Iowa State football coach Matt Campbell again finds himself at the center of job-related speculation.
Nebraska became synonymous with excellence over the 30 years that Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne won five national championships, but the last of those — 1997 — is now a quarter-century old. In the past 25 years, Nebraska has shed its reputation for excellence and developed one for being wholly unsatisfied with pretty-good-but-not-great seasons. If Campbell didn’t like the look of that sort of attitude in Knoxville or Tallahassee, that mindset in Lincoln might not sit well either.
And with the Pac-12 now stepping into the turmoil of losing flagship programs, the Big 12 could be in position to absorb some of their stronger programs, should they get cold feet. Simply, if Campbell wanted to cash the biggest paycheck possible, he would have left Iowa State already. Why it may be different: Still, money talks, and Nebraska has a load of it
If Huskers athletic director Trev Alberts becomes convinced Campbell is the best person to return the Huskers to glory, contemplating the number he’d go to becomes an interesting exercise. And it has seen those same men leave for another job they think is better for them and their family. It has also seen coaches carve out multi-decade careers at a single school.