Joe better not go
Published: 6/14/2007 12:29 PM
Last Modified: 6/14/2007 12:29 PM
Omaha World-Herald columnist Tom Shatel took a stab at counseling Nebraska's dysfunctional athletic family recently, and borrowed a telling quote from the leader of Sooner Nation.
From OU athletic director Joe Castiglione: "(Nebraska) reminds me of what I walked into nine years ago at Oklahoma. We had all these different factions. The Switzer faction. The Bud Wilkinson faction. The John Blake faction. They all thought they knew the best way for Oklahoma. The problem was everybody was forgetting about the mother ship."
Everybody but the mother ship's captain, that is. With an assist from newly-hired football coach Bob Stoops, Castiglione made sure everyone was on board. He docked for some badly-needed repair, then set a new course.
A couple years later, teams started winning and, just as important in college sports' modern day, money started flowing.
It's a feat often recognized by grateful Sooner fans. And it's worth revisiting today, as Big 12 commissioner Kevin Weiberg announces his resignation.
Would Castiglione have any interest in Weiberg's job? No clue. But the Big 12 would be crazy not to investigate that possibility.
And that's a prospect that should shake a prospering OU athletic department to its core.
The Sooners have had it pretty good since Castiglione took the helm. One look at the in-fighting at Nebraska, an old Big 8 Conference beacon, shows how bad it can be without the right direction.
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
