Curt McKeever: Who's to say next year won't be as bad, or even worse

Come now, all ye unfaithful people, Bob Stoops won a national championship in his second season at Oklahoma.

Hey, just looking to provide a soothing thought as you deal with the sour aftertaste of Nebraska's 26-20 loss to Colorado in Memorial Stadium on Friday afternoon, the capping exclamation to the first losing season around these parts since 1961.

A season that has definitely divided a conquered Husker Nation. Did you hear those boos reverberating at halftime for athletic director Steve Pederson just before he introduced Bob Brown, the second Husker ever to have his jersey number retired? What a watershed moment. Too bad someone didn't tell Brown to leave Pederson out of his acknowledging remarks, because when he brought up the ol' AD's name, the fans let him have it again.

I can hardly wait for next summer's Husker Nation Tour. Until then, the man in charge of a changing culture at Nebraska might want to get fitted with a good set of ear plugs, because the boo birds aren't likely to fly south over the winter.

For Pederson, the 2005 season can't come soon enough. But guess what? Year two of the Bill Callahan era isn't going to be any easier than this messy campaign. The Huskers will have as much, if not more, to fight through next year than they did during the initial transition from Frank Solich to Callahan.

Just ask Colorado's Gary Barnett.

Like Callahan, who inherited a program that was coming off a 10-3 season, Barnett came on to a successful scene. Colorado went 8-4 the year Rick Neuheisel left the Buffs for Washington, and in Barnett's first year they finished 7-5.

Year two? They were 3-8.

Earlier this week, Barnett talked about the tightrope act coaches have to walk while trying to convince the players they were handed into believing they're equally as important as the new talent being brought in.

It's a half-truth, of course, and the odds of Callahan being able to progress enough to produce a winner next year are probably less than 50-50. Of the current Big 12 coaches, only Oklahoma State's Les Miles and Texas A&M's Dennis Franchione produced winning seasons after fielding a loser their first years.

"That's probably a one-year-deal. I wouldn't get too worried about that," Barnett said of NU's slide below .500.

Maybe he's right, but be very sure the Huskers are nowhere near ready to repeat the Sooner Magic act Stoops pulled while lifting OU from a 7-5 mark in 1999 to the 2000 national title.

Nebraska won four games this season against NCAA Division I-A competition, and only one of those teams — Pittsburgh — will finish with a winning record.

Following Friday's game, Callahan harped on the obvious importance of recruiting.

"You can't have enough good players," he said, "and it's our job to recruit (them). This program deserves the best."

It'll be a few years, though, before NU has nothing but Callahan guys. In the meantime, he might want to take a cue from some other coaches who during their transitional years in the league have adjusted their beliefs to the skills of the players already in the program. Callahan, grudgingly, made few concessions this season in that regard, and it's doubtful if one top-10 recruiting class will allow him to bank only on his system.

"We're building for a championship season. ... It's going to take time," he said. "How much, I don't know?"

Facing the eye of the storm Friday, Callahan praised his team for doing the best it could, and then painted a future that would have you believe it won't be long before the Huskers have their next big batch of All-Americans.

I think most everyone would agree Nebraska has to increase its talent pool — and also that Callahan and his staff are just as much in need of proving themselves as are the players they coach.

Linebacker Chad Sievers admitted as much when he offered his view that the Huskers never gelled this season.

It was a sad scene watching the misty-eyed senior from Valley, who grew up bleeding Husker red, spill his emotions.

"The way things have went, I almost wish they'd forget us," Sievers said when asked how he'd like NU fans to remember the 22-member senior class.

He managed a smile, but I'm sure there was a giant lump in his throat — along with a hole in his heart.

"It's going to get better," Sievers suggested. "Hopefully, if anything, we taught them how to persevere."

Nebraska did that throughout Friday's game to make things mildly interesting at the end. But curiously, it was the Buffaloes, rather than the team pushed into a corner, who came out swinging.

After holding the Huskers on three plays following an opening onside kick, Colorado drove 90 yards to take a 7-0 lead. It marked just the second time this season the Buffs had scored on their first possession.

By the time they had built a 26-7 advantage deep into the game, Lil Red, Nebraska's giant blowup mascot, had taken shelter at the West Stadium training table. Maybe the big guy was, like many others who had hit the exits, gathering his things and heading to the mall to blow off some steam and take advantage of closeout pricing on Husker items.

Strangely enough, in two blinks of an eye — or about how quickly it took NU to fall from contention for the Big 12 North Division title to a losing season — Nebraska got within a second recovered onside kick of executing a two-minute drill for the win.

But Sandro DeAngelis' top-spinning bouncer off the turf was touched by a Nebraska player before going the required 10 yards, leaving the Huskers with the same fate they dealt Colorado a year ago.

"I'm really glad they're home for the holiday," said CU's Grinch Who Stole Christmas, defensive tackle Matt McChesney. "They can sit there and watch everybody else play. I hope it feels good."

If being left out of the bowl picture does anything but eat at the Huskers, you can expect the same sad scene next year.

Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@journalstar.com.