Huge shoes to fill in Nebraska
Following Osborne, Solich expects plenty of criticism
Posted: Sun April 26, 1998 at 1:41 PM ET
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Solich is starting to feel comfortable in the "big chair" at Nebraska
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LINCOLN, Nebraska (CNN/SI) -- In the office that once belonged to Bob Devaney, behind the desk that once belonged to Tom Osborne, is the uneasy chair that now belongs to Frank Solich.
"To think I'll go through this thing without being critiqued doesn't make sense," said Solich. "There were two years Bob went 6-4 and there were people upset. Tom, of course, as great a coach as he is -- has won more games than anybody in 25 years -- yet there were times when people were dissatisfied with maybe the number of wins, the fact that maybe we didn't throw the ball enough.
An Osborne assistant for nearly two decades, Solich accepted the job the instant it was offered. But it took six weeks before he had the nerve to move into the big office.
"For 19 years, I just came up the stairs, turned left and went into my office," said Solich. "I just didn't want to rush Coach Osborne."
If only Osborne had been as considerate in leaving Solich with more proven talent. This spring, Solich frets less about the task of replacing Osborne than about finding a No. 1 quarterback, a starting I-back, four offensive linemen, and defensive linemen capable of stepping into the shoes of two first-round NFL draft picks.
Having concluded his Hall-of-Fame coaching career at Nebraska by winning at least a share of the national championship three times in his final four seasons. Maybe Osborne knew everything about Nebraska football, including when to quit.
"As far as where we're at in the offensive line, we're very inexperienced," said the Cornhuskers' new head coach. "We're inexperienced at the quarterback spot. Those are two areas that always make you nervous if you're operating with inexperienced people."
Having played running back for Devaney and having coached the position under Osborne, Solich knows that being very good is not nearly enough at Nebraska. And nobody in Lincoln is lowering expectations to give the new coach some breathing room. In the lifetime of its current players, Nebraska has never won fewer than nine games in a season. In fact, the Cornhuskers new head coach must maintain the continuity at a program that has compiled a four-year record of 49-2 -- the best in NCAA history.
"Matter of fact, my expectations have probably grown a little bit," said sophomore quarterback Bobby Newcombe. "I expect a lot out of this team next year as far as speed, strength-wise, enthusiasm, leadership."
A lot of pressure is on sophomore quarterback Bobby Newcombe to lead the team
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Defensive end Michael Rucker said teams talk the talk of beating Nebraska, but they don't walk the walk.
"I've been here for four years and every year teams say, this is the year that they're going to beat us," said Rucker. "It just hasn't happened yet, so why should this year be any different?"
Osborne has faith in Solich because he knows Solich has the good sense not to make major changes in the system he inherited. Still, Osborne is aware that Nebraska is long overdue for the inevitable down cycle that has bitten traditional powers like Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Texas, Southern Cal and Miami.
"It can happen anywhere," said Osborne. "There are no guarantees in athletics, as you know."
Usually a fall or decline of a program is precipitated by a lot people coming and going and so, hopefully, the transition here was accomplished in a manner to where you would minimize the downside risk."
Osborne admits he misses coaching, but he doesn't regularly attend practice and is reluctant to offer Solich unsolicited advice. Still, he hasn't entirely abandoned his kingdom. He'll teach a course on coaching in the fall.
"I'll be more of a fan," said Professor Osborne. and I would not presume that I had any expertise that could improve on a coach's knowledge because they're working on it 70, 80, 90 hours a week and so I don't think I could offer anything he wouldn't already know."
Solich knows Osborne has left the game, but also understands the retired coach is his best set of eyes to catch any chinks in the Nebraska armor.
"He's been tremendous in letting me take the ball and run with it, and I certainly appreciate that," said Solich. "But, at the same time, I want him to know -- I'm sure he does -- that if he sees anything that's glaring, I'm open to Coach Osborne saying anything he'd like to about where the program's at and where it's going."
Whether Solich can keep Nebraska up and running depends on players like running back D'Angelo Evans, who had a freshman-record 14 touchdowns, but was forced by injuries to redshirt last season. There is also the promise of Newcombe, the sensational freshman wingback competing for the starting quarterback job. He's the fastest player in the program.
"We've got talent in our program," Solich admits. "Without question, we can win with these players, and win big."
Solich knows it may take some time for Nebraska's offense to come together. But Nebraska won't be seriously challenged until the third week of the season when it plays Washington. And like most of the Cornhuskers' other tough games, that will be played at what's now known as Tom Osborne Field, where Nebraska's won 42 consecutive games -- the longest home winning streak in the country.
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