Trev Alberts departed Nebraska to take the athletic director position at Texas A&M in a notable personnel move that took many by surprise, including several Cornhuskers coaches in various sports who were traveling around the country when the news broke. One other highly-placed official who wasn’t pleased by the news was Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen.

Pillen, who played football for the Cornhuskers in the 1970s, issued a call to action to Nebraska’s regents less than a day after the news became official.

“I am deeply disappointed by Trev Alberts’ decision to leave so soon after restating his commitment to Nebraska and I don’t fully understand or know his reasons why,” Gov. Pillen said in a statement.

He added: “I do know that the time for reflecting on the failures of University leadership, which led to his decision, must come later. Now is the time to act.”

Alberts has not given an official reason why he decided to leave Nebraska, but he has noted in interviews that he was disappointed that NU regents had not hired a president to replace Ted Carter, who took the same job with Ohio State last August.

“It has been 206 days since Ted Carter announced his departure as president,” Pillen said. “It is unacceptable that the University’s elected leaders have failed during this time to appoint permanent leadership.”

He added: “It is imperative that they act urgently and decisively to end this uncertainty. Without any delay, they should support Interim President Chris Kabourek’s efforts to immediately appoint a new permanent athletic director.”