Mike Riley to Nebraska. Oregon State scrambling. And while my second call was to Riley himself, then administrators, my first call after hearing the surprising news was to Brenda Tracy.

I wrote about Tracy last month. 16 years ago she was the victim of an alleged brutal gang rape by four college football players, two of them who played at Oregon State. Her courage, in chronicling the events of June 1998 and the eventual journey that led her to become a successful nurse and whole person is an inspiring one.

I dialed Tracy.

"Do you think he'll still have me talk to the team?" she asked on Thursday.

Riley offered last month the opportunity for Tracy to continue her healing by becoming part of the program's sex-assault education and awareness effort. She's a strong speaker, and an inspiring story, but also, powerful evidence of what an alleged sex assault can do to a person.

She wrote me an email later in the day. Tracy wrote: "I don't know all of the factors that went in to him making this decision, but I can't help but feel that I had something to do with it. I have been very honest about the anger I felt towards Riley and his handling of my attackers, but that anger was never coupled with feelings of retribution or vengeance. My son's tell me that Nebraska is a great move for him and that it's a great program. I hope this is true. When you speak to him please let him know that I wish the best for him and his family. My intention today is the same as it was in the beginning - Healing for myself, healing for others and repair of a system that is broken."

While Oregon State fans may have lost a coach on Thursday, and while recruits may feel in limbo, I don't think anyone quite understands what Tracy lost. She worries she's lost a chance to make a difference.

Riley suspended the players for one game in 1998. A decision, last month, he said he regretted. Oregon State President Edward J. Ray apologized to Tracy for its handling of her report in 1998, and OSU has opened an internal investigation into it. Those findings will be important to Tracy. Further, state Sen. Peter Courtney read about Tracy's plight and is looking into legislation that would lengthen our state's flimsy six-year statute of limitations laws on sex assault.

But it was that cathartic talk that Tracy hoped to have with future Oregon State football players that she wondered about yesterday. Would OSU's new coach honor that promise and commitment? Will Riley invite her now to come to Nebraska and address his new team? Or will she become part of the wreckage left behind again?

Today, Riley was introduced as the Nebraska coach.

Riley's words last month:

"It's so sad to me that it still haunts her. It's scary what that means to a lady," Riley said. "Maybe retribution would have helped that. I don't know. I just reminded our team here recently about those things that will change their life and others in a blink of an eye."

Oregon State must decide what it will allow Tracy to do. Will the Huskers coach Riley honor his promise?

--- @JohnCanzanoBFT