NEW EPISODE - Tom Osborne: The Head Man

Author

TJ Birkel
June 30, 2025

In the second episode of the Common Fans’ deep dive into Tom Osborne’s career, the boys look at TO’s early days as Nebraska’s head coach in the 1970s. 

  • Husker legend Tom Ruud discusses his days playing for both Bob Devaney and Tom Osborne. 

  • Longtime sportswriters Mike Babcock and Brandon Vogel also join the conversation. 

  • Changing of the guard from Devaney to Osborne. 

  • Early struggles to beat Oklahoma. 

  • Storyline that TO “can’t win the big one” begins to emerge. 

  • After the pressure cooker of his first several years, Osborne actually interviews for the head coaching job at Colorado. 

  • By the end of the decade, TO is firmly in place in Lincoln, and has established himself as an excellent head coach with a program on the rise heading into the 1980s. 

Thanks to Tom Ruud, Mike Babcock and Brandon Vogel for joining us for this conversation. GBR for LIFE! 

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