Say It Isn’t So, Nebraska Coach Bo Pelini On The Hot Seat?


Bo Pelini Nebraska Cornhuskers Big Ten Title

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

It’s probably just crazy talk, but there continues to be rumblings about just how secure Nebraska coach Bo Pelini’s job is in Lincoln.

The pressure intensified following the 71-30 embarrassing loss to Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game in December. Of course a 63-38 regular-season loss at Ohio State didn’t help matters either.

The loss to the Badgers kept Nebraska from earning a Rose Bowl berth. Instead they had to settle for the Capital One Bowl and a matchup with Georgia. The Cornhuskers were much more competitive against the Bulldogs than they were in Indianapolis, but still Nebraska’s 45-31 loss marked its third straight bowl defeat in the Pelini Era.

Uh-oh. That just added more fuel to the Pelini haters fire.

It’s not like Pelini hasn’t won at Nebraska. He has. Pelini’s 2012 Huskers went 10-4 overall, including 7-1 in the Big Ten to capture the Legends Division.

Overall, Pelini’s five Nebraska teams have amassed a 48-20 mark (he was also the Huskers’ interim coach for the 2003 Alamo Bowl win).

But countless Husker fans would love to run him out of Lincoln for good even though he’s a coach that has led his program to three 10-win seasons in the last four years and his 2011 group went 9-4. That’s hardly enough ammunition to warrant a move by the administration would you say?

The detractors though point to the three straight bowl losses, the lopsided losses this season and the fact that Nebraska has only finished ranked in the top-15 once (2009 at 14th) during Pelini’s tenure.

In addition, it’s concerning to say the least that Pelini, known to be a defensive guru having had plenty of success coordinating both Oklahoma and LSU’s defenses in the past, is the man in charge of a Nebraska D that got lit up for 36, 63, 70 and 45 points in the team’s four losses this season.

You know that same contingent of Nebraska faithful that is anti-Pelini was crossing its fingers when a report surfaced in December that he had reached out to Tennessee inquiring about the Volunteers’ open head coaching position.

Nothing materialized, but Pelini’s interest in Knoxville sends the message that he isn’t feeling overly secure these days.

Many doubt whether Pelini can return the Huskers to the glory days of yesteryear. He’s had his chances they say.

Well, I hate to burst the Pelini detractors’ bubble, but he’s not going anywhere anytime soon unless by his own volition.

He’s going to keep winning and might win very big in 2013. Consider this: Pelini’s Huskers don’t leave Lincoln until mid-October and that’s for a game against hapless Purdue. They won’t face a ranked team on the road until Nov. 9 when they travel to Michigan.

So another 10-win season is on the horizon, which may silence the Pelini haters, but don’t count on it.

 

Doug Griffiths is a member of the Football Writers Association of America and the US Basketball Writers Association. Doug is a columnist/writer for RantSports. Follow him on Twitter @ISLgriffiths and Facebook.

Be sure to check out the Rant Sports 100 in 100 Series, a preview of the top 100 College Football Teams for the 2013 Season!



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