A couple of former Big 8 bros. checking in:
http://247sports.com/Article/247Sports-ranks-Power-5-college-coaching-jobs-Nos-45-36-51303742
http://247sports.com/Article/247Sports-ranks-Power-5-college-coaching-jobs-Nos-45-36-51303742
Pac 12
USC, UCLA, Oregon, Washington, & Stanford
Big 12
Texas & Okahoma
Big Ten
OSU, Michigan, Penn St.,
ACC
Florida St, Miami, Clemson, Notre Dame
SEC
Alabama, Florida, Auburn, Texas A&M, LSU, Tennessee, Georgia
That puts Nebraska at 22. What about teams like Michigan St and Wisconsin? If it weren't for location and recent lack of success I believe Nebraska would be top 15.
Go to a Husker home game and tell me it's not one of the top 10-15 jobs in the country.
That's fan support. Not how attractive the job is to coaching candidates. Fan support is second to none. Facilities are top ten in the country. But we are remote and practically irrelevant these days. Even with a top recruiting staff there's a limit to the talent that can be attracted. A coach knows that his success is largely dependent on the talent he can bring in. Win the Big Ten West 2 out of every 3 years and I'll agree to a top 15 ranking.
I'm happy that we are finally starting to pay our assistants top money. But if you wanna be one of the big dogs you've gotta bring in a big dog coach. Meyers, Hairball, Saban etc. But these guys wouldn't even consider Nebraska unless you paid them $10 million a year. We need to get lucky and find the next big thing and then you hafta pay to keep them.
Which is my whole point. Good coaches want to go recruiting hotbeds. The only way you get a Chris Petersen is to overpay him. And at least in the past Nebraska has tried to go on the cheap. Or at the most pay an average salary. Petersen might have reconsidered if you had paid him $2 million more than anyone else. And honestly it would've been money well spent.Irrelevant is a little harsh, but I agree that Lincoln's remote location is the key obstacle to attracting both coaches and players.
From a source I trust, NU did contact Chris Peterson through intermediaries in 2013. He wasn't interested. He was offered USC and UCLA (twice), and I'm guessing his agent has been contacted by dozens of teams' representatives over the years. He listened to the California schools but as I understand it, he was holding out for 2 jobs- Oregon or Washington.
Which is my whole point. Good coaches want to go recruiting hotbeds. The only way you get a Chris Petersen is to overpay him. And at least in the past Nebraska has tried to go on the cheap. Or at the most pay an average salary. Petersen might have reconsidered if you had paid him $2 million more than anyone else. And honestly it would've been money well spent.
And yes Nebraska is irrelevant at this time. We are the 3rd or 4th best team in the worst division in college football. That's the definition of irrelevant.