‘We haven’t been winning, but we don’t have a losing culture,’ Interim Head Coach Mickey Joseph speaks to media
LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - A new era begins for Nebraska Football. Mickey Joseph is now the Huskers’ interim head coach. On Tuesday, Joseph led the Huskers through their first workout since Scott Frost’s firing. The 54-year-old also fielded questions, laying out his vision for the remainder of the 2020 season.
Joseph previously served as the Huskers’ Associate Head Coach and wide receivers coach, but was asked to take over after Scott Frost was fired on Sunday, one day after a disappointing 45-42 loss to Georgia Southern.
As Joseph takes over as Nebraska’s head football coach, he has a simple message: the upcoming nine games are not about him, they’re about the Nebraska Football program.
Joseph said he has a strong passion for his alma mater, it’s what brought him back to Lincoln this season. Now three games in and following the firing of Frost, Joseph now leads the program he once played.
“Didn’t wake up Sunday knowing this would happen,” Joseph said. “It did. Had to accept it. My message to the team: I know you’re hurting.”
Joseph admits it;s a little weird and unexpected. Joseph has a strong relationship with Frost and said he’s like a brother. However, Joseph knows Nebraska has struggled in all three phases, in all three games this season. He plans on taking a detailed approach to try to salvage the season.
“We haven’t been winning, but we don’t have a losing culture,” Joseph said. “We have to figure out how to get them over the hump.”
Joseph is the first black coach in the history of Nebraska Athletics. When asked about that, he said he hasn’t thought about it and adds he’s been a black coach his entire time in the profession.
Joseph will lead the Huskers as they take on Oklahoma at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, with kickoff set for shortly after 11 a.m. CT.
The game will be televised nationally on FOX, with the network also originating its Big Noon kickoff pregame show from the Nebraska campus beginning at 9 a.m. The game can also be heard on the Huskers Radio Network, the official Huskers App and Huskers.com
Copyright 2022 KOLN. All rights reserved.