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Nebraska looked at rejoining the Big 12

Huskerfan69 said:
We know the money is more in the Big10, but what we don't know is if moving back would have helped with getting NU back from the depths of hell, thus generating more money.. Would that have been close enough? no, I am sure it wouldn't have been.

As much as I do not like the SEC, thanks to ESPN being their pimps, that would have been a smarter move. IMO anyway.
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No, moving back to the Big XII wouldn't have helped. At the time, it wasn't a B1G problem, it was a Nebraska problem. We had people in charge who were constantly making bad decisions for Nebraska. I'm not certain if the Nebraska problem was arrogance or ignorance, but it was definitely an in-house problem.
 
Farmer Jake said:
No, moving back to the Big XII wouldn't have helped. At the time, it wasn't a B1G problem, it was a Nebraska problem. We had people in charge who were constantly making bad decisions for Nebraska. I'm not certain if the Nebraska problem was arrogance or ignorance, but it was definitely an in-house problem.
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It was both.. our recruiting dropped after moving to the Big 10.. we were not getting the same level of talent. It hasn't been the same or close to the same since.

AI comparisson

Big 12 Final Years (2007–2010)​

  • 2010 Class: Ranked No. 16 nationally (Rivals), the highest of the final Big 12 years.
  • 2009 Class: Ranked No. 28 nationally (Rivals), featuring key players like Rex Burkhead and Lavonte David.
  • 2008 Class: Included Alfonzo Dennard and Will Compton, ranked No. 30 nationally (Rivals).
  • 2007 Class: Ranked No. 13 nationally (Rivals), one of Nebraska’s best in the 2000s, with players like Roy Helu and Jared Crick.
https://247sports.com/college/nebraska/Sport/Football/AllTimeRecruits/?sortby=rank
Nebraska football recruiting rankings 2007-2010

Big Ten Era (2011–Present)​

  • 2011 Class: Ranked No. 15 (Rivals), No. 17 (ESPN), and No. 16 (247Sports Composite)—a strong transition class, often considered the last elite class before a decline.
  • Post-2011 Decline: Recruiting rankings dipped, with most classes falling outside the top 25, often ranking in the 30s to 50s nationally.
  • Recent Gains: The 2025 class reached No. 19 nationally (On3), marking the program’s highest ranking since 2011 and signaling a potential resurgence under Matt Rhule.


Nebraska football recruiting rankings 2011-2025

Key Comparison​

  • Nebraska was a consistent top-20 program in the final Big 12 years.
  • In the Big Ten, it has struggled to maintain that level, facing stiffer competition from Ohio State, Michigan, and now USC.
  • The 2025 and 2027 classes suggest a return to form, but long-term consistency remains to be proven.
https://247sports.com/college/nebraska/season/2026-football/commits/
 
Huskerfan69 said:
It was both.. our recruiting dropped after moving to the Big 10.. we were not getting the same level of talent. It hasn't been the same or close to the same since.

AI comparisson

Big 12 Final Years (2007–2010)​

  • 2010 Class: Ranked No. 16 nationally (Rivals), the highest of the final Big 12 years.
  • 2009 Class: Ranked No. 28 nationally (Rivals), featuring key players like Rex Burkhead and Lavonte David.
  • 2008 Class: Included Alfonzo Dennard and Will Compton, ranked No. 30 nationally (Rivals).
  • 2007 Class: Ranked No. 13 nationally (Rivals), one of Nebraska’s best in the 2000s, with players like Roy Helu and Jared Crick.
https://247sports.com/college/nebraska/Sport/Football/AllTimeRecruits/?sortby=rank
Nebraska football recruiting rankings 2007-2010

Big Ten Era (2011–Present)​

  • 2011 Class: Ranked No. 15 (Rivals), No. 17 (ESPN), and No. 16 (247Sports Composite)—a strong transition class, often considered the last elite class before a decline.
  • Post-2011 Decline: Recruiting rankings dipped, with most classes falling outside the top 25, often ranking in the 30s to 50s nationally.
  • Recent Gains: The 2025 class reached No. 19 nationally (On3), marking the program’s highest ranking since 2011 and signaling a potential resurgence under Matt Rhule.


Nebraska football recruiting rankings 2011-2025

Key Comparison​

  • Nebraska was a consistent top-20 program in the final Big 12 years.
  • In the Big Ten, it has struggled to maintain that level, facing stiffer competition from Ohio State, Michigan, and now USC.
  • The 2025 and 2027 classes suggest a return to form, but long-term consistency remains to be proven.
https://247sports.com/college/nebraska/season/2026-football/commits/
Click to expand...

I would argue that recruiting dropped as a result of the move to the Big 10. We used to have up to a couple dozen kids on the roster just from Texas, many of them huge contributors to national success. The traditional south recruiting grounds dried up after we moved, and we didn't replace them. Said it was going to happen at the time and was roundly poo poo'd.

If we had been in the Big 10 in the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s, would we have gotten Aaron Taylor, Rex Burkhead, Aaron Graham, Kenny Walker, Junior Miller, Broderick Thomas, and Turner Gill? Of course not. Texas has provided more All Americans at Nebraska than any other state besides Nebraska, but that was all before the move to the Big 10. Since the move to the Big 10, Nebraska has had only ONE consensus All American from ANY state: Levonte David.

Yeah, we still sign kids from the south, but nothing like we used to, and most of the ones that we do, don't stick around.

We left for the Big 10 for better stability and more money, so that we could be comfortably mediocre from now on.
 
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Huskerfan69 said:
It was both.. our recruiting dropped after moving to the Big 10.. we were not getting the same level of talent. It hasn't been the same or close to the same since.

AI comparisson

Big 12 Final Years (2007–2010)​

  • 2010 Class: Ranked No. 16 nationally (Rivals), the highest of the final Big 12 years.
  • 2009 Class: Ranked No. 28 nationally (Rivals), featuring key players like Rex Burkhead and Lavonte David.
  • 2008 Class: Included Alfonzo Dennard and Will Compton, ranked No. 30 nationally (Rivals).
  • 2007 Class: Ranked No. 13 nationally (Rivals), one of Nebraska’s best in the 2000s, with players like Roy Helu and Jared Crick.
https://247sports.com/college/nebraska/Sport/Football/AllTimeRecruits/?sortby=rank
Nebraska football recruiting rankings 2007-2010

Big Ten Era (2011–Present)​

  • 2011 Class: Ranked No. 15 (Rivals), No. 17 (ESPN), and No. 16 (247Sports Composite)—a strong transition class, often considered the last elite class before a decline.
  • Post-2011 Decline: Recruiting rankings dipped, with most classes falling outside the top 25, often ranking in the 30s to 50s nationally.
  • Recent Gains: The 2025 class reached No. 19 nationally (On3), marking the program’s highest ranking since 2011 and signaling a potential resurgence under Matt Rhule.


Nebraska football recruiting rankings 2011-2025

Key Comparison​

  • Nebraska was a consistent top-20 program in the final Big 12 years.
  • In the Big Ten, it has struggled to maintain that level, facing stiffer competition from Ohio State, Michigan, and now USC.
  • The 2025 and 2027 classes suggest a return to form, but long-term consistency remains to be proven.
https://247sports.com/college/nebraska/season/2026-football/commits/
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A good portion of this decline coincides with the team being pretty mediocre during that time period.
 
goodnterribles said:
A good portion of this decline coincides with the team being pretty mediocre during that time period.
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recruiting dropped right after the first year.. NU wasn't that bad that early

EDIT: NU wasn't TO level, but they sure as heck were not Big10 level.. last two years 10-4
 
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WestTexasHusker said:
I would argue that recruiting dropped as a result of the move to the Big 10. We used to have up to a couple dozen kids on the roster just from Texas, many of them huge contributors to national success. The traditional south recruiting grounds dried up after we moved, and we didn't replace them. Said it was going to happen at the time and was roundly poo poo'd.

If we had been in the Big 10 in the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s, would we have gotten Aaron Taylor, Rex Burkhead, Aaron Graham, Kenny Walker, Junior Miller, Broderick Thomas, and Turner Gill? Of course not. Texas has provided more All Americans at Nebraska than any other state besides Nebraska, but that was all before the move to the Big 10. Since the move to the Big 10, Nebraska has had only ONE consensus All American from ANY state: Levonte David.

Yeah, we still sign kids from the south, but nothing like we used to, and most of the ones that we do, don't stick around.

We left for the Big 10 for better stability and more money, so that we could be comfortably mediocre from now on.
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That was my point, recruiting since our move has not been the same since.. we have never meet the rankings of the last few years of the Big 12.
 
Huskerfan69 said:
recruiting dropped right after the first year.. NU wasn't that bad that early

EDIT: NU wasn't TO level, but they sure as heck were not Big10 level.. last two years 10-4
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It dropped also in part to Bo Pelini not being a good recruiter. He lived off of Callahan’s recruits. Pelini did a decent job of coaching and development but he didn’t surround himself with enough recruiters and he wasn’t very good himself at recruiting.
 
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Huskerfan69 said:
That was my point, recruiting since our move has not been the same since.. we have never meet the rankings of the last few years of the Big 12.
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It's no mystery either. We picked up the stakes in our traditional recruiting grounds and left. I'm not sure why anyone would be surprised as to the outcome. I know there was a lot of talk that we would roll into Michigan and Ohio hotbeds and steal recruits. Yeah good luck with that. We cast our lot with the bigger paychecks, to heck with the rest of it.
 
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wcbsas said:
It dropped also in part to Bo Pelini not being a good recruiter. He lived off of Callahan’s recruits. Pelini did a decent job of coaching and development but he didn’t surround himself with enough recruiters and he wasn’t very good himself at recruiting.
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there was some not so good recruiting classes, that is for sure. His attitude didn't help at the end, that is for sure

YearStandout Player(s)Class SizeNational Ranking (Est.)Assessment
2008Alfonzo Dennard, Will Compton28Top 25Best class; defensive core
2009Rex Burkhead, Taylor Martinez21~No. 40High impact, some misses
2010Lavonte David, Kenny Bell21Top 25Star + underperformance
2011Ameer Abdullah, Daimion Stafford20Mid-tierPotential, but inconsistent
2012Imani Cross, Tommy Armstrong17Lower top 30Small, injury-plagued
2013Johnny Stanton, Terrell Newby23Top 20High prestige, mixed results
2014No elite headline~20Lower 30sDeclining momentum


EDIT: with that said, we still finished 10-4 his last two years
 
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The one statistic that tells it all:

Number of All Americans before moving to the Big 10: 111

Number of All Americans since moving to the Big 10: 1 (Levonte David)

And that 1 deserves a *, Levonte David was actually recruited to Nebraska while in the Big 12.

But those paychecks sure are nice!
 
Huskerfan69 said:
there was some not so good recruiting classes, that is for sure. His attitude didn't help at the end, that is for sure

YearStandout Player(s)Class SizeNational Ranking (Est.)Assessment
2008Alfonzo Dennard, Will Compton28Top 25Best class; defensive core
2009Rex Burkhead, Taylor Martinez21~No. 40High impact, some misses
2010Lavonte David, Kenny Bell21Top 25Star + underperformance
2011Ameer Abdullah, Daimion Stafford20Mid-tierPotential, but inconsistent
2012Imani Cross, Tommy Armstrong17Lower top 30Small, injury-plagued
2013Johnny Stanton, Terrell Newby23Top 20High prestige, mixed results
2014No elite headline~20Lower 30sDeclining momentum


EDIT: with that said, we still finished 10-4 his last two years
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Look at the last 3 classes … Johnny Stanton, Damion Stafford …
 
WestTexasHusker said:
We were in two consecutive Big 12 Championships. Should have beaten Texas but for the mulligan, and we would have handled OU with a healthy T-Mart. We were plenty good.
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After 2010, we weren't really that good anymore. Good enough to beat teams we're supposed to and win games, but never a contender and never upsetting a highly ranked team. And that was the high point as it got worse after Bo left.
It has nothing to do with the conference change and everything to do with who was running Nebraska football.
 
WestTexasHusker said:
The one statistic that tells it all:

Number of All Americans before moving to the Big 10: 111

Number of All Americans since moving to the Big 10: 1 (Levonte David)

And that 1 deserves a *, Levonte David was actually recruited to Nebraska while in the Big 12.

But those paychecks sure are nice!
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You know what else is nice? Knowing you will actually still have a conference in 5 years. Your love of the old Big 8 days is really clouding your judgment on what an actual dumpster fire the Big 12 conference was. So yeah, those paychecks and stability sure are nice, nicer than being stuck in no man's land trying to find a conference.
 
TFrazier said:
There were some trade offs when the decision was made to move but many forget the tenable situation Nebraska was in at that time.
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At the time, I don’t think it was for that much more money. OU and Texas were still in the league, so was A&M. They left to mostly get away from Texas, .001 mattered at the time, although they’ll use academics as the reason. They also lost their AAU status joining the BIG. Other than the money now, and how the reshuffling has played out, NU isn’t any better off, besides the cash. They’ve been wandering in la la land ever since. No rivals, and terrible since running Bo out. Horrible hires, leadership, direction, and overall egotistical dummies, has brought a once proud, dominant program to its knees. They’ve never recovered.
 
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