The Big 12 bosses have a fine sense of staging in allowing this sparkling raconteur to lead off the event. He's like a modern day David Niven. In his opening statement, Pelini asked that there be no questions about the Big 10 as he's focused on this season. Naturally, a reporter leads with a question about the Big 10 while pretending that it is not by acknowledging that Bo just told him not to do that.
Awesome.
Let's see what Bo Pelini had to say about his Huskers.
Some excerpts:
That's really why -- you know, at the end of the bowl game, after the Arizona game, when I said Nebraska's back, I wasn't saying we arrived, and we'd won a national championship or anything like that.
Lose to Iowa State. Go 10-4. Win minor bowl game. Nebraska's back!
In fairness, Pelini means that the culture of Nebraska football is back (minus steroids, felonies, championships). What says Nebraska football more than pushing around an undermanned league?
But, will teams be MEAN to you, Bo...
Bo, can you talk about any potential problems being in your last year in a conference, fan reception on the road, or whatever it might be. Have you considered any problems you guys might face as a football team being in this unique situation?
Nebraska's Big 12 road games:
@ KSU
@ Oklahoma State
@ Iowa State
@ Texas A&M
Yes, Coach Pelini, however will you manage this brutal slate? And how do you think Western Kentucky's traveling fans will treat you?
On the health of Zac Lee:
Right now he's 100 percent. He's competing well, and he's looking forward to a great fall and a great fall camp coming up. But, you know, any time you miss a significant amount of time, it has an impact on you because you lose time to get better. You know, at the age these young men are, really any college football player, there's always that room for improvement. Nobody's ever reached their potential.
Zac Lee at 100 percent is a sobering thought. He'll skip passes in front of Niles Paul with real flair. This also raises the question: does Zac Lee possess potential?
You knew the Red Out question was coming...
I have to offer Bo's entire answer, because it's funny.
To be honest, somebody asked me about the Red Out video, and I was on vacation. I didn't know anything about it. It was actually a mistake. It was really intended to -- each year our marketing department picks one football game where they kind of take the alumni throughout the country and try to make it designated alumni game.
They picked the Texas game, and they really made the mistake of putting Beat Texas down on it. To be honest with you, I wasn't real happy about it.
I mean, I like the idea. I like what they do, and I really appreciate the fact that our -- that we reach out to our alumni, and we try to make a special game for our alumni because, obviously, Texas will be a nationally televised game, and it's across the nation it's a game that's probably going to be looked at pretty closely.
So they chose that football game.
You know, I didn't think the message it sent to our football team especially because, you know, that's way down the road.
We have a lot of things to do before we even consider Texas or worry about what that football game. We've got a lot of work to do in the meantime.
So it was regrettable, but, obviously, we're going to keep the Red Out across the nation. But they took the Beat Texas off of it because it was never intended to be that way in the first place. But it came as a surprise to me because I didn't really know much about it. It comes from the marketing department.
Sometimes talking is easier when you have a white board with eleven circles with arrows on it, eh Bo?
Pelini and I share one similarity - we both blame the goddamn marketing department for most of life's troubles.
Pelini was non-commital on the QB job (i.e. if Cody Green learns to throw, the job is his) and also heaped praise on his OL.
So ends our visit with the Great Plains raconteur.