Troubles, and then a split title

By David Martin Sports Central Columnist

The college football season started with the specter of two coaching indiscretions looming over, if not outright haunting, their respective schools.

At the University of Washington, the athletic director had finally had enough of head coach Rick Neuheisel's refusal to deal in truths when she opted to dismiss him. Fact is, she had to know that Neuheisel was a termination waiting to happen when she hired him. Neuheisel's plain refusal to acknowledge his many and varied, if relatively minor, transgressions at Colorado should have been reason enough for terminating him. But, he provided cause aplenty.

Keith Gilbertson took over for the Huskies, and demonstrated that Neuheisel did not leave UW in a particularly solid state. It will be a tough several years for Huskies fans, and they have Neuheisel to thank on one hand, and the AD to blame on the other.

Former Washington State and Alabama head coach Mike Price discovered the darker side of working in a place where football lives among the only salient talking points between folks besides the weather. This discovery was made when the University of Alabama decided to rescind his contract after stories came to light about his activities in a Pensacola, FL gentleman's club and hotel.

While the Price story continues to evolve, and he pursues a defamation suit against venerable sports magazine Sports Illustrated, he has landed on his feet. Recently hired by the University of Texas-El Paso, Price will have survived only one football season outside the profession. Of course, he'll need to keep his nose clean at UTEP, too. If football is king in the southeast, it's God in Texas. Perhaps it's not quite that big in the corner of Texas that he'll be coaching, but close enough to religion as to require his devout respect for the game and its environs.

Meanwhile, Washington State seemed a tougher, more run-oriented team than any team Price ever fielded. Interesting times ahead for Washington State are not mirrored in Alabama, though. Sanctions against the university for actions by long-gone recruiters will hamper the football program for at least three more seasons, at which time the AD will likely see fit to relieve Mike Shula of his head coaching duties, deserved or not.

The season's least unexpected dismissal came at the end of the regular season, when the University of Nebraska relieved embattled coach Frank Solich of his duties. The mass sports media has crowed about the firing of a coach whose team won nine games, but seems to generally miss the larger point.

There are a few voices who try to impress why the move had to be made, but their sentiments are lost in hysterical claims that Nebraska has "too high expectations" or that Solich is only two years removed from a national title bid. Which is really as far as one needs to look to understand why his dismissal wasn't only imminent, it was necessary.

Two years ago, Nebraska snuck into the BCS title game. By all accounts, their presence there was a dismal failure of the system, overlooking more deserving Oregon, and perhaps an even more deserving two-loss Colorado team, who'd embarrassed the Cornhuskers in the final regular season game.

Going into the Colorado game, few doubted that Nebraska was a top-two team. A bad showing against the Buffalos should cost them a shot at the title, the same argued. But, the polling didn't work out that way, and Nebraska was further humiliated by Miami of Florida. What everyone seems to have forgotten was how slow, sluggish, and traditional, to be kind, Nebraska looked. And these were mostly kids that had been recruited by coaching legend Tom Osborne.

Almost by default, Solich recruited lesser talent than Osborne, and that fact showed mightily in the 2002 season, when Nebraska finished a dismal 7-7, unheard of mediocrity in Husker Land. That Nebraska managed nine wins this past year is actually a testament to Solich's ability to coach. That Nebraska lost three games wasn't why Solich is presently unemployed. The manner in which those games were lost is.

The Huskers were whitewashed in each of their losses, and they didn't play Oklahoma. Nebraska has high standards, sure, but most former title contenders should expect to beat Missouri and Kansas State, and most years, at least compete with Texas. Those days were glaringly over in Lincoln, and the AD made the move he saw fit.

Who can forget Maurice Clarett? It's impossible to know if Clarett would have powered Ohio State to another national championship, but it seems mostly safe to suggest that they might have been better this past season. While his presence may not have been enough to get the Buckeyes by a very good Michigan team, other near misses that cost Ohio State reputation points down the stretch might not have been so near.

At some level, the Clarett story had its effects on the team, in the expansion of investigation, in the questioning of the validity of their title won a year ago, and in revealing that while the school had fine running back talent, it was clear throughout that Clarett's abilities were missed. Clarett made the offensive line look better than it was last year. Lydell Ross and Maurice Hall were unable to give that to the OSU offensive line. The Buckeyes defense was outstanding. Better, perhaps, than the title-winning defense. But, in the end, it wasn't enough.

While the University of Miami (FL)'s 30-plus winning streak was snapped by Ohio State in the 2002 national championship game, the Hurricanes still had a home-winning streak, the nation's longest to boast about. That boasting ended when Casey Clausen and the tough, if unheralded, Tennessee Volunteers beat the 'Canes on their home field.

One gets the impression that darker times may indeed be ahead in Coral Gables, though with a move to the ACC due to take effect next spring, Miami's continued dominance of their conference will only be tested by a shakier Florida State.

And then there was the BCS, its annual controversial level raised at least tenfold, and the split national championship. Escaping into editorialism for a bit, I, for one, am pleased by the outcome of the BCS this season. It's been six or seven years since the last split national championship, and I find nothing bad about its return.

Southern California had an incredible season, dominating all of their games but one, the single blemish on their record. While Louisiana State played generally closer games, their remarkable finale against Oklahoma is only cheapened by the fact that Oklahoma lost the Big 12 Championship Game.

For most of the game, LSU's defense swarmed to the ball and punished Oklahoma players for having it. An incredible showing for both USC and LSU in their bowls, they will each celebrate their national titles. What's wrong with that? Well, maybe that it marks the end of a season of college football.

Article courtesy of Sports Central.