One man's ego

I think every Husker fan should be elated and excited about Friday's victory. Fans can take a lot of positives out of the performance of the Big Red. And I don't want to take anything away from it. Callahan supporters and critics alike saw clear signs of optimism that indicate the program is finally putting the discord from 2 years ago finally behind.

Then the athletic director reopened all the old wounds, claiming vindication by saying "This is the reason we did what we did." Before the game, Pederson declined to an interview with KETV-Channel 7 to discuss the events of 2 years ago. He knew that the questions would be uncomfortable, and nothing is to be gained by revisiting that decision.

So why do it after the game? Simple. Ego. The folks in Pittsburgh know about it. And at the first sign of progress on Friday, there's Steve Pederson's ego once again on display.

It's now been 104 weeks, and the wounds still haven't been healed. Bill Callahan seems to finally have gotten the embrace of his football team. Many critics of his, including me, recognize that this might be the turning point in the program.

So why does Steve Pederson suddenly want to brag about his 2003 coaching decision? Ego, ego, ego. 2 years ago, with his plans in place to fire Frank Solich in place, Pederson was the invisible man. And as soon as Nebraska seems ready to finally move on, there is Steve Pederson taking center stage to take the credit.

I can think of 38.5 million reasons why Pederson should have kept his mouth shut after Saturday's game, much like he kept it quiet after the Kansas game. But, once again, Steve Pederson put his ego ahead of the athletic department.

Bill Callahan may very well turn out to be a success. I saw something on Friday that indicates that this might work out in the end.

At the same time, I am further convinced that Steve Pederson will NEVER be able to repair his relationship with the fan base he alienated 2 years ago. He has talked about moving on, but Friday night, he refused to "walk the talk." My opinion that he should resign or be fired has not changed.