San Francisco 49ers

Osborne was selected in the nineteenth round (222nd overall) of the 1959 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He was eventually released by the 49ers without playing in a regular season game.

Washington Redskins

The Washington Redskins picked up Osborne in 1960 and he made his NFL debut on November 6 against the St. Louis Cardinals. He had one reception for eight yards in a 44–6 Redskins loss. In his second game a few weeks later, Osborne caught six passes for 36 yards against the Cleveland Browns, but Washington lost again, 27–16.

Osborne saw more playing time in 1961, starting twelve games. He scored his first career touchdown against the Browns in Week 4, and his second against the Cardinals in Week 12. Osborne's last career game, a 34–24 Washington win over Dallas, was his only career victory.

Nebraska

In 1962, Osborne joined Nebraska's coaching staff as an unpaid assistant to head coach Bob Devaney; his only compensation was the ability to dine at the athletic training table. After disappointing 6–4 seasons in both 1967 and 1968, Devaney named Osborne offensive coordinator for the 1969 season. Osborne immediately overhauled the offense, switching to a balanced attack operated from the I formation. The revamped offense sparked the 1970 Cornhuskers to the first national title in program history. Nebraska defeated LSU 17–12 in the Orange Bowl on New Year's night and finished first in the post-bowl AP Poll. Nebraska won the national title again in 1971, becoming the first champion ever to defeat the next three teams in the final AP Poll (Oklahoma, Colorado, and Alabama).

Devaney stepped down as head coach after the 1972 season to concentrate on his duties as athletic director, and named Osborne his successor. Devaney's final game was a convincing win over Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl, Nebraska's third straight Orange Bowl victory. At age 35, Osborne took over as Nebraska's head coach, a position he would hold for 25 years until his retirement following the 1997 season.

In his quarter-century as head coach, Osborne was a model of consistency. His teams never won fewer than nine games in a season, only finished worse than third in conference or division play once, finished in the top 15 of the final AP poll 24 out of 25 years, and were ranked in the top 25 for 304 out of his 307 games as head coach–including every weekly poll from October 12, 1981 onward. Osborne's teams won outright national championships in 1994 and 1995, and a share of another in 1997. Osborne's Huskers also won or shared 13 conference championships (12 Big Eight, one Big 12). His 255–49–3 record gave him the best winning percentage (83.6%) among active coaches at the time of his retirement and the fifth-best of all time, and he won 250 games faster than any coach in Division I-A history. Osborne finished his coaching career with a bowl record of 12–13.

Osborne's teams were known for their powerful rushing attack and strong defense (also known as the Blackshirts—a reference to the black jerseys worn in practice by NU's defensive starters). Using Osborne's trademark I-form option, Nebraska led the nation in rushing several times in the 1980s and 1990s, due to the efforts of players like Jarvis Redwine, Heisman Trophy winner Mike Rozier, Calvin Jones, Ahman Green, and Lawrence Phillips. Osborne's offenses were initially balanced attacks, but after struggling against Oklahoma's wishbone option in the 1970s, he switched to a run-based option to better utilize the versatility of dual-threat quarterbacks such as Jeff Quinn, Turner Gill, Tommie Frazier, and Scott Frost.

One of the enduring moments of Osborne's tenure was the 1984 Orange Bowl. Nebraska entered the game 12–0 and had been ranked No. 1 the entire season. The Cornhuskers scored a late touchdown against No. 5 Miami to cut the Hurricanes' lead to 31–30, but rather than kick the extra point to tie (which would have won the national title for NU), Osborne opted to attempt the two-point conversion and go for the win. However, Gill's pass attempt was tipped away in the end zone, giving hometown Miami the victory and their first national championship.

Nebraska lost another heartbreaking title game in the 1994 Orange Bowl. Despite going into the game as a 17-point underdog, the Cornhuskers held a 16–15 lead on Florida State with less than two minutes remaining. After Florida State drove to retake the lead 18–16, Nebraska hit a quick downfield pass to get one last field goal attempt as time ran out, which sailed wide.

The next year, Osborne finally earned his first title as head coach, defeating Miami in the Orange Bowl. The Huskers trailed 10–0 after one quarter, but rallied to win 24–17. The next year, the Cornhuskers roared through the regular season, winning every game by at least 14 points and shattering offensive records. Nebraska defeated Florida 62–24 in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl to earn Osborne his second national championship. Many pundits consider NU's 1995 team the best college football team of all time.^[4]

Osborne announced his retirement late in the 1997 season, selecting longtime I-backs coach Frank Solich to succeed him. In his final game, Nebraska won the national championship with a 42–17 victory over Tennessee. In his final five seasons, Osborne's record was a staggering 60–3, which remains the strongest finale to any Division I coaching career.

Honors

In 1995, Osborne received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.^[5][6]

In 1998, Nebraska renamed the playing surface at Memorial Stadium "Tom Osborne Field." The stadium nearly doubled in size during his three decades on NU's coaching staff, a reflection of Nebraska's increased national prominence in that time.

Osborne was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1999 and received the Jim Thorpe Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000. In 1999, ESPN named Osborne the "coach of the decade" for the 1990s.^[7] A 2007 poll named Osborne the "greatest college football coach of all time".^[8]

In 2013, the NAIA Football National Championship trophy was named the "Tom Osborne Trophy."^[9] In 2018, Osborne was inducted into the National High School Hall of Fame.^[10]

Coaching tree

Osborne's Nebraska coaching staffs were renowned for their lack of turnover. Several assistants were known to have declined head coaching offers elsewhere to remain with the program. Notable examples include George Darlington (30 seasons), Milt Tenopir (29 seasons),^[11] and Charles McBride (23 seasons)^[12] all of whom had opportunities to become head coaches. Darlington was the first assistant coach in Division I-A history to be involved in 300 wins at one school.^[13] However, several assistant coaches and players under Osborne did go on to become NCAA head coaches:

• Craig Bohl: North Dakota State (2003–13), Wyoming (2014–2023)
• Scott Frost: UCF (2016-2017), Nebraska (2018–2022)
• Turner Gill: Buffalo (2006–09), Kansas (2010–11), Liberty (2012–18)
• Frank Solich: Nebraska (1998–2003), Ohio (2005–2020)
• Tony Samuel: New Mexico State (1997–2004), Southeast Missouri State (2006–13)
• Monte Kiffin: North Carolina State (1980-1982)
• Warren Powers: Washington State (1977), Missouri (1978-1984)

Head coaching record

^[14][15][16]

House of Representatives

Early in 2000, Osborne announced that he would run in Nebraska's 3rd District as a Republican. He had grown up in Hastings, one of the larger cities in the sprawling district, and claimed a home in Lemoyne, near Ogallala, as his district residence. However, he hadn't lived regularly in the district since at least 1964; for most of that time he lived in Lincoln, the heart of the 1st District. Nonetheless, due to his wide popularity in the state, he easily won the Republican primary, which was tantamount to election in what has long been one of the most Republican districts in the nation. He breezed to victory in November with 83 percent of the vote. He was reelected with no major-party opposition in 2002 and against a Democrat in 2004.

In Congress, Osborne's voting record was moderate to conservative. He garnered a lifetime rating of 83 from the American Conservative Union.

At one point, Osborne teamed up with Nebraska State Senator Ernie Chambers, normally his political adversary, to oppose efforts to expand gambling in Nebraska.^[24]

Following Osborne's congressional service, President George W. Bush appointed him as a member of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service in 2007, but he resigned in 2008.^[25][26]

2006 governor's race

In 2006, Osborne ran for Governor of Nebraska, challenging incumbent Dave Heineman and Omaha businessman Dave Nabity in the Republican primary.

Osborne was initially thought to be the favorite in the race, given his tremendous popularity in the state. However, Heineman took 49 percent of the more than 197,000 votes cast to Osborne's 45 percent.^[27]

The Lincoln Journal Star analyzed the race:

While Osborne captured populous Omaha and Lincoln, Heineman sealed his victory in rural counties and key population centers in western and central Nebraska's critical Republican battleground ... it was the political impact of two gubernatorial vetoes that appeared to lift [Heineman] into a late surge, especially in Osborne's congressional district.

Heineman's opposition to Class I rural school reorganization and the granting of resident college tuition rates to the children of illegal immigrants cut into Osborne's support. Osborne declined to sign referendum petitions seeking voter repeal of the rural school legislation and said he would have signed the resident tuition bill."