In a somewhat surprising development, Scott Frost was named head coach of the University of Central Florida over the weekend. As most Husker fans know, this will be his second stint with UCF. After laying low since being released by Nebraska in 2022, Frost is back on the major college football scene in a big way. Here are four thoughts on his return to Orlando.

When it comes to Frost, things get complicated for Nebraska fans. We did a series about it in the summer Joint fan podcast titled “The Reckoning” looks back at every coach of the post-Osborne era and attempts to assess what has gone wrong in Nebraska football since TO’s retirement. Our episode about Frost entitled How in the world did Scott Frost not work in Nebraska??, is our most-watched and most-downloaded episode of all time. The number of comments we received in response to this episode show that the fanbase is very upset with how the Frost Era turned out.

I’m really glad Frost is getting another chance to be a head coach. It will always be shocking to me that his tenure at Nebraska went so poorly. Yes, there were rumors about personal and professional shortcomings, lack of attention to detail, lateness to meetings, lack of commitment to recruiting, you name it. Most of us will never know to what extent any of this was true or not. But I think he really wanted to make it work at Nebraska. He wanted to do it for his father, for Tom Osborne, for the entire state. Was the burden of the job too much for him? Most likely. Ultimately, his record and any mistakes he may have made at Nebraska belong to him. There is no hiding from it. But to me, he will always be a Husker legend as a player, and that counts for a lot. I get the feeling that most Husker fans are happy that he’s getting a chance at redemption, even if they’re still a little skeptical about how his time in Lincoln turned out. Hopefully he learned from his failed stint at Nebraska, and hopefully he finds both success and peace in his second attempt at Central Florida.

Now, if he leads the Knights to the playoffs in the very weak Big 12 before Nebraska reaches the CFP, it will test the goodwill of Husker fans…

Impressive recovery. In case you forgot, Frost was fired three games into the 2022 season. He stayed away from coaching for the remainder of the 2022 and 2023 seasons and worked as a staff member for the Los Angeles Rams this year. It often takes time for fired coaches to work their way back into the ranks of another top position at a power conference program. It wouldn’t have been surprising if Frost had gotten an offensive coordinator job somewhere, or maybe even taken a head coaching job at a lower level program. Or after his stay with the Rams this season, you had to wonder if he might try to rebuild his career in the NFL. Landing back in Central Florida is pretty impressive. Unlike the last time he was at UCF (when they competed in the American Athletic Conference), the school is now a member of the Big 12. So not only did he get another head coaching job, it’s an upgrade to boot! It seems Frost still feels a lot of affection after his first appearance in Orlando, which included a magical 13-0 win in 2017. One has to assume he wants to stay for the long haul this time.

Better chances of success? Let’s face it: Right now, the Big 12 is the fourth of four top conferences when it comes to football. This is no disrespect to Arizona State, Iowa State, Kansas State or Colorado, but the top of the conference isn’t quite on par with the other three. That’s not a bad thing for Frost. His offense will likely work better in the Big 12, where defense and tackling are seemingly optional for some teams. He will be surrounded by speed and talent at Florida State and the wider region, where he has known the environment since his first time at UCF. There are plenty of reasons to believe he can find success again in Orlando in a way he never did in Lincoln.

What will the staff look like? It will be interesting to see how Frost builds his staff of assistant coaches. He remained loyal to his friend and defensive coordinator Erik Chinander until the end, perhaps unfairly. Chinander had a successful run as Boise State’s defensive coordinator this season heading into the playoffs. Would Frost want his old pal back at UCF? Given its playoff credentials and impending move to the PAC 12, would Chinander even consider the move?

Others that come to mind include Ryan Held, who was on his staff at UCF and Nebraska and now directs the program at the University of Nebraska-Kearney. There’s also Sean Beckton, a UCF Hall of Famer who was employed by Frost at both campuses and spent the 2024 season as an analyst with the Knights. And of course, Husker legend Barrett Ruud began his coaching career with Frost at UCF, coached linebackers at Nebraska and is now the inside linebackers coach for the Atlanta Falcons. If Chinander stays in Boise, will Ruud get his first chance as defensive coordinator?

It appears that some bridges were burned by the end of Frost’s tenure with the Huskers. I’m curious to see if familiar names appear on his team or if he decides to make a fresh start with a completely new crew.

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