Bret Bielema might be one of the hottest names in college coaching this year thanks to the job he’s done with the Illinois Fighting Illini. He’s also someone who seems like his ceiling is going to be elsewhere.
It’s possible the Cornhuskers might want to go out and get Bielema, especially since this is the second Big 10 team he’s managed to build into a powerhouse of the Big Ten West. So what made him slide from number one to number three? The talk of not being able to open the wallet certainly contributed.
There’s also the fact that Bielema might not want to start over and build yet another program just when Illinois is rolling right along. With a Big Ten West that doesn’t look great, he might be able to really establish something with the Illini. Or he can come to Lincoln and maybe save the program or maybe become another coach that tried and failed. It feels like the chance of him becoming a Husker is getting smaller by the day.
Thanks to a mini-slide by the Baylor Bears, some thought Dave Aranda was little more than an afterthought as a candidate for head coach of the Nebraska football team. However, he managed to lead his squad to a win over the Kansas Jayhawks that was plenty impressive and suddenly, there’s a bit more talk about the man who worked with Mickey Joseph at LSU.
It’s not a surprise that his name is getting more run these days. Some still think it’s unlikely Joseph gets the head job. Those people are hoping he sticks in some point. Aranda could allow that kind of transition.
He’s also a very good coach who stopped what could have been a slide into irrelevancy.