Shatel: Post-NU successes not certain

It’s Old Guys Rule, the sequel.

Nebraska has invited 22 former Heisman, Outland, Lombardi and other major award winners — 14 former Huskers and eight Oklahoma Sooners — to attend a reception and dinner on Friday night somewhere in Lincoln. That’s somewhere, as in, I have no idea because NU doesn’t want the Joe Sooner or Harry Husker to find out.

Good idea, actually. I attended a similar reunion last year in Norman and the old warriors were like little kids hugging and telling stories and dissing each other. Open it up to the public and there would be a line of autograph seekers and memorabilia runners from here to Muskogee.

Aaron Taylor plans to be there. Good for him. The former Husker won’t be able to flash his 1997 Outland Trophy or national championship rings at the event. He just lost them in an auction. It will be hard for Taylor. But he has nothing to be ashamed of.

Taylor is neither the first, nor will he be the last, athlete to learn a painful lesson: People may want your autograph, but they don’t necessarily want to buy anything from you.

When I first heard, several years ago, that Taylor and Scott Frost were opening a Husker sports bar, I thought it was a great idea. I’ve always wondered why Nebraska football players, who are put on a pedestal and generally stay there most of their lives, didn’t have their names on businesses, bars, restaurants, etc.

There’s Tagge Rutherford. Bob Gibson had a place years ago. So did former UNO basketball coach Bob Hanson. It’s a pretty short list.

But I began to wonder about this idea months before the Scarlet and Cream Letter Club opened. I don’t remember how, but I was at a meeting to recruit investors for the project. They wanted $14,000 for a share. Taylor and Frost were at the meeting. They had big visions. They wanted to franchise in other campus towns across the country.

Finally, I asked Frost and Taylor if they planned to be there every night, or most nights, hanging out and talking to fans. They kind of hemmed and hawed and eventually Frost said, “Maybe a couple times a year.’’

Uh-oh.

The Letter Club was an intriguing place, with a full menu and a huge layout with tables and big TV screens and an assortment of cool Husker stuff on the walls. (The food and service did not distinguish the restaurant). What’s that? Sounds like a lot of Husker bars in Omaha? And no legends sitting at the bar?

Taylor made his share of mistakes, but maybe the biggest was also very innocent: underestimating the secret to a good establishment. It’s about the food and the service. People don’t go out to eat to look at helmets. They go to eat.

This hard lesson was a big reason why Clester Johnson politely refused to do an interview about the “94/95 Sports Grille’’ in West Omaha. Johnson, a former Husker wingback, is a part-owner in the restaurant. Johnson said come back in a year and we’ll talk. The message: let’s give this some time. Probably a good idea. It’s not easy.

Ask Johnny Rodgers. Now here’s a man who could write a book about post-career ventures. Rodgers very much still lives his life like his breathless punt return in 1971; he’s always moving forward and never goes down. This week Rodgers is taking NU Heismans Mike Rozier and Eric Crouch and OU winners Steve Owens, Billy Sims and Jason White on a Heisman tour through Hastings (Allen’s Super Store) on Thursday, Lincoln (alumni center) on Friday and Omaha (Crescent Collectibles at Westroads) on Sunday.

Rodgers’ own sports bar attempt failed last year, for various reasons, including a run-in with his partner. Rodgers said he “felt bad’’ for Taylor and called last week to express his support.

“I think there are some guys who can do it,’’ Rodgers said. “But it’s a lot of work. If you are going to be there, like I was, you had to put in a lot of 20-hour days. I can’t tell you how much my feet hurt from being there 20 hours a day. You’re trying to take care of everything, and people want to see you there.

“It’s a hard, hard business. You have no idea how much food and alcohol walk out the door — a lot more than walk in, I’ll tell you that.’’

Damon Benning once told me that one of the first things the NFL tells rookies is “don’t open a sports bar.’’ Now, NU athletes will hear it, too. Under Tom Osborne’s request, NU’s Life Skills department is now requiring freshmen student-athletes to take a class in fall semester on managing money, a budget and the economy. Keith Zimmer, NU’s Associate Athletic Director for Life Skills, said there will also be a Nov. 16 retreat for all senior athletes on how to transition into the real world, including money management.

Osborne said Wednesday that NU will try to buy replica rings and an Outland for Taylor. That would be a grand gesture. Maybe Taylor could return the favor. He would be one heck of a teacher.

Contact the writer:

444-1025, tom.shatel@owh.com

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