Steve Pederson Fired as NU Athletic Director
20 comments so far
October 15, 2007 by
According to KETV News in Omaha, Steve Pederson has been fired as athletic director at the University of Nebraska. Details of where the NU Athletic Department goes from here will follow at 4:00 p.m. Central, when Chancellor Harvey Pearlman will address the media.
ESPN Radio on 1620 AM is streaming on the internet. No word yet on if The press conference will be covered live.
Updated 2:45 PM:
We are of course disappointed about the progress in our football program. Steve has done many positive things for Husker athletics during his tenure but I think only new leadership can objectively assess the state of our program and make the decisions necessary to move us forward
-- NU Chancellor Harvey Perlman
More coverage from Lincoln Journal Star, KOLN TV.
Updated 3:13 PM: Here's the press release.
Updated 3:47 PM: KPTM Fox 42 is reporting speculation that Tom Osborne will be named AD. Chancellor Perlman says he did not talk to TO about taking over, but he will be seeking his advice on how to go forward.
Update 4:07 PM: Here are some quotes from Harvey Perlman's press conference for those of you who couldn't listen in. (I'm paraphrasing.)
There is no joy in my heart for having to do this.
I know everyone thinks this is because of the game played on Saturday. The decision was made before this weekend.
Since July, August I have been aware of concerns about management style, connections with fans, donors and former athletes.
Sometimes you just have to make a change in order to move a program forward.
I talk to [Tom Osborne] about every tough decision related to the program. I gave him a heads up, but it hasn't gone any further than that.
I would have made the change even if NU had won Saturday.
An email was sent to every member of the athletic department prior to SP's contract extension soliciting feedback. He received two responses, one positive and one negative.
There are no other personnel changes planned at this point.
Steve Pederson will receive a $2.2 million buyout plus some deferred compensation.
I asked for his resignation and got it. I guess you can say he was fired.
A search consultant will be hired to assist the university in finding an interim AD.
The athletic department, due in large part to Steve's effort, is in good financial shape.
I don't read the blogs very much. You can imagine why if you have read them recently.
I have not been contacted by a single donor about this issue (unless they were one of the crank calls I have received at night).
You don't make changes based on a single football game. My instinct tells me that Steve was not the person to move the program forward.
I worry a great deal about how our student athletes will react to this decision.
I'm not putting any constraints around the selection criteria for our next AD. We want to find the best person for the job.
I had a conversation with Paul Meyers before his departure. It played a part in my decision but I talked to a lot of people.
I encourage Nebraskans to support this football team. They're in the middle of the season. They're working hard. If they want to be the best fans in the country, and I think they are, they need to support the team in good times and bad times.
Photo: KETV
Updated: 4:36 PM At least one big donor is unhappy with the change. Dan Cook (of the Cook Pavillion Cook's) said:
I know 99 percent of people are just elated,” Cook said. “I wish Nebraska nothing but the best. But they ain’t going to have me around. If they want to take my name off the building or take my plaque down, I don’t give a rat’s ass. I could care less. I don’t have time to go through the misery of people who make dumb mistakes.
Updated 10/16: Steve Pederson's statement:
The University of Nebraska has been an incredibly special place to my family and me for more than three decades. Whether it was during my time as a Nebraska student, staff member or athletic director, I have always been tremendously proud to call myself a Cornhusker.Being Nebraska’s athletic director was not merely a job for me. I viewed it as an honor and important duty to serve the Nebraska tradition of academic and athletic excellence. During the last five years we have enjoyed many successes and also faced a number of difficult challenges. In the midst of both, we always made our decisions based on what was in the very best interests of our university and its outstanding student-athletes.
On and off the field, we worked passionately and tirelessly to not just win, but win the right way. We can take great pride in the fact that Nebraska still sets the national standard when it comes to producing Academic All-Americans. We have been able to build state-of-the-art facilities like the North Stadium project, but in a financially responsible way. And we have hired new coaches and staff members who are dedicated to success on the field, in the classroom and in the lives of our student-athletes well after their last game has been played.
I would like to thank the great friends and supporters of Nebraska who have been loyal to us the whole way through. Finally, and most importantly, I want to thank our student-athletes, coaches and staff. It has been an honor to work with you and I wish you only the very best.
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Cornsucker Oct 15 07
No Bowl for you!
admorgan Oct 15 07
fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinally...
better late than never!
my top 3 choices for new AD:
(1) dr. tom
(2) lil' red
(3) pat ricketts
Scott Oct 15 07
Cornsucker with an intelligent assessment. Must be a Hawkins prodigy.
I'm sure Cornsucker won't tell us who his team is. I'm guessing Ohio St. this week.
I'm shocked, but not really at the announcement. Pedersen just had a different type of agenda. He did do some good things while he was here but my feeling is he was running it like it was the NFL instead of the NCAA.
Ignignokt Oct 15 07
Best Pearlmanism: "There are a number of important things that have happened to this state in its history, including STATEHOOD, which I think is more important than football."
Tigerman Oct 15 07
The bigger story is that tool Perlman. How much money did he cost the university giving out contract extensions? Even he call the athletic dept at Nebraska "strange."
What coach in his right mind would want to come to Lincoln? You people are dysfunctional, completely out of whack in your perspective. Let's ee last time your 5th choice said yes so this time you should get door #10!
Josh Oct 15 07
Hey Tigerman,
Congrats on the butt whooping at OU. Mizzou still is a has been program. As for your vaunted Chase Daniel.....all I can say is "overrated."
Scott Oct 15 07
Is the comment from Cook confirmed?
If so, I think we're better off without him being around this program if that is his attitude. He sounds like a greedy old SOB if that statement is in fact from him. He can join the other "fans" that are talking of a boycott.
Can I have your tickets Mr. Cook???
Jason Oct 15 07
Scott, the quote from Dan Cook came from Lincoln Journal Star, so one would assume it is legit.
Bill in Iowa Oct 15 07
People have never forgiven Pederson for firing Solich, that is clear. I don't want to start any rumors, but I will say someone who is close to Pederson told me that the real reason he fired Solich was because there was a "moral" issue that could have given the school a black eye. Perhaps the drunk driving charge while at Ohio could have happened at his tenure at NU? Thats old news... It's just to say, I don't have any personal hatred against Pederson, Callahan, or Cosgrove. I think they are good men and I have appreciated there best efforts. And I wish all of them future success...elsewhere.
Why? Because I believe their best intentioned decisions have killed NU football as we once knew it. The problem is lack of passion and motivation by our players! Where is that passion and pride suppose to come from...where did it come from in past teams? Does it just happpen when you slap on the scarlet and cream uniform? Or did it happen when coaches and walk-on's and scholarship Nebraska teamates communicated to the stream of outside talent that came to NU what it means to where the uniform.
As far as I am concerned, when the decision was made to get rid of all the coaches attached to the legacy and family of Big Red football, AND the subsequent decision to kill the walk-on program, that was the death knoll of Husker football as we all knew it! Maybe that is simplistic thinking, but that is the best conclusion I have come too.
No one likes to lose, but this team isn't just a team that is losing, its a team that has LOST ITS SOUL. This isn't about the blame game, petty criticism because we are losing, this IS about reclaiming genuine Husker tradition!
We need to recognize the real mistake wasn't hiring these coaches and AD, the real mistake was so easily discarding our legendary dynasty of coaches inside the program, breaking up the family, and replacing them with an NFL coach with an impressive resume in order to attract 5 star talent. It sounds good on paper doesn't it? I have to admitt I was taken in. Not anymore...its time to reclaim our lost soul collectively and admitt the experiment was a big mistake.
Give me a couple of former Husker coaches or former players that coach AND a couple dozen wild eyed walk-on's. Give me a person of Osborne's character and I will show you a ressurected Nebraska Football Team with a soul!
Scott Oct 15 07
Cook can go hunting with Steve now. That's the kind of attitude that we don't need near the program. It isn't Cook's decision so he needs to suck it up. His money can't buy everything and I'm sure Steve was "buttering his muffins" every night to keep that cold old man warm.
admorgan Oct 15 07
i'm not so sure i would label missouri a "has been." "never was" seems more appropriate considering their number of heisman winners, conference championships, and national championships.
Justin Oct 15 07
Tigerman, why are you trolling on a Nebraka board. Come on man, find something better to do. Maybe you have nothing better to do than put down Nebraska, because you know Kansas is taking home the North title.
As far as Pederson, he seemed like more of a PR man than an AD. Just making moves that looked good, rather than making business sense. Plus I agree with Scott, the whole thing was ran too much like a NFL team. Will be interesting to see what happens from here.
OU7times Oct 15 07
Dark Side of NU athletics? Kevin Keitzman may have had it right. Nebraska is in love with money and it IS like "crack" to them. What a waste of millions of $. Contract extensions on both the AD and head coach? People, I find it hard to "fathom" that the AD was so preoccupied that he would be so clueless to agree to those contract extensions. You can't tell me that by firing the AD, that NU football will be any different than it's been this year. Tell me how this will make the win/loss any different? Todaay's action should have been a double firing and nothing less. This will now drag out the problem over more months and drive away more recruits (uncertainty). Look forward to this same scenario at the end of the year. Don't expect much of a recruiting class this off season. If you were someone contacted for an AD job (or head coach for that matter), you'd be CRAZY to even think about the job. This all boils down to winning and how addictive it is. By the way, that was a real nice little jig that Perleman did around the question of his authority when it comes to decision making at Nebraska. The whole statement was disingenuious. Do you still have smoke coming out of your orifices?
Mase Oct 15 07
The bottom line is, Pederson made a huge mistake with the handling of the Solich firing/replacement. The only way he could recover, is if he got the right man for the job in there and we started seeing some big payoff. Four years and what we got was, little payoff. What we did get was a lot of disgruntled employees, athletes, ex-athletes, ex-coaches, and fans. In a program or business, you can rub the people you answer to the wrong way for only so long, until someone says "so long". Where I saw only bad from the Solich debacle, I see only good from this change. Finally, husker nation can get back to a united front. This is a huge opportunity to catch this thing before it crashes to the floor.
We were left with the question, "does the end justify the means?" I think after almost 4 years we can answer that question with a no. And that means he who was responsible for the "means", must go...
Bill in Iowa Oct 15 07
Any predictions on what happens next? I think Coz is gone at the end of the season. I am guessing Callahan as well, but maybe they give him another year as they gave Solich. How do any of these scenarios effect recruiting?
Charles Hansen Oct 15 07
This is football. It is a game. It is not life. It is not a basic need for living. The players are not paid professionals. They are students. They are amateurs. Keep this whole thing in perspective. Let's move forward with UNL football but keep things in proper perspective.
Dwayne Oct 15 07
Mase,
I agree. Not in the fact that Pederson dismissed Solich, but the way in which it was handled. And not that there would've been a right way in terminating an individual, but if Pederson had no one as who his ace in the hole was, he shouldn't have probably played that card. People tend to forget over time, the grumblings after the 3 losses under Solich, but I then and even still do think that he had to go. I would've never guessed the amount of resentment that would've and has followed Pederson to this day. If Callahan wins immediately, it's all forgotten. That obviously hasn't been the case.
I have been on board under Callahan since day one. I still like the offense and after this past weekend, I now know and understand that he probably isn't the man for this position of head coach at the University of Nebraska. Exhibit A: Trailing by 38 in the second half to OSU is one thing, but playing your starting quarterback and not getting your younger players in is just total incompetence. For two reasons, risk of injury and the inability to develop and give those younger players a prime opportunity to developy in a game time atmosphere.
To me getting rid of Pederson is a solution to part of the problem. Not for myself, but for many of Husker nation to begin to heal and jump back on board with their support. The other part of the problem may still be there, the entire staff. I'm not sure if I were starting a team from scratch if there is any one of them that I would want. For how long? I don't know. But I really feel bad for those players and especially the seniors who have not been given the full opportunity to develop as players because of the staff in place. The defensive schemes this past season have been attrocious and it doesn't change.
I don't know what will happen with this next recruiting class. Some may decommit, but the thing that I've probably learned from the past four years is the fact that an average coach can take a 4 or 5 star player and make them a 3 star player and a really good coach can take a 3 star players and make them a 4 star player. This football team and fans need the latter. Don't get hung up on this next class people. As I've said before and I'll say again. I don't know when and I don't know how, and now I'm not sure by who; but this thing will get turned around.
OU7,
I disagree totally with your thoughts about the position may not seem enticing if and when the staff is terminated. As far as talent, it's there. As far as backing, it will be there now that Pederson is gone and the person hired fits the position. Bottom line. Performance. Some may equate this to wins and losses. I do not. The team needs to play with a passion. A passion like those that did before them. A passion that many fans hold dear to their heart.
If people don't understand what that means then listen to Doc Sadler when he accepted the position as head basketball coach. He mentioned that he didn't know how many games he would win, but one thing he knew. His players would give 100% on the court. That's what the fans want on the field.
Guy Oct 15 07
I agree with Dwayne, performance does not need to be about wins and losses. I could have accepted three losses to this point if we had at least been competitive or at the very least looked like we wanted to be playing those games. To me, if it takes a few years to get the ship righted, I'll be okay with it, as long as I can see that progress is being made.
I don't know what the answer is or who should do what, but this move gives me hope. Hope that soon the appropriate moves will be made to make NU football enjoyable to watch again.
OU7times Oct 16 07
NU fans saying it's not about wins and losses? Heh,heh. Really? You better rethink that position. That's "supposedly" the reason given for Solich's firing. See Steve, someone else knows the real story why Solich was let go "in the night".
snakeoil Oct 16 07
Several weeks back I made the statement that Pederson and Callahan should be fired and replaced with Dr. Tom and Bill Cowher. Half of this perdiction has come to fruishen, now it's time to make the second half come true. Call Cowher and get the band fired up. Lets put this program back on track as a true power in the ranks of the elite.