In Tommy We Trust!

Tommy Went Down, But He Got Back Up!

When the Nebraska Cornhuskers left last week for Columbus, Ohio, the world was completely different. Donald Trump wasn’t the President Elect of the United States and Nebraska was wounded from losing to Wisconsin, but not broken down and beaten like they were about to be coming out of Ohio.

In hindsight, it probably wasn’t hard to foresee if you didn’t have crimson colored glasses on.  Ohio State was coming into the game fighting for their college playoff lives, loaded with years of top level recruiting. Nebraska was coming into the game, coming off a hard fought game in Madison that was for the division win, but hanging together on the offensive line with duct tape and bailing wire.  Ohio State was ready to unload, and the Huskers were stuck in first gear.

It didn’t help that midway through the game Tommy Armstrong hit his head on the turf on a hit out of bounds, lying there motionless.  As Tommy was being attended to, I know many Husker fans sat there wondering what had just gone wrong.  As much grief as fans give Armstrong, when he goes out, Nebraska’s chances of winning basically go down the drain.  After he went out, the offense was out of options and the defense folded under the pressure for the first time this season.

Nebraska has certainly been on the wrong end of a lot of blowouts the last 15 years, starting with Black Friday in Colorado in 2001.  We all kind of were under the impression that Mike Riley had the ship out of muddy waters when it came to games like this.  Looking a little deeper though, one could easily identify why this team could get into this type of situation.

Nebraska under Bo Pelini languished around the top 35 in recruiting over his tenure.  In 2011 when Pelini had a top 20 class, loaded with what seemed like potential game changers, the majority of that class either washed out or transferred.  Nebraska has recruited one quarterback every year for around 9 years in row, but when the change in staff took place two years ago, Coach Riley opted not to reach on a quarterback that they felt wouldn’t help the team long term.  Two transfers from quarterbacks, along with a change in position from Zach Darlington put Nebraska in a position to have a walk on as the main backup.  Where in college football’s elite is a walk on one injury away from starting for a top ten team?  The answer is only Nebraska.

Nebraska also has missed very badly in offensive line recruiting over the last 6 years.  Highly ranked players never panned out, some transferred and others simply weren’t that good to begin with.  Top it off with only opting to take four, three or even sometimes two lineman in a class of recruits has been an unmitigated disaster.  The walk on program is meant to provide an opportunity of the overlooked kids to make a name for themselves at Nebraska.  It’s not intended to be the only recruiting done at a top ten school.  Believe me, I love walk ons, I think they provide a valuable addition to the program that is unmeasurable.  On the flip side, if you want to play for any championships (league or otherwise), that strategy can’t be the backbone of a team in the Big Ten.

All of this culminated in one of the worst blowouts in school history.  We probably should have seen it coming, but hindsight is 20/20 and it’s time to move on to Minnesota.

Let’s not think that this Gopher team is a walkover.  They are far from it.  They run the ball, A LOT and they do it right at you.  Nebraska needs to be prepared or they will be completely out of the Big Ten race by Saturday night.

Nebraska may or may not have Tommy Armstrong in this game.  That will probably be the determining factor for Nebraska if they have any chance of winning.  It’s rather stunning that he may be the only thing separating Nebraska from being 8-2 and possibly being 5-5 or worse.  Love him or hate him, in Tommy we trust.

Carriker Chronicles

ON WITH THE REWIND…

Our previous score prediction for Ohio State game was Nebraska 27 – Ohio State 26.  The actual score was 62-3 Ohio State and it felt like it was 100-0.  I probably was sucked in by the great game at Madison the week before, but in reality, Nebraska was probably worn out from that game.  Throw in a bad offensive line performance, a defense that went AWOL and Tommy Armstrong going out, it made a perfect recipe for disaster.  On the bright side it’s one game, one week and you get another.  Nebraska has a chance to make that a sour taste that only lasts a while.  They need to come out physical against Minnesota.  You have to beat the Gophers consistently if you want to be a threat in the Big Ten.  

Cornhusker Memes Tees

Quick Notes:

Lock Down U.  For all the hype of Nebraska’s defensive secondary, they laid an egg against the Buckeyes. Granted JT Barrett had too much time to sit back and pick them apart, but often times they were out of position on pass plays and they simply didn’t make the run fits that they had made the previous 8 games.  I expect that to be an anomaly.  Ohio State has the best athletes in the conference. It won’t be often that the Huskers are that physically outmatched the rest of the season.

Offensive Line Finally Gets Some Good News.  At the start of the season, when Nebraska lost DJ Foster, starting guard to injury, we knew Nebraska may not be as good as they could be.  Throw in injuries to Tanner Farmer, Nick Gates, David Knevel and well you get the idea, the Huskers O-Line has been pieced together all season.  Foster actually started practicing this week and for the first time all year, the original starting five on the oline practiced together.  No matter what, this is a good sign for a team that has been behind the 8 Ball for injuries all season.

Nothing Stands Out.  I like to make a point to stress great play from the week before, but against Ohio State there really wasn’t anything that stood out.  For lack of anything positive to say, let us just all agree a much better effort is needed from the entire team moving forward.

Score Prediction: Nebraska 31 – Minnesota 21

I was going to pick Nebraska to lose if Tommy Armstrong didn’t play.  It’s not that I don’t think Nebraska can win with Ryker Fife starting at home, but Minnesota has prayed on Nebraska’s vulnerabilities in the past and I figure they will exploit them again if given the opportunity.  But…it’s a night game, at home.  If we have learned anything, the Huskers typically play their best at home at night.  I don’t have much more reasoning other than Minnesota isn’t Ohio State and Nebraska has leaders that aren’t ready to give up on the season.  As always, GBR!!