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LINCOLN — The son of New Orleans learned his lesson long ago.
It became a mantra in Mickey Joseph’s life along with all the hard breaks and situations that try a young man’s faith and soul.
“Shake it all off and you move on.”
That’s what Joseph did in 1990, when a horrific injury at Oklahoma basically ended his playing career. He switched to training.
That’s what Joseph did when Hurricane Katrina disbanded his team at Desire Street Academy in New Orleans’ tough Ninth Ward.
Of the 196 boys in Desire Street Academy, only 95 were initially found (eventually they all were). Many were separated from their parents and their homes were destroyed.
Joseph took the majority of these 95 to a 4-H camp in Florida and became their surrogate father, their mentor. Their strength.
And then there were all the hard knocks as Joseph bounced along the back roads of college football, from Division II Langston to Alcorn State to Grambling and Louisiana Tech.
Joseph always kept his head up. His eyes straight ahead. The flame beneath his dreams alive.
That’s who Nebraska’s interim football coach is and what he’s all about.
There is no good time to be an interim coach. It means someone has been fired. It means things are not good.
Joseph, who replaces Scott Frost, is not the first interim coach in Nebraska history. But he is the first to take over in the regular season.
The Huskers are 1-2. There are nine games left. Starting with Oklahoma.
This is no way to get an audition.
But it is here, perhaps faster than the speculation that followed Joseph from LSU to Lincoln last winter, that he was earmarked as the next head coach.
‘It’s bigger than me’: Mickey Joseph embraces Nebraska opportunity
The whispers were that Joseph, an in-demand teacher and recruiter, would not be back for a season. There had to be something else at play along the way.
The future arrived unannounced Sunday morning, falling into Joseph’s lap as he sat stunned to hear Frost had been fired after three games.
Shake everything off. Move on.
Joseph must help a football team – and a fan base – move forward. He set the process in motion on Tuesday during a packed press conference.
It was the kind of media reception you get for a head coach’s introduction. But there were no smiles or celebrations.
From his first sentence, Joseph was all business. He was firm but encouraging. He didn’t have to search for answers to questions.
Joseph has a plan. He has built his entire career for this moment. The moment is here.
But how do you prepare for this?
Athletic director Trev Alberts is looking for a program builder. Joseph might be that guy. But he can’t build an offensive line in nine games.
He has two months to make the Huskers change how they approach and play the game.
Nine games. What would be success? A bowl game? That would mean winning five out of nine. Six out of nine would be a winning record.
Then you should definitely take a closer look at Joseph. But for Joseph, it will probably come down to intangibles, gray area things.
Can he inject urgency into Nebraska’s way of playing? Instill a combination of energy and confidence? Make the players take more responsibility?
To play as one unit they must absolutely win the game?
Mickey Joseph promotes Mike Cassano to Nebraska’s wide receivers coach
Joseph will likely use a formula he has used with his receiver room. Real Talk, he calls it.
To tell his players the truth at all times. It forms a bond. And then Joseph drives it home with what he calls “an iron fist.”
He’s done it time and time again with receivers. Now Joseph has to do it with a whole team.
He has already started as CEO. Moving defensive coordinator Erik Chinander to coach safety. Getting the team to do more live tackling this week.
It definitely helps. But the keys for Mickey and his Huskers over the next two months appear to be in the head.
Joseph says he’s already instilling confidence and self-belief in his players.
Can the power of persuasion work? Joseph believes in reaching young men.
Told that a current Husker said the team has a “losing culture,” Joseph disagreed. And then said he needed to do a better job with the players before they go to interviews.”
It’s the iron first. It is the coach who sounds like a parent or mentor. And it’s straight out of the Nick Saban playbook.
How far can motivation take you? If it cleans up the little mistakes and details, NU can make some hay in the Big Ten.
A winning record is a must. But Joseph is not going to win eight or nine games.
But if he can push the players’ buttons and make them play harder and better than they ever imagined, and get the whole team on board, that will be hard to ignore, too.
This is not a long shot. Alberts is a big fan of Joseph. And it wouldn’t be surprising if Alberts tried to keep Joseph around the program going forward, even if he’s not the head coach.
But he is the interim head coach. And Joseph looks ready. He won the press conference. But the real talk begins on Saturday.
Mickey Joseph has already made changes to Nebraska’s staff and practice schedule
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