LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -Coach Bill Callahan sidestepped questions about his future at Nebraska, saying he’s focused on preparing to play Kansas State on Saturday.
Callahan, whose team has lost five straight, declined to say Monday whether he has been asked to resign with the promise of a settlement. If he’s fired at the end of the season, Callahan’s contract calls for Nebraska to pay him more than $3 million.
Asked whether there was any reason to believe he’ll be back next season, Callahan said: “I’ll let the powers that be make those decisions.”
Interim athletic director Tom Osborne has said he won’t make a decision on Callahan until after the season.
The Huskers (4-6, 1-5 Big 12) are coming off a 76-39 loss at Kansas, a game in which they surrendered the most points in the school’s 118-year football history. Callahan already has the most lopsided loss in school history on his tab – a 70-10 beat-down at Texas Tech in 2004.
Nebraska, a 7 1/2-point underdog at home against Kansas State, is on its longest losing streak since 1958. Another defeat would mark the longest streak since the 1957 team lost its final seven games during a 1-9 campaign under Bill Jennings.
“This situation is very disappointing for us, and we’re working through it the best we can,” Callahan said. “It’s just one of those years where we haven’t performed to the standard we wanted to. I’ll let the higher-ups and whoever the decision makers are make those decisions” about next season.
Callahan said he came into the season optimistic after the Huskers won the Big 12 North and finished 9-5.
But this year’s squad has posted some of the worst statistics in the program’s history. The Huskers are 106th nationally in scoring defense (35.9 points), 112th in total defense (477.6 yards) and 118th in rushing defense (240.1 yards).
Callahan said he wouldn’t look back at what went wrong.
“You try to learn from some of the mistakes, if you had made any, or maybe the performances or maybe some decisions made,” he said. “This isn’t the time to look back on anything. We have to focus on Kansas State.”
With scrutiny intensifying with each loss, Callahan said he leans on his religion.
“I’ve got to count on the Lord in that respect. That’s where I derive my strength from,” Callahan said. “That’s what any Christian does. You put your trust in the Lord and you go forward.”
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