The Numerous Innovations Tom Osborne Brought to Nebraska Football

It’s funny. Growing up in Lincoln during the 1980s and 1990s, I saw plenty of successful Nebraska football teams, including, obviously, the three national championship teams of the ‘90s. Even with all of that success, I remember a distinct image of Tom Osborne being stoic, and his teams having a reputation for being…dare I say…boring. 

They ran the ball with ruthless efficiency, racked up yards and points, and played excellent defense. But in the era when things like Florida’s Fun ‘n Gun offense and Houston’s Run and Shoot were making headlines, Nebraska’s way of doing things was considered by some to be old fashioned. 

It’s funny to think about that when you consider how much of an innovator Osborne actually was. 

This week, on the Common Fan Podcast, we launched a series of episodes focused on Osborne’s coaching career. The first episode, The Fateful Promotion, focuses on TO’s time as an assistant to Devaney, and specifically hones in on his time as offensive coordinator, which began in 1968. 

One of the themes that emerged repeatedly as we talked to numerous people about Coach Osborne was how open minded he was. Innovative. Flexible. Open to trying new things. As head coach, his program continued to evolve over two and a half decades, but the signs of his creative mind were there from the start. 

Today we’ll look at the numerous innovations TO brought to Nebraska football (and by extension, all of college football).