Darren at Big Red Network considers what it means for the Huskers if Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr retires after this season. The thought is it could lead LSU coach Les Miles to Ann Arbor, thereby leaving the top LSU job open for Bo Pellini.

Darren also wonders how long Doctor Tom intends to hold his AD post and if the new AD will have buy in on the new football coach.

The point of all this is timing.

T.O. clarified to the press today, via Randy York, that by “end of the season,” he means the end of the regular season. So if all goes as clockwork–which it needs to given the competitive nature of things–Nebraska will have a new AD in place by the Monday after Thanksgiving, an interim head coach for the bowl game and an offer ready for our top choice for head coach.

According to Lincoln Journal Star, Bill Callahan is making himself and players unavailable for interviews the rest of this week.

During the Monday Big 12 Coaches Teleconference, Callahan talked about the importance of keeping team conversations private from the public.

“I always look as any conversation between myself and the team as kind of the inner sanctum,” Callahan said. “It’s kind of the last bastion of privacy in sports, the team room. I look at it in that context. Whatever goes on in a team room, needs to stay in a team room. That’s kind of the code of being a team. If not, this would be like Ed TV. We should just mount a camera in there and let everybody see what’s going on.”

The sad thing here is we don’t a camera mounted on anyone’s helmet to let us in on any secrets. We know them. This thing’s about to bust wide open and there goes BC’s precious inner sanctum and the control he exerts over young men.

When a new dawn rises for this team, I fully expect to hear the unspoken truth spoken by some of the players wronged by this man.

Kudos to Double Extra Point for turning up this racy slice of video madness on YouTube.

It is NOT SAFE FOR WORK.

The video was shot by Ike Stranathan (www.ikefilm.com), who two Saturdays ago captured a typical afternoon watching college football at Fat Face Fenner’s Fish Shack, a popular bar located in beautiful Hermosa Beach, California. Except for one thing. He did so on the day KU put up 76 on our ass, and Fenner’s is home to a Nebraska football fan club.

Hence, the madness.

Given that BC’s mouthpiece in Minnesota said we should be studying soil science, thereby earning himself a lifetime of derision, the coach took up his own cause in Lincoln today.

According to the Lincoln Journal Star, here’s some of what his Highness had to share after being asked about the success Joe Ganz is experiencing on the field:

“I’d say this to you. We took a guy from the junior college and developed him into the conference player of the year, in Zac Taylor. We took a guy that transferred, in Sam Keller, that was on schedule and on pace to break every record,” Callahan said. “And then we insert the third guy here … that throws for seven touchdowns. I think that record won’t be broke around here for a long time … I mean, that’s development, that’s coaching, that’s system.”

“Everybody’s very critical of myself about how our offense is too complicated, and it’s too pro-like, and it’s this and it’s that,” Callahan said. “But the fact remains, the numbers don’t lie. And the performance of these players doesn’t lie. It’s there. It’s all out there … Somewhere in there, there’s coaching, there’s development, there’s system. There’s some real positive things that aren’t being brought out.”

So there is some fight left in the man. Good to know. I hope he fights his way to a Husker win Boulder and a nice new job on some hapless NFL staff. Shoe fly, shoe…

Until yesterday Tom Rice, a fifth-year senior walk on from Lincoln, hadn’t played a down on the Memorial Stadium turf. Now, after not only playing, but contributing to the Husker win yesterday, Rice will have that special memory and the feeling it evokes forever.

So, Consgrove made a good decision there, putting Rice in on Senior Day.

The Independent has Zach Potter’s take:

“You saw a lot of guys get in the game that haven’t really played,” Potter said. “Like Tom Rice, a fifth-year senior. He’d never played a down. We were really loose out there, and that made it a lot of fun to play.”

“It was like watching Rudy, but it was a lot earlier in the game.”

According to a pre-game story in Lincoln’s paper, Rice made a motivational speech to the team after losing to Missou.

“I got up and said, ‘I don’t know if you guys realize this, but there are a million-and-a-half people who care about this program. And they want to see you do well, ” Rice said, describing his heartfelt speech to teammates.

“A lot of people within this state live and die with this program. They’d give so much to be a part of it, and they want so much for us to do well.”

Rice didn’t even get to suit up for the Mizzou game. He drove himself to Columbia and sat in the stands. Yet, he had the wherewithal to stand and address the team the next day at practice. I love it when our moral fiber shows.

Husker Mike is one of the more masterful writers on the Husker football beat, and I like what he has to say about Callahan and Cosgrove in the wake of yesterday’s big victory.

Some people might look at today’s 73-31 victory over Kansas State and ask just how Nebraska could fire Bill Callahan after a huge victory like this. They are missing the point. This team has been there all season long.

Bill Callahan and Kevin Cosgrove just didn’t realize where it was. 73 points from Nebraska isn’t redemption for Bill Callahan, but rather an indictment of him. As taught by Callahan, it takes years to master it. See Joe Dailey (sub-par in 2004), Zac Taylor (sub-par in 2005), Zac Taylor (Big XII offensive player of the year in 2006), Sam Keller, and now Joe Ganz. With only four years of eligibility, quarterbacks do not have the luxury of spending years to master Callahan’s system. The fact that the quarterback switch was forced by injury, and not by recognition by Callahan of the offense’s problems only magnifies the problem.

It’s simply more damning evidence that Bill Callahan isn’t the man to lead the Nebraska football program.

It’s funny too how BC told the team to play for themselves, since the coaches probably wouldn’t be around next year. It’s almost like he “just let go” and then, as fate would have it, everything clicked. It seems like a lesson we can all can benefit from.

Brian Christopher of the Lincoln Star Journal captured some interesting commentary from players after the game yesterday.

“The last month has just been terrible, it really has been,” Husker senior safety Ben Eisenhart said. “But there was nothing you could say, it was just one of those things that happens and we had to bounce back and have this today. It was almost surreal.”

Eisenhart said it was maybe the first time all season the whole team bonded.

“We have talent, there is no question about that,” he said. “It was just nice to have that finally come out for the first time.”

“You know, every week we come up here and say, ‘We got talent. We’re just not using it,’” Ruud said. “Well, I think you see we do have talent. This time we used it.”

So there it is, team unity and game day realization of our wealth of talent. Why it was so hard and why it took so long to get here, we’ll never know for sure. But here’s hoping we see more of the same going forward. We won a big one in Boulder two years ago. It would be oh so sweet for all involved to repeat that scene later this month.

Here’s some Kansas City Star coverage that delivers the K-State point of view after the game.

The lopsided score rates among the worst in K-State history. The Wildcats had not allowed this many points since 1971 when Oklahoma pounded them 75-28.

“Well, that was about as thorough of a defeat as we’ve had in our program and personally,” K-State coach Ron Prince said. “These stay with you for a long time. When you’re old and gray, you remember these.”

Nebraska never let up in this game, not until the very end where we took the knee with a minute left on the clock.

Nebraska State Paper shares the Husker point of view.

“It was nothing against K-State or anything like that,” Swift said. “We just wanted to let loose and score as many points as we could. That’s just the type of game it was, especially coming off of five losses. I don’t think it’s anything against them. They might think it was. I’m sure they’re not very happy about it. I just think it’s something we wanted to do.”

Said Lucky: “Having fun, that’s what we’re doing. Letting loose.”

Samuel McKewon of the State Paper ends his piece with this reflection on the state of affairs in Lincoln.

As the game ended, Callahan quickly met Prince at midfield. Little was exchanged other than a handshake. Callahan quickly exited the field, while his team celebrated. He was completely alone and yet entirely surrounded by television camera operators who followed his every step.

What was he thinking, considering it was likely the last he’d ever coach at Memorial Stadium?

“I thought about a lot of things,” Callahan said. “I’ll keep that private.”

All in all today’s game was like an action flick with strong dramatic elements and borrowed themes from the Western genre.

The Versus TV crew talked with Joe’s dad in the stands during the fourth quarter, and then just after the game with Ganz himself. Both men are humble. His dad said the Ganz’ family has been coming to all the home games (from Chicago) for four years to “support the team.” Joe said he just wanted to come out today and support the seniors who’ve worked so hard. Again the team concept is front and center. This is a good kid from a good family. That he’s now leading the team with confidence means a ton. It determines how we finish and how we go into spring ball and next season. A win in Boulder means a possible bowl game and maybe even a winning season. There’s hope again. I can feel it in my fingers.

[UPDATE] Ganz went 30 of 40 with no interceptions for 510 yards and seven touchdowns. And the team scored on 11 straight posessions.

3rd Quarter Action: Husker ball. Pass complete to Purify. This confidence is great to see.

Lucky is shaken up. Trainers are on the field attending to him. Third and five. Pass to Nunn for the first down. Lucky back in the game, he goes down the sideline for a pass. He has a step on his man, but no, the pass is long. 3rd and 3. Pass to Purify, he breaks a tackle. Big gain. Across the middle to Purify. Dropped. Again to #16. First down. Pass to Hardy for the TD.

NU 45 - KSU 10

It’s a new team.

KSU completes a pass to the far side of the field for a first, but goes three and out on the next series. Our ball in the nine. Nunn for nine. QC runs for the first. Ganz on the option. He keeps. Pass to Purify. First down, Nebraska. Shuffle pass to Lucky, pick up of five. 3rd and 3. Pass to Swift for the first down. Ball on KSU 39. Ganz has time, he finds Hardy across the middle for another touchdown. Hardy has three TDs today. Amazing.

NU 52 - KSU 10

Wildcats pick up a couple of first downs. Pass interference on #5 of Nebraska. Ball on Nebraska’s 17. Reverse to Murphy for 13 yards. Ball on our 5. First and goal. Quarterback keeper for a score.

NU 52 - KSU 17

Pass to Nunn for a first down. 25 first downs in this ball game. Big pass to Nate Swift. Ball was right on the money. 26 first downs. Ball on KSU 36. Ganz drops the ball, and is dropped for a loss. First sack of the day for KSU. Off the mark on pass to Purify. Ganz goes deep. Ball is thrown out of bounds. We’re going for it on 4th and 20. What? Ganz scrambles, he runs for the first. Lowers shoulder into defender. Fans love it. Versus announcers say why not go for it on fourth, it’s about having fun on the field, something Nebraska players have been missing out on. Good point.

Pass to Lucky, he jukes his man for a nice gain.

4th Quarter Action: What a difference a week makes. What a difference Ganz makes.

Lucky passes on the flea-flicker. Incomplete. Penalty on Huskers. Declined. 4th down again. We’re going again. Pass to Purify for the first! Ball on KSU 4. Ganz scrambles, runs out of bounds. Good decision. 2nd and goal. KSU calls time out. Pass to Nunn. Touchdown. He spikes the ball, which is a penalty. Who cares? Not me.

NU 59 - KSU 17

Ganz has shattered the team record for most passing yards in a game in only his second career start, and there’s still lots of time on the clock.

K-State ball. Murillo pops Freeman for a sack–thbe 4th sack of the game for the Blackshirts. Wildcats punt.

Complete to Erickson. Ganz spreads the wealth. Down the middle to Purify–these guys work well together, really well. 488 yards in the air. Another completion to Erickson, the senior on Senior Day. Ball on the 10. Ganz to Peterson. Touchdown!

NU 66 - KSU 17

Murphy breaks one loose on the crossing route. We run him down. Ball on the one. Touchdown off play-action pass.

NU 66 - KSU 24

9:56 to go in the game. Lucky runs straight ahead. #15 Beau Davis is taking snaps now. Lucky breaks one for a big gain. Lucky again. Gets stood up on the six. QC up the gut for a couple yards. 3rd and goal to go. QC runs, hit hard. 4th down, we’re going again. Lucky off the left tackle for the score.

NU 73 - KSU 24

Over 700 yards in total offense for the Huskers so far.

Johnson breaks away for a 53-yard touchdown run. Defenders out of position and missing tackles. Shades of old on this play. Except look at the scoreboard.

NU 73 - KSU 31

We take a knee. Huskers win.