Sooners to Huskers: 'Follow me'
Published: 4/29/2009 8:50 PM
Last Modified: 4/29/2009 8:50 PM
My man Dave Sittler wrote about Nebraska's hopes for a return to glory Wednesday, noting that Husker fans won't exactly play it patiently for second-year coach Bo Pelini.
In fact, Tom Cudd, editor of the Big Red Network fans' Web site, lays out what he terms "equations" that BCS champions have followed over the past decade. He figures Pelini's crew has the best shot at following Oklahoma's winning formula from 2000...
"Bob Stoops + Great Staff = Quick Turnaround... A passionate coach from Youngstown, Ohio, becomes a rising star in the coordinator ranks, gets his shot from a storied program spiraling out of control. He surrounds himself with other like-minded coaches who see the big picture. The Sooners are the 'model' that the Huskers appear to pattern themselves after. They went from three years of losing to a solid first year effort, followed by a national championship."
See what Dave means by that impatient fan base? Pelini has surrounded himself with a good staff, but it's nothing like Stoops' from 2000. Oh, defensive coordinator Carl Pelini is the head coach's brother, much like Mike Stoops was there for Bob. And the Huskers' young linebackers coach, Mike Ekeler, is a human can of Red Bull in the mold of Brent Venables circa '00.
Still, to even mention the words "national championship" in Nebraska's near future is ludicrous. The Big Red fan base should settle for unseating Missouri atop the Big 12 North next fall (something that I think will happen) and build step by step from there.
Pelini will restore the glory to his program. But he'll do it at a more realistic pace than OU's never-again blastoff of nine years ago. The sooner Nebraska fans digest that reality, the more they'll enjoy their ride back to the top.
-- Guerin Emig
Written by
Guerin Emig
Sports Writer
