Mike Riley takes helm at Nebraska
— -- LINCOLN, Neb. -- Mike Riley said he is ready to accept the challenge of winning championships at Nebraska even though he never won one in 14 years at Oregon State.
"We are in this together to build young men and win championships, and they don't have to be exclusive of each other," Riley said Friday at his introductory news conference. "We're going to do it right. We're going to work hard."
Riley will have a five-year contract that pays him $2.7 million annually. He'll receive automatic $100,000 increases in each year of a contract that runs through Feb. 28, 2020. Riley had been the lowest-paid coach in the Pac-12, making a reported $1.5 million this year.
Former Nebraska coach Bo Pelini was paid $3.1 million this year.
Riley was 93-80, with wins in six of eight bowl games during two stints totaling 14 years at Oregon State. The Beavers were 5-7 this season.
He takes over a program that ranks fourth in all-time wins and has won five national championships. The Huskers have not won a conference title since 1999.
Riley said the history and tradition of Nebraska gives him confidence the pieces are in place for him to be successful.
"At the stage of my career, it was an opportunity to try something one more time," said Riley, who is 61. "If you're going to do it one more time, this is a great chance to do it at a great place."
Riley had a little more than 25,000 Twitter followers on Thursday, but the number doubled in less than 24 hours since Nebraska announced his hiring.
Athletic director Shawn Eichorst first contacted Riley on Monday, the day after Pelini was fired after posting a 66-27 record over seven seasons. Riley's hiring was announced Thursday.
Riley said his first order of business will be to assemble his staff. He said he had a good idea of who from Oregon State would join him at Nebraska, but he declined to identify those assistants. He said he would consider retaining some of the current Nebraska assistants.
Information from The Associated Press and ESPN.com's Darren Rovell was included in this report.
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