FRANK SOLICH IS FIRED

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FRANK SOLICH IS FIRED
BY QUENTIN DRAKE
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This is a picture of Frank Solich after his final
game as head coach against Colorado. The huskers
won 31-22 as Solich gets a shower after the game
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This is a picture of Frank Solich after his team
won the Alamo Bowl in 2000. Once again getting
drenshed by his team after they beat Northwestern.
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• Published Sunday
• November 30, 2003
• Firing ends Solich era
• BY RICH KAIPUST AND ELIZABETH MERRILL  
• WORLD-HERALD BUREAU
• RELATED STORIES
• LINCOLN - One day after he got a Gatorade bath in
  an emotional win at Colorado, Nebraska Coach
  Frank Solich was fired Saturday night during a
  five-minute meeting with Athletic Director Steve
  Pederson.
• Frank Solich
• Assistant Coach Marvin Sanders said Solich called
  staff members late Saturday and told them that
  his termination would be immediate.
• NU Defensive Coordinator Bo Pelini will be named
  interim head coach, people within the program
  said. The staff, minus Solich, will coach the
  Huskers through the bowl game.
• "Frank said (Pederson) shook his hand and said he
  wanted to go a different direction," Sanders
  said. "Frank asked about the assistant coaches,
  how the assistants were going to be taken care
  of, and Steve only said he wanted them to coach
  through the bowl game."
• Nebraska completed its regular season at 9-3 with
  a 31-22 win at Colorado on Friday. The Huskers
  are awaiting their bowl assignment, with the Dec.
  30 Holiday Bowl in San Diego being the likely
  destination.
• Saturday marked the first time Nebraska has fired
  a head football coach since Bill Jennings in
  1961.
• Neither Solich nor Pederson could be reached
  Saturday night. Pederson is planning a press
  conference at 1 p.m. today.
• But people close to the program said Solich met
  Pederson at South Stadium at 730 p.m., and the
  first-year athletic director asked the coach if
  he would resign. Solich, who said all last week
  that he wouldn't step down, didn't budge.
  Pederson then fired him, according to at least
  three people who had talked to Solich.
• It's the second consecutive offseason purge at a
  program that was once praised nationally for its
  continuity. After last year's 7-7 season, Solich
  fired three assistants and hired six new coaches.
  
• People close to Solich said the sixth-year coach
  assumed he'd have at least two years with his new
  staff. On Friday, after the win in Boulder,
  several players made public pleas to Pederson to
  keep the staff.
• Pederson had slipped out of his suite after the
  game, away from the team celebration, apparently
  to mull his decision.
• Solich hadn't been in contact with Pederson for a
  week, and tension in Lincoln was high in the days
  leading up to the CU game. Solich shook off the
  speculation and said he planned on being in the
  office at 2 p.m. on Monday for team meetings.

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• His staff will hit the road recruiting on Monday
  without him.
• Bob Sawdon, a friend of Solich's, said the
  59-year-old coach was disappointed and stunned by
  Pederson's decision.
• "I just think Pederson came in here with an
  agenda," Sawdon said. "This is going to set
  Nebraska football back 10 years, believe me.
• "I can't believe somebody won't pick up the sixth
  (winningest) coach in the country. And I think it
  will come back to haunt Nebraska. This program's
  going to go south for a while."
• Solich, who took over for Tom Osborne after the
  1997 national championship season, compiled a
  58-19 record - the sixth-best among active
  coaches in Division I. But he took the Huskers to
  just one Big 12 championship game, and Nebraska
  was just 16-12 in his last 28 games.
• After a blowout loss to Texas on Nov. 1, Solich
  was squarely on the hot seat. What followed was a
  38-9 loss to Kansas State on Senior Day, the
  worst home defeat in more than four decades.
• A person within the program said the staff
  "thought they were in trouble" before the
  Colorado game. "But after the game, everybody
  thought, 'Hey, I think we're OK now.' The way
  everything went, I think it did come as a shock.
• "I think now we realize this was set from the
  beginning. It's unfortunate. They've had three
  staffs in one year."
• Speculation Saturday night among staffers was
  that University of Pittsburgh Coach Walt Harris,
  who worked with Pederson at his last job, may be
  the front-runner for Solich's job.
• Did Pederson have the Solich ouster in the back
  of his mind when he came to Nebraska last
  December? Three people close to the program said
  Pederson didn't want to give Solich's new
  assistants two-year contracts, as planned, when
  they were hired last winter.
• One assistant didn't show up for work for a
  couple of days because of the contract squabble.
  Pederson eventually honored the two-year deals,
  but it may have signaled to Solich that his staff
  was on shaky ground even before the 2003 season.
• Pederson's decision undoubtedly will send shock
  waves through the world of college football.
  Solich reached 50 wins in the same amount of time
  Osborne did, and nine-win seasons were always
  considered the benchmark of Nebraska football.
• Prominent NU booster Dan Cook said he was
  "numbed" by Saturday's news. I didn't really know
  what to expect because it's not my decision, it's
  Steve's," Cook said. "We're going to lose a
  quality individual.
• "It may look pretty dark today, but the sun's
  going to come out."

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Summary

• Frank Solich was fired during a five minute
  meeting with athletic director Steve Pederson.
  Pederson told Solich that he wanted to take the
  program in a different direction. Solich was
  concerned about his assistant coaches. The firing
  took place a day after the Huskers beat Colorado
  31-22 to complete the regular season with a 9-3
  record. Solich and Pederson could not be reach
  for comment.

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Who? What? Why? When? Implications?

• Who? Frank Solich
• What? FIRED
• Why? Athletic director Steve Pederson wants to
  take program in a different direction.
• When? Saturday November, 29
• Implications? What will happen to assistant
  coaches?

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• Solich is out as Husker coach BY STEVEN M.
  SIPPLE / Lincoln Journal Star Nebraska football
  Coach Frank Solich was fired by Husker Director
  of Athletics Steve Pederson Saturday night in a
  meeting at South Stadium.
• Pederson called Solich into the athletic
  director's office at 730 p.m. and told him of
  the decision, according to Solich's daughter,
  Cindy Dalton. "Pederson told Dad that he really
  hadn't made up his mind until five minutes before
  Dad walked through the door," Dalton said. "Dad
  said he couldn't believe that Pederson had the
  nerve to say that to his face."
• Solich, 59, was fired one day after leading
  Nebraska to a 31-22 win over rival Colorado in
  Boulder. That gave the No. 25-ranked Huskers a
  regular-season record of 9-3 overall and 5-3 in
  the league.
• Solich becomes the first Nebraska head coach to
  be fired since Bill Jennings after the Huskers
  finished 3-6-1 in 1961.
• "Dad told us that Steve fired him and that he
  wasn't going to coach the bowl game," Dalton
  said.
• She said her father was at her home Saturday
  night contacting his assistant coaches. Solich
  declined an interview request by the Journal
  Star.
• Dalton said her father earlier this season tried
  to verify information about his assistants'
  contracts with Pederson. Dalton said Pederson
  "left a nasty note under Dad's office door."
• Dalton said Solich tried to talk to Pederson
  Monday about his job status in the wake of the
  Journal Star story. Solich was informed that he
  would need to e-mail Pederson.
• First-year Nebraska defensive coordinator Bo
  Pelini reportedly was named interim assistant
  coach. Reached Saturday night, Pelini said, "I
  don't know that."
• The athletic department will hold a news
  conference today at 1 p.m.
• First-year Husker offensive coordinator Barney
  Cotton said he was unsure which assistants would
  be coaching the bowl game.
• "Frank just called me and said that it's over,
  and Steve Pederson would be contacting us,"
  Cotton said.
• Fellow Husker assistants Tim Albin and Jeff
  Jamrog received the news at Cotton's home in
  Lincoln, Cotton said.
• "This is not unexpected," Cotton said, referring
  to rampant rumors the past couple weeks that
  Solich was on shaky ground with Pederson. "But
  after the Colorado game, I was so excited, so
  proud of the kids. We earned those nine wins.
• "Right now, I'm disappointed, but I can hold my
  head up. I know not everybody thought I did a
  great job. But I'll tell you what, everybody on
  this staff can hold their heads high. Nine wins
  is nine wins."
• Last Sunday, the Journal Star, citing three
  anonymous sources, reported Pederson would try to
  persuade Solich to announce his retirement after
  the Colorado game. After Friday's game, Solich
  said he hadn't considered retiring.

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Jon Dalton, Solich's son-in-law, said the coach
didn't resign Saturday night, that he was fired.
"The bottom line is, Pederson wanted to hire his
own coach," Jon Dalton said. "I don't know how
Pederson will announce this stuff. I know it'll
be partially snake oil and mostly personal. But
he'll make himself come out smelling like a rose.
"He doesn't like Frank and wanted to get rid of
him from the beginning." Dalton said he was
unsure whether Solich was offered a job within
the athletic department. Said Cotton,"I just
know Frank's not a quitter he's a fighter."
Saturday night, a red Husker flag was flying at
the doorstep of Pederson's home on Sheridan
Boulevard. Pederson's wife, Tami, answered the
door, turned and called out, "It's the Journal
Star," then turned back and said politely, "I'm
sorry," before closing the door. Pederson, in
his first year at Nebraska after six years in the
same capacity at University of Pittsburgh, had
been mum on Solich's status, saying he doesn't
comment on coaches' performances during the
season. He raised eyebrows on Friday, however,
when, after Nebraska's victory in Boulder, he
failed to come down to the field from his stadium
suite to congratulate Solich or Solich's
assistants. "I had a gut feeling this was a
possibility," Cotton said."We just focused this
past week on the task at hand. We went to work,
worked the kids and did the best we could.
"Frank did his best job of coaching this past
week." Nebraska sophomore receiver Ross
Pilkington said he was shocked by the news of
Solich's firing. "Honestly, I'm pretty upset,"
Pilkington said."I don't know, man. I mean, I
think it's ridiculous. I don't know what to
expect. I guess this is like losing part of your
family." Solich and his staff came under heavy
fire last season after Nebraska finished 7-7, its
worst record in four decades. During the
offseason, Solich fired three assistants, two
retired and one was reassigned within the
athletic department. Solich hired six new
full-time assistants -- Pelini, Cotton, Albin,
Scott Downing, Marvin Sanders and Jimmy
Williams.Turner Gill, Ron Brown and Jamrog were
holdovers from the previous staff. Jon Dalton
said speculation is that Pederson will hire
someone outside the program to be Nebraska's head
coach. Already, several names have surfaced as
potential candidates, including Walt Harris of
Pittsburgh, Rich Rodriguez of West Virginia and
Urban Meyer of Utah. "It's a sad day for
Nebraska football and a sad day for everybody,"
Jon Dalton said. "I'm curious to see how Steve
plays this. He's playing everybody. He came out
of Pitt smelling like a rose, but he clearly came
here with an agenda." Dalton said Solich will
probably continue coaching. Cotton said he felt
badly for his old boss, but wasn't worried about
Solich's future. "I just want to go hug my wife
and kids and go to bed knowing we did the best we
could do," Cotton said.
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Summary

• Steve Pederson, Husker Director of Athletics
  fired coach Solich, head football coach at
  Nebraska on Saturday evening November, 29.
  Solichs daughter Cindy and son and law Jon
  Dalton commented to the media about how the
  firing took place. Solich and Pederson were not
  available for comment. Reportedly Bo Pelini
  Defensive Coordinator would be named interim
  coach.

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Who? What? Why? When? Implications?

• Who? Frank Solich
• What? FIRED from job as head football coach of
  Nebraska.
• Why? Decision by Husker Athletic Director Steve
  Pederson.
• When? Saturday November, 29
• Implications? What will Solich do.

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HUSKERS ILLUSTRATED

• Online Version Not Available

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Summary

• Mike Babcock wrote two articles about coach
  Solich being fired and the win at Colorado. He
  gave a report about Steve Pederson's news
  conference that was held on December 1.

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Who? What? Why? When? Implications?

• Who? Steve Pederson
• What? News conference about the firing of Frank
  Solich.
• Why? To address questions about the firing.
• When? December 1, 2003
• Implications? End of the Solich era.

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Solich fires Bohl, Darlington and Barnes By
DIRK CHATELAINDecember 03, 2002 Near the front
of Nebraska's 2002 media and recruiting guide,
Athletic Director Bill Byrne praises the
Cornhusker football coaches for one thing above
all else. "One of the keys to Nebraska's success
is not only the longevity but the stability of
the coaching staff," Byrne said. Four months
after that quote was published, its irony cast a
cold shadow over the Nebraska football program,
which has suffered through its worst season since
1961. Football Coach Frank Solich announced
Monday afternoon assistant coaches Craig Bohl,
George Darlington and Nelson Barnes have been
fired. Solich also said he would relinquish the
role of offensive coordinator as soon as a
replacement was named. It was a day he never
planned for, Solich said, but changes had to be
made. "As we went through the season, it was
difficult on all of us," Solich said.
"Defensively, at times we showed flashes of being
what we could be, but the consistency level
really was not what any of us wanted." As a
result, three-fourths of the defensive coaching
staff was terminated. Defensive Line Coach Jeff
Jamrog was the only defensive assistant retained.
The three coaches had 44 years of combined
experience at NU. The coaching continuity
Nebraska prides itself on is now washed away with
the fallen records of 2002. "You hope that will
always continue and always be a positive and
always be the direction you need to go," Solich
said of coaching stability. "But at this point in
time, it's not the right direction." Bohl, a
former Nebraska player who had been on the staff
for eight years, was in his third year as
defensive coordinator. Much of the criticism
this season has come back to Bohl, who took over
for Charlie McBride after the 1999 season. After
holding teams to an average of 287 yards last
season, ranking eighth-best in the country,
Bohl's defense is 56th this season, giving up 362
yards per game. Darlington was the dean of the
staff after coaching the defensive ends for 13
years and the secondary for 17 years. Earlier
this year, when Nebraska beat Utah State on Sept.
14, a fireworks display celebrated Darlington's
300th victory as an NU assistant. Darlington's
secondary, known for its pressing man-to-man
coverage, is ranked 54th in the nation in pass
defense. Barnes was in his sixth season on the
staff and coached rush ends. A Nebraska rush end
hasn't been named to the All-Big 12 Conference
Team since Grant Wistrom in 1997, Barnes' first
year. "The timing when those decisions are made
is never good for everybody," Solich said, in
regards to why he removed the three coaches now
instead of after the bowl game. "What I felt I
needed to do was make those decisions in a manner
that was best going to serve this football team
and also best serve those coaches that are no
longer going to be in this program," he said.

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After releasing a statement at 4 p.m. Monday,
Solich met with reporters two hours later across
the hall from Bohl's closed office door.
Addressing about 25 seated reporters in an
auditorium designed for player meetings, Solich
stood like a teacher in a classroom before a
test, answering questions for nearly a half hour.
He smiled only once, after skirting a question
intended to shed some light on his search for new
assistants. It was a day unfamiliar to those
closest to the program. An assistant coach hasn't
been fired at Nebraska for nearly 20 years. But
Nebraska hasn't had a season like this in 40
years. Before this fall, the Huskers had gone 33
straight seasons with at least nine wins, an NCAA
record. NU fell out of the top 25 for the first
time since 1981 and lost two home games,
something that hasn't happened since 1980. If
the Huskers don't win their bowl game, 2002 will
be the first non-winning season in 41 years.
"We've made some changes today that we think are
in the best interest of the University of
Nebraska," Byrne said, "and I want you to know
that I support Frank Solich completely on those.
And we need to turn this program around and we're
going to." Solich already has begun his search
for new coordinators and has contacted most of
the candidates on his list. He said if the new
coaches were hired before the bowl game with
adequate time to prepare, they would call the
offensive and defensive plays for NU's final
game. "I have made some contact and would like
to have it work as quickly as possible," Solich
said of the defensive coordinator position
specifically, "but I feel it will take a little
time. "I want to be certain that the person that
gets that position is the guy we want in the
position," he said. Jamrog and graduate
assistant Jimmy Burrow will lead the Blackshirts'
bowl preparation if a coordinator isn't hired
soon. Kevin Steele, the former Huskers
linebacker coach and Baylor coach, is a rumored
candidate for the position. Though Solich has
talked to Steele several times this season, he
said he hadn't discussed adding Steele to the
Husker staff. Solich said he hoped to stabilize
the staff before the bowl game, which likely
would be the Independence Bowl on Dec. 27 in
Shreveport, La. While no further changes are
planned, nothing is certain on any staff, Solich
said. Calling the past season the toughest he's
ever faced as a coach, Solich said there were a
number of reasons for NU's struggles. "As you go
through the course of my career here, things
worked pretty well up until the last two games of
the previous season, and the wheels fell off at
that point in time," Solich said. "In trying to
evaluate that, there was a combination of reasons
that caused us not to be successful." Solich
said spring practice was very encouraging. But as
the season progressed and losses piled up, he
decided changes were necessary to get back on
track. "It's very tough," he said. "I've
certainly known these guys for a long time. They
have great character. They're great guys, and
they've done everything they possibly could to
help make it work here."
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Summary

• Solich fired assistant coaches Craig Bohl, George
  Darlington, and Nelson Barnes on December 2,
  2002. This came after the Huskers had their worse
  season in 40 years with a 7-7 record. Almost a
  year later Solich was fired by Athletic Director
  Steve Pederson.

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Who? What? Why? When? Implications?

• Who? Assistant Coaches
• What? Were fired
• Why? Because Nebraska had its worst season in 40
  years.
• When? December 1, 2002
• Implications? Would they have a winning season
  with new coaches.

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Works Cited

• Sipple, Steven M. (November 30, 2003) Solich
  Fired. Lincoln Journal-Star, page l
• Kaipust, Rich and Elizabeth Merril. (November 30,
  2003) Firing Ends Solich Era. Sunday
  World-Herald, page 1
• Babcock, Mike. (December 2003, volume 23, No.
  19). 9-3-OUT. Husker Illustrated page 17-19
• Chatelain, Dirk. (December 3, 2002) Solich Fires
  Bohl, Darlington and Barnes. Daily Nebraskan,
  http//www.dailynebraskan.com

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Snyder So how did your meeting with Pederson go?
Solich Not bad I heard him say right before I
left All I want for Christmas is my two front
teeth.
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If someone found this in outer space

• If someone found my presentation in outer space,
  I think they would have the following questions.
  What is football? What does it mean to be fired?
  Why did this make front page news in Nebraska
  newspapers in 2003? If they knew about us already
  they might wonder why someone would be fired if
  they had a attempted to do a better job. They
  might wonder if Pederson was fair to Solich.

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Steve Pederson University of Nebraska Athletic
Director.
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Former Nebraska head football coach.