Around the Big Ten

[entropy]

WM.. sadly, UNL is probably more Minn than Wisky in the future. I'm not confident of the direction or the fans. You don't need a TO to be relevant in CF in Lincoln, but you can't be hitting reset with every coaching change.

JH at least followed a guy who had a system he could build from... not start over. That won't be the case when the other side wins at UNL. Sadly, this has been our last 15 yrs and it's not changing. Like politics, the fighting has become louder each year as people use "facts" to support predetermined opinions.

[iam416]

In the Big Ten East, I'd be fairly surprised if Ohio State (a) lost to Penn State in Columbus and (b) lost more than 1 game. M could ease into a tie if they beat Ohio State. I think they catch a break getting Purdue for 1 of their West road games (OSU has Iowa/UNL and PSU has Iowa/NWC). I say that mostly because M hasn't inspired great confidence on the road against those B10 teams with a pulse. So, it's a good break to catch a team without one.

I haven't thought about the West, yet. I reckon I should soon.

[Wild Hoss]

Riley is definitely a stopgap (I mean, he was like 62 when we hired him) but having him flame out is certainly not the best option for us.

He needs to do well enough to "retire" on his own terms in another year or two, having replenished the talent enough that we can attract a high-end HC prospect to replace him.

We're going to end up with Scott Frost otherwise.

[WM Wolverine]

Riley is bringing in good talent, probably enough to be as or more talented than Wisconsin...

Doubt Riley is anywhere near the level of Chryst as a coach, developer of talent and motivator. You could share far more insights than I could hypothesize.

[Hannibal]

And change systems again... brilliant. 4 self-probations with the 4 last coaches.

The difficulty of changing systems is overrated.

And when I have watched Nebraska the last couple of years I can't tell exactly what their system is or their identity.

[entropy]

WM.. I don't think he is.. Personally, it should have been clear what he had in Tommie Armstrong and he should have got a juco QB to run his system. They have moments where they seem to be calling plays because "it should work" vs plays "based upon the talent".

that said, he was never a long term answer based upon age alone. But UNL had a lot of things to fix behind the scenes and at the HS level in the state that Riley has done well. It feels like a program with direction and purpose rather than one that drives while looking through the rear view mirror.

[iam416]

They like having interior linemen shoved 8 yards into the backfield and giving up 60+ in Columbus. Otherwise it's a mishmash.

[entropy]

The difficulty of changing systems is overrated.

.

I'd disagree. Run the option with drop back QB's and an OL built for pass blocking. Good luck not wasting players and years to fix.

[Wild Hoss]

Right now I give the edge to Chryst, mostly because- as entropy posited above- Wisco has stayed in their lane with his hire, so he is several years ahead of Riley in developing their respective programs.

That said, working with somebody else's lemon of a car, Riley has lost two very close games to Chryst. As opposed to the performance of the previous shithead against the Badgerz.

[entropy]

They like having interior linemen shoved 8 yards into the backfield and giving up 60+ in Columbus. Otherwise it's a mishmash.

UNL might actually have a center who weighs over 270 lbs this year. yea us..

but hey, recruiting doesn't matter. Any coaches nephew, for example, can play at UNL and start at center.

[entropy]

to be fair.. so far, I'd say Bo was better motivator (even though the us vs the world/media/neb fans only worked for so many games a year) and he did maximize his talent (what he stumbled upon when recruiting)

[THE_WIZARD_]

shaddup

[Wild Hoss]

It feels like a program with direction and purpose rather than one that drives while looking through the rear view mirror.

This is what gives me hope. Eichorst gives no shits what the Harolds of the word think...he knows what NU needs to do, and is pushing the program hard to do it, with Riley as his frontman.

IDK if they'll pull it off, or do so before the clock runs out, but I feel like there's at least a chance NU can be successful in the future.

[Hannibal]

I'd disagree. Run the option with drop back QB's and an OL built for pass blocking. Good luck not wasting players and years to fix.

It has been done fairly often. Northwestern and Purdue went from doormats to bowl teams with great offenses virtually overnight when Joe Tiller arrived in the Big Ten and Northwestern converted to a running spread. Urban Meyer has been to four stops and the offense has been elite at each stop by year 2, except for Florida where it took until year 3. Paul Johnson took Georgia Tech to the Orange Bowl in year 2 by taking Chan Gailey's pro style guys and molding them into an offense so potent that it won them the ACC.

And as I said above, having watched about six or seven of Mike Riley's games, I can't for the life of me figure out what the system actually is. What is Nebraska's bread-and-butter. What are their constraint plays? I know what Harbaugh's bread-and-butter and constraint plays are. I know what MSU's are. I know what Wisconsin' and Oregon's are. Nebraska? I can't really figure it out. They look like they run the Al Borges grab bag to me.

[THE_WIZARD_]

STFU