Elizabeth Merrill of ESPN gets to the heart of matters, in a flattering piece on Bo Pelini.
At Nebraska, pre-2002, assistants rarely left. They bought houses, weathered 9-3 seasons, and stayed for a couple of decades until their knees or voices gave out. But in 2002, near the end of a 7-7 season, coach Frank Solich fired nearly half of his staff in the biggest coaching purge since the early 1960s. Reporters camped out in below-freezing temperatures just to catch candidates shuffling by in SUVs … assistant coaching candidates.
When Solich hired Pelini as his defensive coordinator in 2002, it smacked against Nebraska tradition. Pelini was an NFL assistant, with no ties to the state or the program. He was uber-confident, a trait that almost seemed anti-Nebraska. His first meeting with the defense was so legendary it was detailed in a widely circulated e-mail. With a steely glare and get-tough speech, Pelini, supposedly, put the fear of God into a handful of players.
“That meeting,” he says, “probably got overblown a bit.”
But it only boosted his popularity among Nebraskans.
“He’s the blue-collar type of hard worker, he’s the guy who will shoot it straight to you,” Mike Kortum, an employee at Nebraska Bookstore says. “He’s not going to feed you a bunch of fluff.
“That’s why people here like him. He’s like them.”
Hat tip to dizzturbedNUfan.
January 18th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
Thanks Bug! I think that was one of the nicest thing that ESPN has ever done for Husker football. I have always wanted Bo as our coach so it shouldn’t surprise me, but I am just amazed at the things Bo is getting done and the way he is going about getting them done.
Go Big Red!
January 18th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
Those of you who are fans of the NY Jets…you have my condolences.
January 19th, 2008 at 9:32 am
Looks like Bo finally has his contract. I’m interested to see the official announcement and find out how many years it is going to be for. Looking at that list of Big 12 coaches, it amazes me that Iowa St. can fork out that much money for a coach.
http://www.journalstar.com/huskerextra/football/doc47914948c2bb5141149352.txt
January 19th, 2008 at 12:10 pm
The fact that Baylor pays more for their coach is a little disturbing, considering the fact that they have been bottom feeders since the start of the Big 12. I am sure we will pay Bo what he is worth when the time oomes. After Loserhan’s contract, I feel they used a little caution this time in preparing Bo’s. That’s fine, but they better bring the money when the time comes.
January 20th, 2008 at 6:37 pm
Baylor is a private school, they can do whatever they want. Payroll obviously doesn’t mean wins. I have no doubt he will be paid what he feels is fair to him and the people he hires.
January 20th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
One thing that impressed me with Pelini is he said he was not worried about his contracts and that he wanted to make sure his assistants were taken care of. I always thought when all the coaches get these outrageous bonuses……Les Miles comes to mind, why they don’t share them with the guys that actually help them do it. I would and maybe that would help keep your assistants around longer. T.O. always took care of his assistants and look how long they stayed with him.
January 21st, 2008 at 3:48 am
@ Brad. Good point.