Steven M. Sipple: Reviving Unity Council could make a difference
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Football players have fun playing for Bo Pelini. You’ll seldom hear otherwise. It’s integral to his success as a coach.
But Monday night was not a fun night to be a Nebraska football player. After four Huskers ran afoul of the law this past weekend, Pelini conducted a team meeting. Let’s just say the players got a good dose of Pelini’s fire.
The gist of his message sounded like a Spike Lee movie: Do the right thing.
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Or else.
It’s often been a smooth ride for Pelini since he took over as Nebraska head coach on Dec. 2. He’s still undefeated, except for one thing: The police blotter got the best of Big Red over the weekend, and the new boss is a little surly as a result.
“I tell the players that you’re representing this program all of the time — from the time you wake up in the morning until the time you go to bed at night,” Pelini said Tuesday. “And every decision you make affects our program. If you make a decision contrary to the overall benefit of the program, there will be repercussions.
“Every situation is different. Every circumstance is different. They’ll all be dealt with differently. But they’ll be dealt with strictly and severely. It’s about accountability. There’s not a lot of gray area. It’s black and white — do the right thing.”
Pelini made the remarks to reporters early Tuesday afternoon. He made it clear that the buck always stops with him. No question who’s the boss here. But sometimes even the boss needs a little help.
Tuesday night, Pelini told me that he was open to the idea of reviving the Unity Council, the 17-player leadership entity that began at Nebraska in 1991 before disappearing when Bill Callahan took over as head coach in 2004.
Pelini said he wants to see who emerges as team leaders before making a final decision whether to implement such a council. He noted that such a council worked well at Louisiana State. But he’s told me in past interviews he wasn’t always wild about player councils.
It says here that a Unity Council can make a huge difference for a program. Peer pressure tends to make players more accountable.
New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin, who instituted a 10-player council last summer, would back that claim.
So would Matt Hoskinson, a former Nebraska offensive lineman (1993-97).
“What’s been lacking in the last eight to 10 years at Nebraska is leadership within the team,” said Hoskinson, a native of Battle Creek. “I think it’s been a huge factor.”
Past Unity Councils at Nebraska featured eight players apiece from offense and defense plus a kicker. Unity Council members, elected by their peers, met on Tuesdays and dealt with a variety of issues. If a player missed classes or was slacking in practice, the Unity Council might issue a stern reprimand.
I know what you’re thinking: A few players get into trouble, and now the know-it-all local columnist thinks a Unity Council will solve everything.
Nah, but maybe it’ll help.
Maybe a player council would have helped save Andy Christensen from the ugly situation in which he finds himself.
“It’s incumbent on a player’s buddies to say, ‘Man, you’re out of control, you should get your butt home,’” Hoskinson said.
Maybe a player council also would have helped a few other Husker players who were indefinitely suspended — one was even dismissed — from the squad Monday (Pelini declined to identify them).
Suggesting the implementation of a Unity Council isn’t to say Pelini can’t handle team discipline on his own. If you’ve experienced the Pelini glare, you know what I mean.
Yes, players have fun playing for Pelini. But make no mistake, most players want discipline in their lives. And former players will tell you Pelini can be a stern disciplinarian, as his players learned Monday night.
Accountability and high standards need to become a way of life in the program, Pelini said.
“Until we establish that across our team and establish the culture of this team, then the foundation is not built,” he said. “That has to become who this team is and what we are. We’re headed in that direction.”
Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.
