Good Night, Cosgrove. Good Luck, Callahan
Kansas game a sad microcosm of a failed regime
by Samuel McKewon
November 04, 2007
If it had been a court of law, some ritzy defense lawyer would have begged Bill Callahan and Kevin Cosgrove to plead the fifth.
Because what the two of them did, with the help of their Nebraska football team and an equally complicit coaching staff, was lay out a great case for their dismissal in NU's remarkable 76-39 loss to Kansas. Even some of the Cornhuskers' successes on offense pointed to a deeper, underlying guilt. In this game, as much as any, you saw many schematic and practical flaws on display.
It was stunning, really. After watching that debacle on Saturday, you think back on Callahan's "I've been excellent in every area" comment and wonder what the hell he was talking about.
Excellent? Excellent? No.
Consider the evidence to the contrary. Consider it as we await the inevitable from Athletic Director Tom Osborne, from whom an announcement could come any time, I'm guessing. If you need visible reasons why this administration must end, here's five keys of a different kind.
1. Imagine a chess match in which you're asked to take over for white and you've already lost a rook and a bishop. That's how Cosgrove has coached his defense this year. He presumes a major disadvantage and schemes for it. And his players play like it.
Not only does the guy fail to dial up the magic scheme for his Huskers, he dials up the magic scheme for the opposing offense. He does nonsensical things, like put his linebackers up at the line of scrimmage, where they fake the blitz, drift slowly back in coverage and have passes whiz right by their face to a receiver on a slant pattern, who is wide open because the defensive back is purposely playing over the top.
Kansas quarterback Todd Reesing exploited this again and again on Saturday. Reesing was indeed terrific - he's very accurate on the run, and cool against pressure- but his throws and reads were pretty simple. Nebraska's linebackers are either incompetent in drops, slow on them, or dithering around trying to "fool" Reesing. Cosgrove seems to be in love with confusing quarterbacks. It hasn't worked - in fact, it's the Huskers who seem lost - but it doesn't stop him from trying.
Because NU's corners played so soft, KU was able to run one easy quick screen after another, with Jayhawk receivers swallowing Nebraska's secondary whole on blocks. Did the Huskers bother to adjust to this? Not really. From the first time Brandon McAnderson rumbled down the sidelines for 41 yards on a swing pass until Kansas stopped throwing, that play open practically every time. That's instant confidence for any sophomore quarterback. It helps that Nebraska's defensive backs - particularly the corners - don't look like they've been coached to cover, shed blocks or tackle. They're good at face-guarding and drawing pass interference penalties, but they are rarely, if ever, in any kind of position to make a positive play. Phil Elmassian has to bear that responsibility.
As does Cosgrove. You heard he and other Husker coaches praise Reesing last week. Much like they did for Chase Daniel. And just like with Daniel, Nebraska lived in fear of what Reesing could do; the kid made a couple great plays in the first and second quarters, and it was like the Huskers went into "please kill us softly" mode. The Jayhawks happily complied with the verb, if not the adverb.
2. Not that it had to be that ugly. I assure you - Missouri could have dropped 60 if Callahan kept winging passes and setting up short fields for the Tigers. That's just what Dr. Bill ordered for Saturday, and you saw the results.
Don't get me wrong: I loved Joe Ganz's competitiveness. I did. But, for all his guts, he was not particularly accurate on Saturday -nor should he have been, after a four-year layoff - and Callahan, after watching a first half in which KU dropped no fewer than five interception opportunities and caught one, had to know the other shoe was about to drop. Especially when it was clear that NU kept attacking the middle of the field on vertical and slant routes. Ganz floated a couple passes, KU jumped on the mistakes, and the rout got even uglier. And that's squarely on the shoulders of Callahan, who rightfully took the blame afterward.
But, really, what is he thinking when his team trails 62-31 midway through the third quarter, and he's trying to get another quick touchdown on the board? This isn't the old WAC! Run the ball! Save your defense a little! Play a team game!
Does Callahan know how? Does he understand how one side of the ball affects the other? His grasp on this seemed clear enough against Missouri, but was oddly absent against KU. The bottom line is this: If you've got a weak defense - or, say, the worst in the nation - bleeding 30 seconds off the game clock doesn't exactly help it.
You'd think, if he never won a college game after trailing at halftime, that Callahan's "come back as fast as possible" scheme would have been revamped by now. It works about as well as his "circle the wagons because we're ahead" mode.
3. Nobody's taught Adi Kunalic any other kickoff besides the long line drive, and you saw how well that worked against the Jayhawks. Kunalic couldn't even execute a squib. Where's the coaching? In the second half, desperate to slow down KU's kickoff returns, Alex Henery was inserted to pop one up in the air. It turned out to be just a really bad kickoff, which was promptly returned into Nebraska territory. Is there no contingency plan for when Kunalic can't blast the ball into the cheap seats?
4. It took nine games and a quarterback change for somebody to just throw Maurice Purify the ball and see what he could do with it. You saw the results. NU could have had those numbers all year. This issue might be as frustrating as any, that Callahan spends all this time crafting elaborate plays designed for somebody other Purify, when, sometimes, a jump ball to No. 16 works much better. That's modern coaching for you: Instead of trusting the talents of the players, the coaches trust the schemes inside their brains.
Earth to Bill: Jimmy Chitwood took the last shot and made it.
5. It's hindsight, obviously, but how could Cosgrove and Callahan have been so wrong about Nebraska's defensive line? Why didn't they convert one of those offensive lineman that ride the pine, waiting their turn? Why didn't they alter their scheme so the defensive line's play wasn't so crucial to the success of the defense? Callahan thinks he's been excellent in every area, huh? Hardly. He left the cupboard bare at defensive line, just like the cupboard at linebacker is going to be bare for the next coach next season. Running back and wide receiver are well-stocked with guys. Nebraska has about six tight ends. But precious little defensive depth. In year four? That's no good.
The Kansas game was a microcosm of what's wrong with the Callahan regime. Mostly, it boils down to a simple reality: Nebraska isn't fun to watch, because they don't look like they enjoy playing. The Texas game was a mirage, a brief break in the clouds. Nothing more. The Huskers are running on empty. The throes of death are here; all that remains is the rattle.
Good Night, Cosgrove. Good Luck, Callahan
Post your feedback on this topic here
