We put a wrap on the last few days at Nebraska and more in this week’s 3-2-1 column.

We put a wrap on the last few days and more in this week’s 3-2-1 column.

1 – Alberts has held Frost accountable, but wants this to work

We got the cliff notes version of how things went behind the scenes the last few weeks with Scott Frost and Trev Alberts.

Both Frost and Alberts painted a picture of two sides working together to get the same thing. Both Frost and Alberts desperately want this work.

However, make no doubt about it, these last few weeks were tense. Frost gave up $8.5 million of guaranteed money. He fired four long-time coaches he’s worked with.

This was the toughest week Frost has faced in his professional career. I’m guessing Frost really hoped things would turn around this season so he didn’t face a day as he did on Monday.

“I took this job because I love Nebraska and I love this University,” Frost said. “It would break my heart to think we’ve made the improvements we’ve had and gotten it so close in so many games and not get an opportunity to see it through. It’s an easy decision for me to make any sacrifices I have to, to have the privilege to continue to be here.”

2 -This job is even more than what Frost thought it would be

People always have an idea of what the Nebraska job is like, but then when they get here I’ve had many coaches tell me it’s much more than they expected.

Even Frost, who played here and grew up in the state said that this week.

“This job is bigger than a lot of other jobs, There’s just a lot more that has to be done on the field and off,” Frost said. “Frankly, I’ve been wearing myself a little thin trying to run the offense and call the offense and it’s not just game day, it’s all week long.

“There probably are areas of the program that I could spend more time with if I wasn’t so occupied with that. He talked to me about that, I agree. I appreciate his advice on that and I’m going to do the best I can to put together a team that allows some of those things to happen.”

You long for the days when Bob Devaney was head coach and he had two guys by the name of Tom Osborne and Monte Kiffin running his offense and defense. That sure would make it easier to be a CEO-type head coach with coordinators like that.

My question is, does a coordinator exist out there that Frost can truly trust to take a hands-off approach? We saw Bo Pelini try to put more on the plate of John Papuchis in his final years, but it had a similar feel on game day with Frost where he would take the defense back over.
Can Frost let go of the offense? You get the sense this is what Alberts would like to see so there is more attention to detail on game day.

3 – Nebraska desperately needs to find a kicker and punter for 2022

It was interesting Frost said on Wednesday that Nebraska may not pursue a full-time dedicated special teams coordinator. I think many just assumed that would happen.

However, in all reality, the Huskers just need to find a kicker, punter and long snapper. I go back to 2013 for example. When Brett Maher went on to the NFL, NU didn’t just roll the dice, they went out and got Pat Smith from Western Illinois. Jeff Jamrog and others on staff went out and found him. He ended up winning the Penn State and Georgia games for NU that season. Kickers matter and we’ve learned that in both 2019 and 2021 at Nebraska.

The Huskers need to go out and find another Pat Smith. An alpha-type kicker who has no fear and gets it done. They need to find a punter that won’t shank one punt a game that leads to points. You don’t necessarily need a special teams coordinator to do this. You just need your recruiting and scouting department to find the best option out there.

What’s crazy is at one time they had current South Dakota State kicker Cole Frahm in the program, but he never got a fair shake because Barret Pickering was on scholarship. Frahm left and is now one of the better kickers in the FCS ranks. Pickering appeared to have a strong lock on the job after 2018, but then got hurt and never was the same. Frahm was long gone after the spring of 2019.

1 – Should some of these staff changes been made after the 2020 season?

I often think about that cold December night at SHI Stadium at Rutgers last season. As former quarterbacks coach Mario Verduzco said later down the road, Adrian Martinez played his worst game and his best game all in one.

That game was a microcosm of what we’ve seen in the last four years. The Huskers, though, found a way to win that night, despite four turnovers. If that game had gone the other way and NU finished 2-6, would the back-to-back losses to Minnesota and Rutgers possibly have forced staff changes?

After the Illinois and Minnesota losses in 2020, it sure felt like we could see them. There was even a point after the Rutgers game that some rumors were out there about the staff, but no movement ever happened. NU found a way to win that night, but the same problems were still with them.

2 – What’s the status of linebacker JoJo Domann?

Did linebacker JoJo Domann play his final game as a Husker vs. Ohio State? It sure felt that way, and I expect Domann to have some sort of final statement on his decision possibly by today.

The 24-year old Colorado native had surgery on his hand Monday, after injuring it during the Purdue game. He chose to play one more game, though, before surgery against the Buckeyes. He arguably saved his best performance for last.

People forget that offensive lineman Cameron Jurgens is in his fourth year at Nebraska, despite the fact he’s still listed as a sophomore.

Jurgens has played at a very high level this season and his athletic ability to pull has not gone unnoticed by NFL scouts.

I predict Jurgens will have a very tough decision ahead of him in December deciding if he wants to stay for year five. A lot will depend on the new offensive line coach hire at NU.

Sean Callahan can be reached at sean@huskeronline.com and he can be heard each day at 6:45 am and 5:05 pm on Big Red Radio 1110 KFAB in Omaha during the football season. He can also be seen on KETV Channel 7 in Omaha during the fall and each week he appears on NET’s Big Red Wrap-Tuesday’s at 7 pm.