Reading the bio accompanying Solich's NFF Hall of Fame announcement reminds me of the giddy "Got Frank" days following his hiring at OU and the record since he's been here would not have been predicted, even then.  Thanks and Congratulations, Coach.

Nebraska Hall Calls Solich

Agreed.  We should all be greatful to have thiscoach on OUr sidelines!

Absolutely! I'm happy to have lived to be a witness to it and a part of it.

OUr boys and the University are blessed to have a great coach like Solich...  Congratulations Coach.. Well deserved.

This was an honor Solich deserved, and he is a good coach.

The fascinating thing to me has been to watch the change in the Ohio fan base. I remember in the 2005-2006 time period the fans were almost manic-depressive. After a win the fans would think Ohio would win out, and after a loss, the fans would start asking when BB season started. Now there is a much higher level of comfort with where the program is. There is disappointment after losses, but always an optimism that the next game will be better.

The other thing that I find very interesting, in refection, is that if you look just at the record, after 4 years, there wasn't really a lot to look at and say "wow, a lot has been accomplished". 
2004  4-7
2005 4-7
2006 9-5
2007 6-6
2008 4-8

Sure, there was the Pitt win, and then 2006 was a good year, but after 4 full years, the 2008 record wasn't really all that much different than the record from 2004.  Sadly the archive disaster wiped out all that history, but I while i do remember disappointment over the 2007-2008 seasons, I don't recall any fans at all calling for a coaching change. At most schools, a large portion of the fans would have said "OK, he had 4 years, and we are right back where we started."  That didn't happen here, at all, so far as I recall, not even once that I remember.

Yes, the fans at Ohio deserve credit, too. They obviously could see the progress, and they have been rewarded for their patience as Ohio has gone 9-5, 8-5, and 10-4, with two MAC East championships, 3 bowl games, and a bowl win since then. I have little doubt there will be many more good things in the future, too, or that the program is heading in the right direction.

You also had T3 out for the season that year. I'm not saying that fans were wrong. They were were clearly right. I'm just saying that at most programs fans are very short sighted.

Our depth has improved, but 2008 was an example of a team that simply couldn't hang on to the ball at critical moments.  That was a talented team with a pretty stout D. osu scored 19 offensive points against us even though we handed them the ball 6 times.

Hey, let's all take five minutes to feel good about the Frank Solich era.

DA, didn't make the trek from Orlando to Athens that night, but I certainly was glued to the TV and truly pumped that we GOT FRANK!

You could tell the game had changed during the Grobe years.  The MAC was becoming more relevant with several teams cracking the top 25.  Kareem Wilson, Hookfin and the entire defense brought a lot of new fans.  Some carried over for the first year of Knorr.  Many of those new Grobe era fans did not have far to return once Frank came on board. 

That triple option under Grobe brought back a lot of fans that had not been seen for decades.  It was fun to watch under Wilson.  Jackson and Hawk did not have as much to work with.  That offense was good for a few wins.  Once teams realized we could never pass the ball the season was over.  (Although Hawk to Mayle was an improvement)  Frank brought in the real talent and created a whole new Ohio football experience. 

Don't get me wrong....I'm not knocking the option. A well-executed triple option offense is a beautiful thing to watch. My point was that the players we had did not fit the system our coaches were trying to use, and the coaches were either unable or unwilling to adapt one to fit the other. We do not have that problem now.