Huskers Radio Host: Nebraska should talk to PJ Fleck if things go south with Matt Rhule.

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MaxyJR1 said:
Not sure about that last park. Fleck has a better 1st 3 years at MN than Rhule had at Nebraska and Rhule is still going.

Rhule 19-19 (10-17)
Fleck 23-15 (12-15)
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I was really talking about the first two years and hypothetically questioning if Fleck would have gotten year 3. Frost was given more time because of his history with Nebraska. Rhule will get a little more time due to his success at Baylor. Fleck's style would not have gone over well at all with two below average seasons right off the bat.
 


Gophers1992 said:
I think people tend to exaggerate the level of expectations that a lot of bigger name programs have. I've heard people say things like "Matt Campbell will get fired as soon as he goes 7-5 at PSU", when PSU gave James Franklin an extension after he went 4-5 then 7-6 in back to back seasons.

Now I still think they were dumb to fire him, but this whole idea that these programs fire guys on a whim is greatly exaggerated.
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Nebraska's best season by far since Pelini was fired was 2016 under Mike Riley. Riley was fired the next season. If it was Fleck hired by them back in 2018 instead of Scott Frost and the results were the same, it's highly doubtful Fleck lasts nearly as long as Frost did.
 

MaxyJR1 said:
Not sure about that last park. Fleck has a better 1st 3 years at MN than Rhule had at Nebraska and Rhule is still going.

Rhule 19-19 (10-17)
Fleck 23-15 (12-15)
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Ruhle took over a dumpster fire.

PJ did not. The program had issues, but the core of the team was high-quality students/players, and Kill had erased all the stink of Brewster's era on the academic front.

PJ put his stamp on things and made changes, but had a lot to work with. It was not a total rebuild, regardless of how he's tried to shape the narrative.
 

Who would have thought the Huskers would ever want a Gophers coach? The Huskers are like the Gophers 1970s era. The glory days of Husker football are over.
 


caliGopher said:
Ruhle took over a dumpster fire.

PJ did not. The program had issues, but the core of the team was high-quality students/players, and Kill had erased all the stink of Brewster's era on the academic front.

PJ put his stamp on things and made changes, but had a lot to work with. It was not a total rebuild, regardless of how he's tried to shape the narrative.
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PJ took over a team in which he had to convince a walk-on, scout team QB (CDH's Conner Rhoda) to stay another year to be the starting QB because the cupboard was bare. That might not be a dumpster fire, but it was close.
 


Anybody planning to coach there can plan on getting fired. I wouldn't trust the administration of Nebraska for anything.
 

Gophergrandpa said:
PJ took over a team in which he had to convince a walk-on, scout team QB (CDH's Conner Rhoda) to stay another year to be the starting QB because the cupboard was bare. That might not be a dumpster fire, but it was close.
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Not even remotely close. Only issue as QB that’s big but was a lot in cupboard.
 




Gopherchase said:
Not even remotely close. Only issue as QB that’s big but was a lot in cupboard.
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No question that the 2017 roster that PJ inherited had talent. Lots of talent (NFL talent) on defense. And he had a very good RB room on offense. But many think that QB position is by far the most important one on the team. Vikings this year had a very talented defense, a couple of great WRs, but inconsistent QB play did them in.

The 2017 Gopher offense was problematic because of a subpar QB play. 19.4 passing attempts per game--fewest in the B1G (versus 43.8 rushing attempts per game). 47.2% completion rate, also worst in the B1G. Decent rushing attack, but at 70% of plays called, it was predictable and easier than it should have been to defend.

The 2017 Gophers had a lot of talent on defense, but curiously allowed a higher completion rate (63.3%) than any other team in the B1G but Nebraska, and allowed more yards per rush (4.9) than any B1G team but ... Nebraska. A poor offense can stress even a very talented defense.

So, my take (that many won't agree with): the roster PJ inherited of course wasn't a dumpster fire overall (it flipped to successful in 2018 and went nuclear in 2019). But 2017 was--by B1G standards--a dumpster fire for the Gophers at the QB position, which is often the single biggest factor in a team's ability to win games.
 

GophersInIowa said:
I don't think a place like Nebraska makes sense for Fleck even if this was a possibility. A little bit higher salary and access to some more resources but it isn't significantly better than MN. Then when you factor in the lack of patience with the program, I don't think it would be a move he'd make.

If the start of his career at MN happened at Nebraska instead and the results were similar, would Fleck have even made it to the 2019 season? It's possible he wouldn't have.
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I think the way his year two ended would have been seen as encouraging enough to warrant a third year
 




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