes 60 yards and a TD will it be Bo's fault? The loudmouth is in Youngstown so let's get over it. I am more concerned with Mike Riley. It is his team now. I really hope he succeeds in Lincoln. I do think he will benefit from better resources that he will have at his disposal at Nebraska. I still don't think paying somebody more money doesn't necessarily make them better at any job, including coaching. Isn't anyone concerned about how Riley seems dead set on making us a pure pro-style offensive team? He is inserting his offense which is to be expected, but so far from what I have read he is not willing to be flexible either. I think at Nebraska a quarterback needs to be able to run. Wasn't that one of the errors Callahan made? From what I read I do think the new simpler defense will be better for our players. Playing in the old defensive scheme our players seemed to be out of position at the snap of ball quite a bit. That constant last second substitution drove me crazy. I think spring practice and the Red/White game are going to tell us a lot this year.

 

[SnohomishRed]

Dont some of you think this whole " if you are not 100% Riley then you must be a Bo fan" is a bit over the top

franky I saw nothing wromg with what he said and to vilify a hall of fame coach because of your hate for Bo is not helping Nu football at all

 

[nufaninouland]

Originally posted by SnohomishRed:

Dont some of you think this whole " if you are not 100% Riley then you must be a Bo fan" is a bit over the top

franky I saw nothing wromg with what he said and to vilify a hall of fame coach because of your hate for Bo is not helping Nu football at all

People on this board have a better understanding of what it takes to win at the level BP did than Tom Osborne does. It's a simple as that.

 

[HuskerTimOmaha]

Bitter Osborne remains bitter.

Sure, I'll go to lunch with you coach Riley. No problem, I think Misty's is a great place to meet, nobody will recognize either of us and it's away from campus and pretty much empty during the day at lunch time.

 

[RedCap]

Here's a Big Issue Down the Road ...

It's the potential for abuse that the new stipend allowance likely will bring to the recruiting game. In Osborne's words:

"As I understand it, is that the cost-of-attendance stipend will be dependent on whatever the school says the cost-of-attendance needs to be. So you may go to Stanford and the cost of actually attending Stanford is $6,000. And you may go across the bay to University of California and maybe instead of $6,000, it's $2,000. So you're going to see discrepancy school by school and conference by conference. And I'm sure that's going to resonate in recruiting and it's going to be again some concern."

Anyone think those $EC schools are going to play fair and not manipulate the numbers to pay their recruits more than other schools? And in our own conference Penn State already is planning to pay the biggest stipend in the B1G just because Happy Valley is such an expensive place to live.

 

[1fansopinion]

Originally posted by litespeedhuskerfan:

I've read that article twice, and I just don't see what some of you are seeing. I see a guy just answering some questions and trying not to throw anyone under a bus. Nothing wrong with that.

Totally agree.

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Originally posted by dinglefritz:

Originally posted by litespeedhuskerfan:

I've read that article twice, and I just don't see what some of you are seeing. I see a guy just answering some questions and trying not to throw anyone under a bus. Nothing wrong with that.

If anything I see that article to some degree as a slap at Bo and his inability to adapt to B1G offenses. The part about "still trying to adapt" in particular. How many years should it take a DC to adapt to what other teams are throwing at you game after game and year after year.

I can't believe I'm saying it but I agree with Dingle. Tom talked openly about the expectations at Nebraska. It is what have you done for me and Bo didn't win conference or national championships but was very close to the conference crown. But it was deemed not good enough. Tom understands because he dealt with the same thing (at least on a national championship level).
THEN he talked about Bo not adjusting to Big Ten offenses because he didn't have the right players like an Eric Hagg who was right for the Big XII.

How anyone could take an open but innocuous interview like this one and turn it into a vitriolic diatribe against Oz is mind-numbing. Take off the lenses of "we hate Bo" and get back to reality.

 

[BetterRed]

Here's what bothered me about the interview. I haven't read everyone's response, so maybe I'm repeating this.....or, maybe not. But TO made reference of Nebraska having a record as good as anyone over the last six or seven years. You know, that record being on par to those like Oregon and Alabama. Yeah, this program has lived up to that nine win season thing. But does the good doctor not understand the debth of the losses, and to whom? This program really hasn't had big win over a high caliber opponent in forever. It's like he doesn't get this. Like, as fans, we're the ones who should be ashamed for expecting too much. I respect Dr. Tom. He did some great things as a coach. But please spare us for accepting cup-cake wins and overlook the bad-ass losses.

 

[HuskerTimOmaha]

BetterRed, of course he does, refer to my first response ITT.
Posted from Rivals Mobile

 

[wkato]

Originally posted by litespeedhuskerfan:

I've read that article twice, and I just don't see what some of you are seeing. I see a guy just answering some questions and trying not to throw anyone under a bus. Nothing wrong with that.

I'm afraid I'd have to agree with litespeedhuskerfan on this one. The lunch comment to me was nothing more than TO's dry humor stating it was just lunch, not news worthy.

 

[mwulf]

TO has earned the right to feel, think and say anything he wants in regards to the program. End. Of. Story.

 

[Charlie Marlow]

I think its much made out of nothing personally. I don't really disagree with anything he said either.

I think BO did a pretty good job for the most part. I never really gave a crap if he was Mr. CrankyPants. Winning 9 games a year for 7 years is nothing to sneeze at. It means you are doing some things right. But after 7 years, there were still no signs that he was going to revamp the defense to stop the power run and he wanted to stand by Els for God-knows-what reason. So it seems like 9-10 wins would also be as good as it would ever get. 9 wins can be the floor, but it also can't be the ceiling. We were living in a Flat Pelini world and I do think it was time to move on.

Looking at our schedule, I don't think 12-0 is all that unrealistic this year. Let's get this Riley era started out right.

ps- Crapahan can go f&^# himself

 

[Tulsa Tom]

Originally posted by wkato:

Originally posted by litespeedhuskerfan:

I've read that article twice, and I just don't see what some of you are seeing. I see a guy just answering some questions and trying not to throw anyone under a bus. Nothing wrong with that.

I'm afraid I'd have to agree with litespeedhuskerfan on this one. The lunch comment to me was nothing more than TO's dry humor stating it was just lunch, not news worthy.

Exactly. Those who know TO knows this is how he thinks and talks. You have to be one crazy conspiracy theorist to decipher that as being a slam on Riley.

 

[mkbrkloster]

Originally posted by mwulf:
TO has earned the right to feel, think and say anything he wants in regards to the program. End. Of. Story.

Who is saying he doesn't? He also has the right to receive criticism or praise on anything he says about the program.

 

[mwulf]

Originally posted by mkbrkloster:

Originally posted by mwulf:
TO has earned the right to feel, think and say anything he wants in regards to the program. End. Of. Story.

Who is saying he doesn't? He also has the right to receive criticism or praise on anything he says about the program.

You are right...I just dont like people badmouthing TO

 

[HuskerTimOmaha]

Originally posted by mwulf:

You are right...I just dont like people badmouthing TO

He should get over his bitterness then.

 

[hamneggs53]

Originally posted by The Dankness:
I just remembered another thing....

Tom has always preached about college football being about the students and the university and such...everyone can pretty much agree on that.

What does he do as AD? He moves the students of the university farther away from the field to the corner of the stadium and diminishes the experience. Also got ride of block seating. All for maybe an extra $1 million in donation seats. I don't think it was worth it and when I had the opportunity to bring this point up to him at the time in person, he brushed it off and basically told me to pound sand. Pretty funny.

Very good point. Moving the students up to the nose bleeds in the south end zone was a huge mistake IMHO..

This post was edited on 3/6 11:07 AM by hamneggs53