12 Dobson Rules Can Pave the Way to a Championship Season

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"Men do what they have to do! Boys do what they want to do."

One of Nebraska's leading linebackers felt compelled to tweet that quote to the world as the countdown to Nebraska's fall camp keeps ticking to that first practice on Saturday.

Will Compton, a junior linebacker from Missouri, used only the last name "Dobson" as attribution, figuring everybody in his tweet world will know he's talking about James Dobson, who's had more influence on him and his 154 Husker teammates these past three months than the Pelini brothers and his linebacker coach combined.

Indeed, NCAA rules prohibit players from getting off-season coaching with one exception - the strength and conditioning staff headed by Dobson and supported by Chad Wade, Tyler Clarke, Willis Jones and Brandon Rigoni.

It seems only natural, then, to let Big Red fans know what's been swirling through the minds of all Huskers since they left for home last May before returning to Lincoln three weeks later to build their bodies and equip their minds for a championship run in their inaugural year as a member of the storied Big Ten Conference.

While playbooks are constant off-season companions, these next 12 statements are woven into the Nebraska football culture. Therefore, they have become the collective mindset that Dobson is using to transform individual players into a team that intends to bond so tight, it is destined to succeed.

Dobson: Every Rule Has a Story Behind It

Here are 12 Dobson-inspired rules intended to pave the way to a championship season:

Rule #1) Never complain

Rule #2) Don't ever feel sorry for yourself

Rule #3) Compete

Rule #4) Crush your enemy totally

Rule #5) Ignore the noise

Rule #6) Prepare

Rule #7) Amidst turmoil, never lose your mind

Rule #8) Create a sense of urgency

Rule #9) Know your role

Rule #10) Work hard - outwork your opponent

Rule #11) No excuses

Rule #12) Focus on the process

Thursday, Dobson sat in his office in that rare calm before the storm, a.k.a. the rigor of fall camp. He was focused, engaged and confident that members of the 2011 Nebraska football team were "all in" on those 12 rules and have used them as a baseline for something bigger and better than last season's 10-4 finish.

He has seen the players take it upon themselves to amplify their drill instructor's no-nonsense approach. They bonded at backyard barbecues, learned to trust each other and found their own ways to do what they have to do.

Maybe Compton's tweet became a popular outgrowth of Dobson's 12 rules for universal order inside and outside a Husker uniform, and maybe it can become an amendment to make those 12 rules even smarter than a dozen.

"Every one of those 12 things has a personal story behind them for me," Dobson said. "Some come from something I've read in a book. Some are from Coach Bo. They're just a mixture of things we think about and use every day we walk into this place."

The 12-Rule Card Fits Both Bo and the Program

Dobson gave all 155 Husker players a 3-by-5 laminated card with those 12 principles popping out at them in white from an all-black background. He hasn't found an origin for the difference between men and boys quote. "But I use it because it fits us, and it fits Coach Bo," he said. "This program is built on accountability, maturity and discipline, and that quote says it all right there."

Nebraska's head strength coach believes there are certain things you have to do in your life, and they go well beyond football. Football players "have" to be accountable academically, socially and family-wise. They also have to be accountable to prepare for a profession they envision after college.

Growing up with his family's dairy farms in Wisconsin, Dobson understood why there are certain things you have to do, even though you may not want to do them. Milking cows every morning did not dazzle a young man's fancy, but it gave him purpose, structure and a certain order that he used to chart his life. He went on to earn a B.S. degree in kinesiology from Wisconsin at the same time he worked as a student assistant with the Badger football team.

Dobson became a strength and conditioning coach at SMU, earned a master's of science and administration degree at Central Michigan and worked under highly regarded Chris Doyle on the Iowa strength staff during the most successful football period in Hawkeye history.

He knows that if you're going to be successful, you have to do things that "may be a pain in the butt," but you have to do them every day. At Nebraska, there is no door that opens as a path of least resistance. Bo Pelini, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten player at Ohio State, sees a direct correlation between disciple in the classroom and accountability on the field.

"The staple of this football program at this university is to develop young men for life," Dobson said, adding that he relishes his role in transforming boys from doing what they want to do into men doing what they have to do.

Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall, They've Got a Friend

"We're around these guys all the time," Dobson said. "We're with 'em winter, spring, summer and fall, and we reinforce that message constantly."

It starts with a head coach that knows what he wants his program to be about, and it trickles to all assistants, including Dobson.

"We have to stay with it every day - preach it, be with it, go with it, believe in it," Dobson said. "It's not a sometime kind of a thing. It's a daily thing. We talk about it, and we live it, every single day. Some guys are now in their fourth year in the program, and they really buy into it because they see results. They see all the good things that come from having those 12 principles as their daily guide."

Dobson truly believes that everyone wants discipline in their life and most and, in fact, "are screaming" for it. "We've recruited guys in here that love accountability and want to be held accountable," he said.

In a keynote luncheon speech this week, Bo said accountability and chemistry are at an all-time high in his fourth year at Nebraska.

"It's the evolution of the program," Dobson said. "Three years ago, we had younger guys in here learning what the focus was. Now, they're the older guys and they're saying: 'You know what? I'm going to run with this. I've earned my right to say things.' Personally, I want those guys saying that because I know they kind of have it. They think right, and they believe in what we believe in."

Catalysts for Camaraderie and Confidence Builders

Dobson knows chemistry takes time to build, and he realizes that leadership is the match that starts the fire. So last winter, he asked two players at each position to be the catalysts for camaraderie, the confidence-builders that emerge with trusted control.

True to his style, Dobson does not acknowledge the leaders' names because that's not the point. He's just proud that a handful of guys stepped up and let everyone know that even though they all might be different, there is only one goal at Nebraska - to be a champion - and that means there are no options when it comes to togetherness. They understood it wasn't just the coaches' job to make sure everyone trusted everyone else. It was their job, too.

"When you walk into this weight room, you better be uncomfortable," Dobson said in his office, located in the boys-to-men weight room. "We have to make you uncomfortable. If you're comfortable doing those things, you're never going to get better."

Dobson met with his team leaders one-on-one last winter, and he encouraged them to speak up, get involved and get on their teammates if they're weren't pulling their weight. "It's uncomfortable as an athlete, a person and a leader," Dobson said. "But a lot of them did it, and it's carried over to a lot of other guys. It had a snowball effect."

Winning a Championship = The One and Only Option

It reminded Dobson of a story about a coach that once asked his players a challenging question.

"Who wants to win a championship?" he asked.

Every hand in the room went up.

"All right," the coach replied. "Then, I hope every guy whose hand went up realizes you have absolutely have no options ... none. You just gave 'em up. You have one - to do whatever it takes to win the championship. Anything outside of that, you can't go there. Every team around the country is waving their hands just like you are, and they think they have options. They think they can go out on Saturday night and do whatever they want. But the ones who raise their hands and mean it, they know better."

That story made sense to Dobson. "It stuck with me," he said, admitting it was the trigger for an approach he decided to try.

"The best discipline you're ever going to have is the discipline spread within the team itself ... guys taking care of guys ... being your brother's keeper," Dobson said. "You better be there for your teammates and not just some of the time, but all the time."

That's part of the story behind the 155 laminated cards distributed last winter with 12 action items. Dobson has no idea where each player keeps that card, whether it's in their lockers or next to their alarm clocks to remind them of something very important every time they wake up or turn off the light.

Early to Bed, Early to Rise Makes 'Men' Championship-Wise

Dobson just knows he definitely sees something different in his fourth year at Nebraska, and he believes it's based on distributed leadership that has enabled talented and committed players to get up on time every morning, eat a good breakfast and train their bodies and minds for rigorous exercise and extreme discipline.

Regimentation is a word now well embraced, and it applies to study hall, meetings and game film. "You have to go to bed on time," Dobson said. "You can't play Play Station with Joe Shmo late at night because you have to get up and do it all over again the next day. It's a daily process, an academic process, a social process and a training process. Every little thing affects the next thing. That's why you always focus on the next step."

Nebraska is now able to focus on the next step, almost in lockstep, because, over the past seven months following a Holiday Bowl loss to Washington, the Huskers have chosen to change together, grow together, recommit together and focus squarely on what could be the toughest schedule in Big Ten Conference history.

Dobson and his staff spurred that commitment to reach beyond football and into the respective psyches of each and every teammate. Last winter, he asked the leaders to get their position groups together every week so they could get to know each other outside of football. Dobson didn't care if they decided to have a barbecue or sit in a room watching film. He just wanted them together so they could say hi, ask what was going on and maybe, just maybe, have some fun.

"Each group met every week, just like we asked, throughout the winter," Dobson said.

The idea was to force the Huskers out of the cliques and the buddy systems that always seem to be part of big rosters. What do college-age boys/men do when they're forced to get together for something other than football? Well, cookouts turned into movie outings, paintball competition and whatever else they might consider to chill out.  "The whole goal was just see your teammates in a different light than you do during football or training," Dobson said. "Who knows? Sometimes, you end up liking the guy you didn't expect to like or, at the very least, respecting him and learning to get along with him."

Designated Leaders No Longer Had to Be Told

It took a lot to get the concept going, but once launched, nothing was going to stop it.  

"This summer, I didn't say a thing about it, and the guys just kept doing it," Dobson said. "Then, all of a sudden, they all started getting the whole team together. They went here and they went there. It didn't matter where they went. The point was they wanted to be together. I quit handling it when I knew they wanted to handle it, and they've gone on done a great job bringing everyone together."

Dobson knows why it worked. "Obviously, they started to like each other," he said. "Their agendas are no longer different. Our guys are all on the same page, and it's good to see that. They're focused on one goal, one purpose. To have a chance, that's the way it has to be. I don't think you'll ever be where you want to be because you're always striving to get better, each and every day. Even when you win a national championship, you have to start all over again the next year."

Liking each other is hardly a prerequisite for success. "Think of your own life," Dobson said. "I don't have 155 guys who like me. The point is, you don't have to like everyone, but you do need to respect those that are part of the family."

And make no mistake. Football is a family. "Being here for three years and going on four now, guys have built a certain capacity to do things," Dobson said. "They're always working and doing something, year-round, so when they have time off, we expect them to take some time off. Over a period of time, their ability to do those things gets better and better and better. Now that we're more mature as a program, we're able to handle conditioning better, speed better, football practice better ... everything."

No wonder Dobson feels good about Nebraska's overall physical shape. "We can be great athletes, but we have to be great football players," he said. "Now we want to take what we've done here and put it on the field," he said. "I'm more performance-driven than numbers driven. To me, the most important point is how good of a football player are you? It's not how high you can jump or how much you can bench or squat or clean. All those things are great, and they will all get better if you focus on being a great football player."

He Knows When NU's Last Conference Title Was

A comprehensive set of physical tools has been honed and ready to be integrated into offensive, defensive and special teams systems. "It's not just strength or just power or just conditioning," Dobson said. "It all comes into one, and that's what we focus on."

Hearing that, you understand why practice is the first step to improve the process and why Tennessee-Chattanooga has to rank ahead of Washington or Wisconsin in the minds of Nebraska coaches and players.

And, of course, that means a conference championship has to rank ahead of any notion of a national championship. So I ask Dobson the question I wanted to ask in the first place: Do you know the last time Nebraska has won a conference championship?

"Do I know?" Dobson repeats. "Every morning, I look up at the Hawks Championship Banner, and it tells me the answer ... 1999. That's a long time, especially at a place like Nebraska. We've been close the last two years, but not good enough. Bottom line, you win championships one day at a time and one step at a time. We've had a great winter, a great spring and a great summer. Now, we're ready to focus on fall camp. Hopefully, we've gotten a lot better and can take it to the next level."

Here's perhaps the most interesting thing about James Dobson: He spent nine years on the coaching staff at Iowa, Nebraska's designated in-division rival that replaces Oklahoma and Colorado on the Huskers' traditional post-Thanksgiving schedule.

Dobson is too busy to check out the media, but he's well aware that Nebraska has received almost a hero's welcome into a league that will now feature a "Heroes Game" between the Huskers and the Hawkeyes.

He Also Knows Why the Welcome Mats Are Out

"They're really looking forward to us coming into the league, and so is everyone else in the Big Ten" Dobson said. "They're all welcoming us with open arms because they want to beat our ass. That's the bottom line."

Dobson remembers when Penn State joined the league. "They ran the table and wiped us out," he said. "They went to the Rose Bowl and everything right off the bat, and that still sticks in the backs of some people's minds."

Nebraska's tough-minded, highly respected strength coach doesn't have to think twice about what's in front of Nebraska this fall.

"Every time we go into a Big Ten venue, and every time they come into ours, it's going to be about "Beat Nebraska!" Dobson said. "Let's face it. I grew up and lived in Wisconsin. Every Thanksgiving it was Oklahoma-Nebraska. All I ever heard was Nebraska, Nebraska, Nebraska. I got sick of hearing it.

"Now they get their chance to beat Nebraska. Every week it's going to be like that, even for the so-labeled 'not so good teams.' We're going to be their bowl game. Playing us will define a big part of their season. There's no question in my mind - we're going to get the best shot from every team we play."

Of course, having played in the league, Bo knows what's coming.

That's why he supported Dobson going to such great lengths to help Nebraska build itself into such a tight-knit group.

Everyone's Best Shot Should Trigger Nebraska's Best

"Since we know we're going to get everyone's best shot, we're trying to prepare ourselves and make sure everyone we play gets our best shot, too," Dobson said.

"Create a sense of urgency" is the eighth rule on James Dobson's road to a championship season, and he is now in his eighth month of implementing that important part of his championship manifesto.

"I have complete confidence that everyone on this team has trained hard and is fully prepared to practice hard," he said. "If we do that and everything else on that 3-by-5 laminated card, I think we have a chance."

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