Frost returns home, stirs Nebraska hopes

CHICAGO — Scott Frost talks to Tom Osborne almost every week. He welcomes his college coach into his office at Nebraska, or they go turkey hunting or fishing. Hard at work at rebuilding his alma mater, Frost is keeping his friends as close as possible.

The 43-year-old Frost is home again after a successful run with Central Florida, returning to Lincoln in December with a $35 million, seven-year contract after coaching the Knights to a 13-0 record last season. The long-term objective is moving Nebraska back into the upper echelon of college football.

“Coach Osborne had the formula that Nebraska figured out,” Frost said. “Some of the things he did to make the program arguably the best in the country can still work today. Nebraska has just gone away from them. We’re going to adopt a lot of things again and do it in a modern way.”

Frost grew up about 90 minutes west of Nebraska’s campus and led the 1997 Cornhuskers to a share of the national championship in Osborne’s final year as coach. It was part of a wildly successful decade for the Cornhuskers, who went 108-16-1 in the 1990s. But the program hasn’t enjoyed that level of success in quite some time. Mike Riley went 19-19 in three seasons before he was fired in November.

Enter Frost, who once again was unable to resist the siren song of his home state. Frost began his playing career at Stanford before coming home.

It’s a high-stakes move for Frost, Nebraska and the Big Ten, which could use a healthy Cornhuskers program to help balance the conference’s West Division with its powerhouse East. Frost’s arrival on the scene was a frequent topic of conversation at the Big Ten football media day Monday.

“I think the fact that Scott played at Nebraska and has had an amazing series of successes as a young coach really breathes a lot of enthusiasm into the fan base,” Commissioner Jim Delany said.

It sounds as if his players feel the same way.

“He’s a championship quarterback. You want to show him that you can play,” star receiver Stanley Morgan Jr. said. “You want to show him that I’m that guy, like I can compete with you.”

It’s a familiar script for the Big Ten after Jim Harbaugh took over at Michigan in December 2014. Harbaugh also played QB in college and returned to his alma mater with fanfare and excitement. He coached against Frost in 2016, directing the Wolverines to a 51-14 win over UCF.

“He brought a really motivated, excellent football team up there,” Harbaugh said. “Expect that he’ll do the same thing in his current position.”

Harbaugh is beginning an intriguing year after Michigan went 8-5 last season, dropping its last three games. Asked about the Wolverines’ six-game losing streak against rival Ohio State and the pressure on him, Harbaugh responded: “We need to improve. And that will lead to success. It will lead to championships. It’s that simple.”