Osborne to return as Nebraska’s interim AD

LINCOLN, Neb. – Tom Osborne is returning to Nebraska to temporarily run the Cornhuskers’ athletic department and possibly determine the fate of coach Bill Callahan.\nUniversity chancellor Harvey Perlman announced the return of the Huskers’ former coach Tuesday in a news release. A news conference was scheduled for later in the day.\nThe 70-year-old Osborne’s return to the athletic department comes a day after athletic director Steve Pederson was fired.\nIt was 10 years ago that Osborne finished a celebrated coaching career that culminated with three national championships in four seasons.\nOsborne met with Perlman on Tuesday morning to discuss the job, and Osborne agreed to serve until the chancellor hires a permanent athletic director.\n“I’ve spent the majority of my life working with the athletic department at the university, and I want to do what I can at this point to continue in the pursuit of excellence that has been previously established,” Osborne said in the release.\nPerlman said Monday the athletic director – interim or permanent – would be charged with deciding whether Callahan would continue to lead a football program that has fallen on hard times.\nCallahan said earlier Tuesday that he has no plans to resign. If Callahan is fired, the university would be forced to buy out his contract for more than $3 million.\nCallahan said his confidence in his own abilities has not been shaken.\n“I know in my heart of hearts I’m doing an excellent job, a good job,” Callahan said.\nHe said his self-evaluation was based on more than the wins and losses.\n“It’s everything that has to do with organization, preparation, game-planning, direction of the staff, direction of the whole, entire program. I have no hesitation about that,” he said. “There are so many things we’ve done in a positive nature. I’m confident we’ve done some great things here.”\nSince leaving coaching, Osborne has served three terms in Congress, made an unsuccessful gubernatorial run, taught in the university’s business school and worked as a consultant for local college athletic departments.\nThough his name is on Nebraska’s athletic department headquarters, he has been mostly dissociated from the Cornhuskers’ program since Callahan became coach in January 2004.\nOsborne recommended Pederson for the athletic director’s job in 2003, but their relationship soured after Pederson fired Frank Solich. Solich had been Osborne’s longtime assistant and hand-picked successor, and Pederson did not consult with Osborne before making the move.\nNow, with Pederson gone, Osborne is expected to play a major role in deciding the fate of Callahan, whose team is 4-3 this season after a string of disappointing performances.\nThe beloved Osborne is seen as someone who can unify a fractured fan and donor base.\nOsborne joined the Huskers’ coaching staff in 1962 under Bob Devaney, who established a culture that made football a point of pride in Nebraska.\nOsborne became head coach in 1973. He built upon that Devaney tradition and gave Nebraska a unique identity with its powerful running attack and reliance on hardworking, homegrown players.\nThe triple option remained a staple under Solich, as did the tremendously popular \nwalk-on program.\nCallahan ditched the option in favor of a West Coast system and, in a move that upset the fans, greatly reduced the walk-on program.\nCallahan has not completely severed ties with Nebraska’s past, but he made it clear he wanted to move the program in a different direction. The public’s patience with Callahan has waned as he has failed to go through a season with fewer than four losses.\nAlong with winning all or part of three national titles, the Huskers won 12 Big Eight titles and one Big 12 title under Osborne.\nOf Osborne’s 25 teams, 17 finished in the top 10. His career coaching record was 255-49-3.\nUpon his retirement, the College Football Hall of Fame waived its customary three-year wait for entry and inducted Osborne in December 1998.\nCallahan said he will not look over his shoulder as he coaches. The Huskers play Texas A&M at home this week.\n“There are no guarantees in this business, no matter where you’re coaching, especially when you’re struggling,” he said. “Nothing has been said to me relative to dismissals or anything of that nature. We’re just going to press on.”