Husker Nation

For those interested in what's going on with the Nebraska football drama, here's a recap courtesy of a noted Husker fan:

"This action is not necessarily a by-product of the Oklahoma State game. The repeated whippings gave the opportunity for it to happen.

There are two main reasons that Steve Pederson, AD, was let go.

1. Money:
Steve Pederson built a 40+ million dollar stadium renovation. New skyboxes, new weightroom, new indoor practice facility, etc. etc. When Pederson fired Frank Solich back in 2004 he effectively divided HuskerNation into two factions (Pro-Solich and the look to the future crowd). By dividing HuskerNation, he also divided the available booster money to complete the project. In fact the remaining balance was given under the condition that the money is there once Steve Pederson is gone. In no bizarre twist of fate, the morning after Steve Pederson it is being reported that the remaining balance has been paid.

2. Management Style:
Steve Pederson was Tom Osborne's recruiting coordinator during the 90's run. He eventually left for other opportunities (Ohio State, Tennessee, Pittsburgh). When Bill Byrne left Nebraska for Texas A&M, Pederson became the natural choice. He grew up in North Platte, NE, graduated from UNL, and had a high profile as an up and coming AD. However, when he returned, he came back with a considerably large ego. He ruled the AD with an iron fist and chased off much of the Athletic Department staff because they did not fit his personal profile. The Nebraska Athletic Department was a very close, tight knit family atmosphere. Many of the employees had been there for many years. The climate and culture changed drastically and many left. The other shoe finally dropped when his top two assistant ADs, Paul Miles (marketing) and Paul Meyers (Major Contributions), left for 'other' opportunities. These men bled Husker Red and their departure raised many eyebrows. At their exit interviews, the let the chancellor, Harvey Perlman, know of the work environment. Combine that with the many stories of people leaving or being fired by having a note slipped under their doors and it sealed his fate. The football team's poor performance on the field has just provided more of an opportunity to come forward. He had effectively lost his ability to lead his people due to the erosion of respect.

Given Nebraska's tradition and history, one would think the AD would embrace the teams and players of the past to the programs advantage. However many ex-players felt unwelcome. There are numerous stories and anecdotes of ex-players being shut out of practices, having to jump through unnecessary hoops to be around, and their team pictures and trophies removed from the tunnel. This disconnected players from the past to today's roster.

3. How this will effect Callahan:
The hiring of Tom Osborne as an interim allows the chancellor to take his time for a thorough national search for a new AD. The added benefit is that he put a trained set of eyes with outstanding credentials to evaluate Callahan and the football program during the course of a season. Callahan obviously has major internal issues to deal with on the football team this year. The remaining part of this year effectively becomes Callahan's audition for the job. However, I believe that Osborne will be true to his word and give a fair, honest evaluation. I wouldn't be surprised if he kept Callahan around if he saw the right things. Osborne's blessing will go a long way for Callahan's 'Q' rating among HuskerNation. It essentially makes Callahan a 'made' man. If he does not show improvement or does not fit the bill in Osborne's eyes then I would expect him to go.

4. The Osborne effect:
Included with all I have stated above, Tom Osborne effectively reunites HuskerNation including all of the boosters, players, and fans. The minute he took the podium was the minute reunification occurred. Many boosters came back, ex-players have been invited back, and fans have reunited. In fact I expect many of the AD staff to return to the Athletic Department with many successors available for grooming. I expect Osborne to be there 1-4 years but I would bet ~1 year. This will give him time to fix the football program and give the new AD tremendous pluses to sell to a new coach if necessary. These pluses would include state of the art facilities, a roster stocked full of highly rated recruiting classes, and rabid fan base who has sold out the stadium 287 consecutive times and counting.

So you see it while it appears to be a very strange circumstance to fire an AD there are numerous reasons to do so.