2012 Is a Make or Break Season for Nebraska Cornhuskers' Bo Pelini

When the Nebraska Cornhuskers fired Bill Callahan and brought in Bo Pelini to be the head coach, most fans thought the team would quickly bounce back and become an elite program.

The fans are still waiting.

Pelini started off his career at Nebraska going 9-4 with a win in the Gator Bowl over Clemson. Most fans were happy to see the program succeed after a 5-7 season under Callahan the year before.

Nebraska was on their way back.

In 2009, Pelini took the Nebraska football program a step further by winning the North division of the Big 12 Conference and on a trip to the conference championship game. Pelini’s Cornhuskers outplayed Texas the entire game and lost on a last-second field goal 13-12. Nebraska bounced back in the Holiday to whip Arizona 33-0.

Nebraska fans thought within two years Nebraska would be in the conversation for a BCS National Championship.

The 2010 season was a repeat of the 2009 season.

Nebraska won 10 games and lost in the Big 12 Championship game after outplaying Oklahoma for most of the game. But this year, Nebraska fell flat in the Holiday Bowl. Nebraska lost to Washington 19-7 after beating the Huskies 56-21 on their home turf.

The 2011 season was all about change.

Nebraska made the move to the Big Ten Conference to play a new schedule of opponents. Nebraska also fired their offensive coordinator Shawn Watson and hired Tim Beck as the replacement. Nebraska was picked by the media to win the Big Ten Conference in their first season.

Well, it did not exactly turn out that way for Pelini and his Cornhuskers.

Nebraska started out the season winning their first four games. Although Nebraska had a young team and injuries to key players (Alfonzo Dennard), most Nebraska fans thought the Cornhuskers would have a chance to win the Big Ten Conference once the players got some experience and the team became healthy.

Nebraska went to Madison to play Wisconsin for their first Big Ten Conference game. Nebraska got blown out by the Badgers 48-17.

The rest of the season was up and down for the Cornhuskers. They beat Ohio State by making their largest comeback in school history, and then beat a good Michigan State team in Lincoln. The next week Nebraska came out flat against Northwestern and lost 28-25. Nebraska finished the regular season with quality wins over Penn State and Iowa, and got blown out by Michigan 45-17.

What will the future be like for the Cornhuskers?

Nebraska looked like a team that was lacking talent. Pelini had successful seasons playing with talent recruited by Callahan. As soon as Callahan’s players graduated, the team looked confused and outmatched by the top teams on their schedule. Nebraska was missing the playmakers they had in the past—players like Ndamukong Suh, Prince Amukamara, Eric Hagg and Dejon Gomes.

All of these players were not recruited by Pelini.

Pelini has a lot of work to do this offseason. Nebraska needs to bring in some talent in order to compete for a championship. So far, Nebraska’s recruiting class for 2012 looks mediocre at best.

Yes, there are some talented players coming in, but nobody you would think can help push the Cornhuskers to a championship.

Pelini has had four years to restore the Cornhuskers to a championship team. Some people compare Pelini to Tom Osborne and say that it took Osborne much longer to win a championship.

Times have changed. Coaches are stepping into programs and turning them around immediately. (Look what Nick Saban did for Alabama.)

Why do Cornhusker fans have to wait 20 years for a championship? They don’t.

The 2012 season is a make or break season for Pelini. I think he most improve the team, win a championship or move onto another school. Although NBC Sports said he denied it, rumors floated around that Pelini interviewed for the Ohio State and Penn State jobs.

If he wants out, Osborne should let him go.

The schedule for 2012 is not going to be easy. Nebraska begins the season with the Conference USA Champions, Southern Mississippi. The Redwolves went 10-3 in 2011. The next week, Nebraska will face the Sun Belt Conference Champions, Arkansas State.

Nebraska will then go to the Rose Bowl to face UCLA. The Briuns will have a new coach and a new attitude in 2012.

The Big Ten Conference schedule is not easy, either. The Cornhuskers have road games at Ohio State, Michigan State and Iowa—while playing Wisconsin, Michigan and Penn State at home.

Pelini better find a way to win at least 10 of these games, or he could be on his way out. Nine-win seasons are not what Nebraska’s football program is all about. The Cornhusker fans want a championship, and if Pelini cannot bring it to them, Nebraska must find a coach who can.

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