'Diary of a Husker' Reveals More About Author Than Program

2 comments so far March 7, 2007 by Steve Hanway

Like many Nebraska fans, I'd imagine, I purchased David Kolowski's 'Diary of a Husker' in hopes of getting answers to "what went wrong" with the program during the Solich era. Having read Kolowski's 'Diary', I felt like I learned more about what went wrong for Kolowski than the program.

Sure there were some good insights on where things went sour, like a drop-off in the nutrition and training programs as well as his own sense that too many walk-ons and too many rewards lead to a lot of apathy. But truthfully, there's no smoking gun here. We also hear some negatives about Solich that we've all heard before (e.g. his lack of charisma).

But mostly, you get more inside the head of a player who feels captive to a program he wants no part of. He's afraid to quit because it would disappoint his family. The climax of the book (in my mind) is when he sends a note to his parents letting them know how unhappy he is. But the diary never follows-up to tell us how (or even if) his parents responded. The reader comes to have real questions about why they'd want him to continue suffering, if he was only doing it to please them. But those questions go unanswered.

If the book had been fiction, I would have been anticipating a suicide attempt. Thankfully, nothing like that took place here.

Like so many fanatics, I was grateful for the chance to take a closer peek at the Husker experience. At the same time, nearly 500 pages of workouts and self-pity is hard to call enjoyable. I also would have liked more summary and analysis after the fact to help place some of his thoughts in context.

If you're the type with an insatiable curiosity about Nebraska football, you're bound to find things to like. But if you're looking for a great reading experience, this may not be the book for you.

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