LINCOLN, NEB. ? Interim Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said Thursday he hadn’t interviewed for the permanent job and didn’t know when, or if, he would.

“There’s only one man who knows what’s going on,” Pelini said, referring to athletic director Steve Pederson.

Pelini is left to spearhead the 22nd-ranked Cornhuskers’ preparation for the Dec. 29 Alamo Bowl against Michigan State, not knowing if it will be his last game at Nebraska.

Pelini, 36, said he was strong enough to stay on task even though he faced an uncertain future.

“I’m a professional, and this is what I was hired to do,” Pelini said. “You have to fight through tough situations and have enough resolve to take care of business. If you can’t, you’re not going to be successful. Someone’s going to pass you by.”

Offensive coordinator Barney Cotton, like Pelini, said the Bowl game was the focus, and everything else would take care of itself over time.

“There is uncertainty, but we chose this profession,” Cotton said. “Probably the best thing that happened to us is we’ve got a game coming up. When I’m least distracted is when I’m preparing for Michigan State. I’m preparing for a one-game season.

“Sometimes in the wee hours of the night, it’s easier to get distracted then.”

Pelini, a nine-year NFL assistant before coming to Nebraska last December as defensive coordinator, said he hadn’t called anyone for advice on how to operate as a head coach.

“I know what it takes to run a football team,” Pelini said. “You’re organized, you do things the right way, you have your philosophies, and you implement them as you see fit.”

Pelini said he appreciated the support he had gotten from fans who have called for him to be hired as Frank Solich’s successor.

He also has strong backing from the players.

Linebacker Demorrio Williams said Pelini brought energy to a defensive unit that languished last season.

“I like him and the whole defensive staff because they carry themselves with a swagger, and I like that,” Williams said. “I think one day he will be a great head coach. He’s a young guy and he knows the game.”

Said linebacker Barrett Ruud: “He’d be a great head coach. He turned around a defense, I know that. He gets everything out of you.”