Scott Frost is gonna Scott Frost.

When he was a Nebraska quarterback, that was a good thing. When Frost is Nebraska’s coach, it’s abject disaster after abject disaster. The indignity continued with 2022’s season-opening 31-28 loss to Northwestern.

You can change the assistant coaches around him and give the Cornhuskers all the window dressing you want. Frost has spent 5 seasons in Lincoln — and now a week in Dublin, Ireland — proving that he’s incapable of getting out of his own way.

Frost is now 5-21 in 1-score games at Nebraska. He’s 3-21 when trailing at halftime — which is all the more remarkable considering how infrequently the Cornhuskers are blown out.

There’s very little reason to believe it’s ever going to happen for Frost at his alma mater. Even when it appeared he finally had things figured out — an 11-point third-quarter lead and all the momentum in the world, or at least Europe — Frost managed to sabotage himself and the entire state of Nebraska.

Entrusting the special teams unit that Phil Steele ranked 129th nationally a year ago to execute a surprise onside kick was a wholly unnecessary gamble. And it’s one he’s likely to regret for a very long time, as Northwestern finished the game on a 14-0 run.

Nebraska’s second-half play calling was just as perplexing as the onside kick. After the Wildcats lost both starting cornerbacks to injury, the Cornhuskers appeared to get less aggressive pushing the ball downfield.

Many Nebraska fans are undoubtedly hoping Frost doesn’t even make it back to the United States with his job intact. Things are so bad that even the FCS Big Sky Conference is throwing shade at Nebraska.

But Huskers AD Trev Alberts made this bed when he restructured Frost’s contract this offseason rather than firing him. Now Alberts has to sleep in it.

Frost’s last-gasp season has an opportunity for redemption built in before Nebraska’s next Big Ten game. And that game will be the referendum on his continued employment.

Oklahoma week is Frost’s real make-or-break

Playing the season opener in Dublin is Frost’s version of the luck of the Irish. The logistics of firing him in a week with a short turnaround are nightmarish. There’s a very good chance of losing the team if Alberts pulls the trigger this early, which would be short-sighted.

The primary goal here — playing in a bowl game for the first time since 2016 — is still very much on the table for Nebraska. Back-to-back games against North Dakota and Georgia Southern will be needed confidence-boosters before the most important game of Frost’s coaching career — Oklahoma’s first visit to Memorial Stadium since 2009.

If the Huskers can pull off the upset, most of the psychological damage Big Red Nation has endured over the past 5 years (or longer) finds a needed release. For old-timers anxious to return to glory, derailing the hated Sooner Schooner is a form of fulfillment.

And there’s no reason Nebraska can’t win that game. The Huskers had the Sooners on the ropes in Norman last season. But typical Nebraska-under-Frost things happened — 2 missed field goals, plus a blocked extra point that Oklahoma returned for 2 points.

Considering how much of the roster Lincoln Riley made off with when he left for USC, it’s fair to presume Nebraska is in better shape relative to last year than Oklahoma will be. And it’s a home game.

If the Huskers win — especially if it’s a close game — it might even turn into positive momentum for the rest of the season. That’s the type of win that alters a program’s direction.

And if the Huskers lose by blowout or in another close tragicomedy, then it’s the right time to make a change.

Nebraska has an open week followed by the homecoming game against Indiana. If the Huskers are 2-2, that homecoming crowd will want to see a new face on the sideline. And that new face would have an extra week to prepare. (It also probably won’t be a “new” face at all. Expect former Huskers QB Mickey Joseph to get the nod as interim coach should Alberts be forced to pull the ripcord.)

Demoralizing as things feel for Nebraska at the moment, there’s still reason to think this can be a bowl team whether or not Frost is the coach at the end of the season.

A glimmer of hope?

You have to do a lot of squinting to find any optimism out of a stunningly disappointing effort from Nebraska’s defense. The Big Ten’s worst offense in 2021 torched the Blackshirts for 527 yards and 31 points. The Cats haven’t gone over 500 yards since the 2020 opener against Maryland.

But there’s more to that than meets the eye.

Northwestern returned 4 starting offensive linemen this year. Left tackle Peter Skoronski might be the best player at his position in the country. Nebraska won’t run into another front-5 this stout until it travels to Michigan on Nov. 12.

That’s a lot of time to get better. Of course, time might not matter if the Huskers don’t find a linebacker capable of filling JoJo Domann’s shoes, because right now it doesn’t look like that player is on the roster.

But the schedule sets up in a way that the Huskers could still right the ship before heading into the sharp teeth of November.

Nebraska fans don’t want to hear about hope right now. Or watch Frost turn another victory into defeat. They just want some damn wins.

For now, unlikely though it may seem, the best way to get there is staying the course with Frost.

Until the end of September, anyway.