He appeared to have Nebraska football on the brink of something special, or at least on the brink of a season that would keep the wolves far from his doorstep.

Please flash back to mid-March. Bill Callahan met with a few reporters to go over pertinent details relating to the upcoming spring season. He was selling his program with enthusiasm, and was convincing in doing so. After all, Nebraska was stout in 2006 — finishing with a record of 9-5 overall and 6-2 in the Big 12 — and the Huskers returned 13 starters.

“Now, we’re going into year four, and I’m jacked up,” Callahan said in March, reeling off a slew of statistics, mostly offensive in nature. “We’ve done a lot of good things. I’d just tell you, if you study the numbers, the numbers will indicate to you where we’re at, and I think that’s huge.”

Callahan forever will be a statistics guy. Even as those wolves were clawing at his front door in recent weeks, the Nebraska head coach was pointing to his team’s strong offensive statistics. For instance, the Huskers ranked in the top 20 in passing offense and total offense.

“It’s kind of a testament that this system works,” he insisted.

Nobody will ever convince me Callahan can’t coach offensive football. He sells himself well and sells his system well. No, he’s not a perfect play-caller. Really, who is? But if you take his advice and study his team’s numbers, you’ll often see lots of points and yards.

Callahan’s West Coast offense can be something to behold when it’s clicking.

In the bitter end, however, the bottom-line numbers spoke the loudest: Nebraska’s record of 5-7 this season.

That doesn’t cut it at NU.

In the end, Callahan couldn’t overcome a brutal stretch of five straight losses that spiraled into arguably the darkest era of modern Husker football.

Credit Callahan for keeping his team together, and himself together, through a tumultuous season. Callahan is as tough as a leather boot. His team never quit on him. Too often, however, his team lacked the passion and energy needed to excel in the rugged Big 12.

Nebraska’s defense got kicked around far too often. Meanwhile, the offense showed flashes of greatness but generally was inconsistent — far too inconsistent to overcome the Huskers’ woebegone defense.

Nebraska’s problems on defense ultimately spelled doom for Callahan and Company.

The Huskers entered Friday’s game at Colorado ranked 105th nationally in scoring defense, 114th in rushing defense, 115th in turnover margin and 111th in total defense.

In short, those are the kind of statistics that get coaches fired.

I sometimes think Callahan’s admirable qualities turned out to be negative factors. For instance, his fierce loyalty to close friend Kevin Cosgrove, Nebraska’s defensive coordinator, didn’t help Callahan’s cause.

Most players adore Cosgrove. He’s upbeat and friendly. He’s Coz. But he passed his prime as a coordinator almost a decade ago.

Nebraska’s defense actually came on strong at the end of the 2006 season, but the bottom basically dropped out this season in game three, when Southern California punctured the Huskers for 309 rushing yards. The Huskers’ front four was mauled. The defense never fully recovered. It impacted the entire team’s confidence.

No way Callahan’s offense could ever fully compensate for Coz’s mess.

Callahan’s success at implementing and directing a West Coast offense is in large part the result of his dogged work ethic. It’s hard to imagine Callahan being outworked by any coach. He practically lives in his office. But you sometimes wonder if all that office time came at the expense of getting to know his players well on a personal level.

Coach-player relationships are integral in college, obviously more important than in the NFL. Many college players are still growing up. A coach, in many cases, becomes a father figure.

So, the Callahan era comes to a close. He enjoyed impressive victories — in 2005 against Colorado in Boulder and Michigan in the Alamo Bowl, plus a thrilling comeback last season at Texas A&M. In a span that began late in the 2005 season and ended early this season, Callahan guided Nebraska to eight straight wins against Big 12 North opponents.

Last season he led Nebraska to its first Big 12 championship game appearance since 1999. The Huskers seemed ready to break through.

Callahan ran a clean program. His players enjoyed great success in the classroom. He generally represented the program well, save for his “hillbilly” line and alleged throat slash (I remain unconvinced it was a throat slash).

At any rate, back in March, Callahan said, “We’re minimizing mistakes. We’re taking advantage of opportunities, and we’re improving.”

Yes, the foundation seemed solid at the time, at least to some of us.

But cracks turned to craters. Those five brutal losses in a row (although Texas edged Nebraska 28-25, you have to admit the Huskers’ fourth-quarter collapse on defense Oct. 27 was hard to watch) forever will remain a horrid memory for Big Red fans.

At the end of Callahan’s run at Nebraska, a four-year tenure capped by Friday’s 65-51 loss to Colorado, the ugly results stand perhaps as the most telling stats of all.

Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.