Shatel: Nemesis hasn't changed, NU has

When Howard Schnellenberger jogs into Memorial Stadium on Saturday night, he will be more than just another visiting football coach on the premises. This is a piece of living college football history in our midst.

A history the locals know all too well.

What exactly will Husker fans do when Schnellenberger returns to their lives as coach of a bunch of dreamers at Florida Atlantic? Will they politely cheer? Will they boo?

Will they remember?

There's a generation of Husker fans who weren't born — or are too young to remember — when Schnellenberger directed the 31-30 upset of No. 1 Nebraska and took the national championship away from Tom Osborne in the 1984 Orange Bowl.

Bo Pelini was a sophomore at Cardinal Mooney High in Youngstown, Ohio, watching on TV because he was a friend of Bernie Kosar, the Miami quarterback. He has no stake in this memory. Pelini's Huskers have no idea who Schnellenberger is or the pain he inflicted upon this state.

But there is a much older generation of fans that remember the night of Jan. 2, 1984, like it was last week.

At the time, it was said to be the greatest upset in college football history, and that title has aged well. Schnellenberger orchestrated the entire thing, from assembling a plethora of pro talent on Miami's roster to rallying the community that week, complete with him flying to Orange Bowl events in a helicopter like a political candidate.

I'll never forget the incredulous look on Osborne's face when Schnellenberger arrived at Orange Bowl media day in the chopper. Osborne said he will try to meet with his old Orange Bowl adversary Friday, and joked, “I hope he doesn't show up in a helicopter.''

Can you laugh about it now?

There is a generation of Nebraskans who will never forget that punch in the gut, how they couldn't sleep for nights or the disdain they carried for the man they jokingly called “Captain Kangaroo.''

But they can sleep well this week. And I don't expect many to still hold that grudge.

Osborne won three national titles and is still leading a full, brilliant career. Schnellenberger, now 75, looks harmless enough. He is on the backside of a fascinating career, looking for one last gasp of glory. He brought Oklahoma to Lincoln in 1995 and got spanked.

Time heals all wounds. So do terrible career choices.

Schnellenberger might very well be the most underrated coach in college football history — and that's all his own doing.

Weeks after winning the national title at Miami, he jumped off the top of the world and signed with a south Florida team in the fledgling USFL. That team never played a game.

Imagine Urban Meyer leaving Florida two years ago or Pete Carroll bolting USC in 2003 to join an arena league.

Schnellenberger rebounded, taking Louisville to the Fiesta Bowl. Then he did it again, leaving the sure thing for Oklahoma. There, he became a cartoon character, telling people “They're going to write books and make movies about us here'' and coining the term “Sooner Nation.'' He was forced out after only one season.

And now he has rebounded again, at FAU. But it's hard to put this man in history's context because you can't help but wonder what might have been.

“Greatest football coach ever to walk the sideline,'' FAU defensive coordinator Kirk Hoza told ESPN.com two years ago. “He'll tell you never look back, and he's probably right. But if he doesn't leave Miami, what are we looking at? Ten national championships?''

What leads a man to leave that kind of utopia? Schnellenberger told The World-Herald's Rich Kaipust that it was a “character flaw,'' and added, “I've made bad decisions, and God bailed me out each time.''

Schnellenberger is building again at FAU, and that's his thing. Some men are content only to build, and not stay and enjoy the finished product. Schnellenberger might be college football's greatest builder.

His Owls are anything but a finished product, but they're good enough to make Saturday interesting. They had a pep rally last week, and Schnellenberger, still the showman, had them burning an “N.'' He is still selling the dream.

But this time the game's in Lincoln.

Contact the writer:

444-1025, tom.shatel@owh.com

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