Moos talks recruiting philosophies and much more

HuskerOnline got a chance to sit down with new Nebraska AD Bill Moos this week on Tuesday.

Here's everything from our one-on-one interview, as we covered a number of different topics, including recruiting rule changes and philosophies.

Sean Callahan: You got a chance to watch your first game this past Saturday, Nebraska at Purdue. What were your thoughts getting your first taste of a Nebraska game on the road like that Saturday?

Bill Moos: I really thought the staff did a great job on the road trip and I'm real particular on those kinds of things and I was very impressed with that. But it was the first time that I got to really see the football team play and warming up and all the things that I like to take note of and it was a work night for me and really happy that we won that game. I thought it showed a lot of character coming from behind to win it, but I've got a little something now to study and think about and then of course I'm looking forward to the one this weekend against Northwestern.

HOL: How unique is the situation walking into a job in the middle of football season in the circumstances you're in? You've been around the block, you've been athletic director a long time. Can you parallel any comparisons to the situation you've walked into taking over in the middle of a football season like this?

Moos: No, I really can't. The other ones, I actually was hired in the winter or early spring and had a chance to have my feet on the ground and really get acclimated before the fall sports season started. This is somewhat unique in that sense and obviously it's something that I want to pay a lot of attention to early on in this process and really try to get a feel for Coach (Mike) Riley and what he's doing. Then he and I will sit down hopefully here in the next week or so. I just want to pick his brain about his staff, his recruiting philosophy, the Big Ten. Most of my career has been in the Pac-12 and I really am anxious to learn more about the Big Ten as well.

HOL: What is your recruiting philosophy? You mentioned that. Are you a guy that believes in you've got to go for the most high-profile guys? Are you a developmental believer that you know you can find the under the radar guys and turn them into the great players? How do you look at football recruiting?

Moos: Well again that has something to do with what caliber a program. We were always building programs everywhere I've been before and certainly not the rich tradition that Nebraska has. The brand should sell Nebraska and the fact that I really feel it remains one of the top football programs in college football and, yet I've always believed don't fly over good talent to go find good talent. Get the very best players that are right in your backyard and then go fill in the gaps from there.

HOL: In recruiting before you got here, both president Hank Bounds and Chancellor Ronnie Green were heavily involved in the last month, visited with recruits and involved on campus. You're a football guy, you played the game, you have two sons that just went through the recruiting process not that long ago. What do you envision your role in the recruiting process with athletes when they come on campus?

Moos: Anything that the coaches want me to do I've always made myself available. My coaches in the past have always utilized me because I think the prospects, when they come on the campus, about 80% of the time it's been my experience they are bringing one or two parents with them too that have different questions and want to see maybe a little bit different things than the prospect himself or herself. I've always felt that they need to hear my vision and my passion from the top and reassurance that there will be stability in these kind of things because these are huge decisions that these young people are making.

I would have to think in this, again I want to talk to Coach Riley, that you're going to have top notch prospects interested in coming to Nebraska that have got a lot of different options. What can we lay out there that is going to be very impressive to them? That would be facilities and what we've got, this passionate fan base. There's nothing like it. I've been around a long time, this is pretty amazing and just the wonderful town of Lincoln. If you didn't know better you would think it was fake. These people are absolutely genuine, very welcoming, and caring. It's really a unique situation here that makes it a destination and should be a destination for young people who are interested in competing at this level at a great university.

HOL: You always hear the Nebraska fans are the most knowledgeable fans. Have you picked up on that in a week? You get people here study every little aspect of this program, whether it's the backup tackle, etc.

Moos: And I like that. Yes, I've gotten a couple of suggestions in the last week or so. They are knowledgeable. I'll be able to witness my first home game coming up this Saturday and probably get a lot better taste of that and a good feel for it.

HOL: Some new rules in recruiting came down, most notably, the December signing period. How do you see that affecting coaching movement here this year in College Football in general? We've already seen Florida, they had their own reasons, they made a move. How do you see people reacting now to this December 20th signing day this year?

Moos: This will be new. I was involved in this legislation at the NCAA level. There's a lot of positives to it. Certainly, it could be a problem and a challenge if there's going to be a coaching change at any university, so we have to see how that goes. In a program like we have here at Nebraska to secure top talent early and get it over with is good for the program and really good for the young student athlete as well.

HOL: We talked about satellite camps. That was another rule that was brought in, Nebraska took full advantage of that with their relationship with Adidas. How do you look at satellite camps? I know there's some places in the south, or even places like maybe USC or UCLA, they don't need the satellite camps. Those seem to be the guys that are against them. If you come from Washington State or Nebraska, it's really a benefit.

Moos: It's a benefit for Nebraska and other schools that are somewhat remote in regard to the huge hotbeds of talent. It's also good for the prospects themselves who maybe can't afford to get a plane ticket to come to Lincoln to go to a camp. We can go to their backyard, it's a lot more cost effective for them. Not everybody is going to be going to USC in Los Angeles. They can only take 25. I was very much a proponent of it when I was at Washington State. At the time, we had an opportunity to get in there and tap into that talent pool. Just the same, I have to think philosophy holds true here at Nebraska.

HOL: This will be the first time that we'll see prospects take official visits in the spring. I think April, May, and June will be open for visits, parents can now be paid for. It's been a couple of years now that that's been able to be done. How do you see that changing things in general and is the strategy going to be different everywhere as far as bringing the guys in early versus waiting to bring in guys late?

Moos: It speeds up the process and alleviates some of the stress and anxieties on the prospects' side. There will be some problems in regards to the academic piece. Are they going to qualify to be admitted and those kind of things? We got to see how that works out, but I really feel that if you can lock it up, much like in men's basketball for example, that early signing period in the fall, they've got it all done before they go in to their senior season. There's pros and cons to that, but I have to think that most of them are positive.

HOL: Let's talk about facilities now. You've now had a chance to really see everything at Nebraska probably in the last week or so. Overall take on the facilities and maybe an area or two that, "You know what, let's make this better over time."

Moos: I'd be safe in saying they're the best I've ever seen, and I've been everywhere.

HOL: Better than Oregon?

Moos: Yes, and Oregon is pretty good. I’ve been a builder most of my career. I’ve taken design teams around the country and looked, and cherry picked some at of the features. In fact, I brought a design team here, when we were building some things at Washington State and also when we were building some things at Oregon. Top to bottom, this is about as good as I’ve seen. I’m not just talking football, football is really good, but the basketball facilities are first cabin.

You go out to tennis, some soccer, baseball, softball. I went on a facility tour with one of my staff members. We were on a tour for four and a half hours and we got halfway done so we’re going to take the rest of it this afternoon, which I’m looking forward to. I just think it’s outstanding. That is so important first of all to attract the top talent and all these sports, but also to develop them once they're here.

We have some things that need to be addressed. Some of it is in the north and south side ends of memorial stadium, to make it a little more user friendly for our great fans. Swimming needs some attention, gymnastics. We got the number one volleyball venue in the United States and I’m eager to see that. Actually, I have gone through it, but not with 8500 fans cheering. I’ll get to see that on Friday.

HOL: Did you have a double take when you saw Devaney, "Wait a minute, this is the volleyball arena and they filled this up?"

Moos: I’d heard about it but seeing is a whole different deal. That’s Nebraska and you can see why I am so excited to be here.

HOL: When you look at the basketball arena set up too, have you seen much like that around the country, as far as the relationship of a city building a big arena, that the university pretty much can have almost ownership of the place as well?

Moos: There are a few examples, none come to mind but there are a couple. This is pretty special, I have not been in it yet, I will be in this week. I almost went to a concert there the first night I was here, but I wanted to get plenty of rest to get started. There’ll be others down the road. Its location, from the outside it’s just awesome and I’m eager to get in. I hear that when the crowds in there it’s pretty special as well.

HOL: Have you looked at getting around the state now more and familiarizing yourself with the nooks and crannies of the state and the different parts of the state over the next few months?

Moos: Yes, we’ve had a function my first night on the job in Lincoln. Then last night, Monday night we had one in Omaha. I know we’ll have a lot more, but I wanted to make sure that I got out to those two markets right away. I’m going to love going to the various small towns around the state, because that’s where I’m from and talk about husker sports, but also raising corn and wheat and soybeans and cattle. [laughs]

HOL: Moos, have you found a good steak yet in Lincoln? A lot of people want to know if "Bill Moos found a nice piece of meat in this town yet?"

Moos: Let me put it this way, I haven't found a bad one. (laughter) They take a lot of pride in the beef production here too, I can tell.

HOL: We appreciate the time and looking forward to following your tenure here in Nebraska.

Moos: It’s my pleasure. Thanks so much.