A lot has happened since we last posted a blog about Nebraska football. First, Nebraska was smoked by Ohio State at home in the worst loss in Memorial Stadium in over 70 years….yeah, that long ago. Second, new athletic director Bill Moos was hired to start a new era in Husker athletics. So what does that mean short term and what can fans expect long term?
Make no mistakes about it, the Nebraska football team was on life support two weeks ago. Ohio State has beaten Nebraska so badly and so soundly the last two seasons, it’s reasonable for Husker fans to throw in the towel on this coaching staff. Nebraska has been blown out by the two best teams they have faced, crushed in the first half against Oregon and lost to a middle level Northern Illinois in Lincoln. That’s enough to test the most loyal fans. Head coach Mike Riley knows that this season has been unacceptable for the standards in Lincoln. If he doesn’t think it’s unacceptable, then I would say all hope was lost. He seems like a reasonable man, I think he wants to be in Lincoln.
Lucky for Husker fans and Coach Riley, this season will play out in two parts. It starts Saturday night in Purdue. Should the Huskers win that game against a much improved Purdue team on the road, that should give them a bit of a push to finish these final five games on a high note. It’s doubtful that Nebraska can beat Penn State on the road, but Purdue, Northwestern, Minnesota and Iowa should all be games that Nebraska has a chance to win. I’m not saying the play so far would get that done, but any improvement at all could propel the Huskers on a run through the softer part of the schedule. A record of 7-5 would do wonders to save a recruiting class that has stalled. If they go 6-6 it starts to get a little hairy, and anything with a losing record would almost certainly bring change in Lincoln next fall.
Enter Bill Moos. The newly hired athletic director from Washington State is now tasked with the next step for Nebraska football. From everything in his tenure as an athletic director from his start in Montana, his building of Oregon football, to his most recent hire in Mike Leach, Moos seems to have the touch for what to do with a football program. All of the amenities that Nebraska needs is already in place. Bill Moos will decide if Mike Riley is the right man to run the program. Riley has five games to prove if he should.
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ON WITH THE REWIND…
Our previous score prediction for the Ohio State game was Nebraska 21 – Ohio State 48. The actual score was Ohio State 56 and Nebraska 14. This game was awful from the start. Nebraska not forcing a single punt by Ohio State was ridiculous. Not much to say after a disaster like this.
Quick Notes:
Can we find our defense? Bob Diaco has been under a hot lamp the last two games, with the defense completely incompetent the last six quarters. They couldn’t stop Wisconsin from running it right at us and they couldn’t stop Ohio State from doing anything. We know that Nebraska may not be talented enough to play beat those teams, but it has been inexcusable the way that they didn’t compete the last six quarters. Lets see if a subpar Purdue offense shakes the doldrums off the Blackshirts.
Is there heart in the program…. This might be the hardest question to answer. I know the kids want to win, by times it seems that they are playing hard, but it has been inconsistent and it begs the question, is it just coaching or has this team’s ceiling so low that until we get an influx of talent, this is the best that we have? I have to think it’s a little of both, but the coaching staff has a responsibility to put the best team out there, and the last two games hasn’t looked very promising.
Offensive Line pass blocking… Amazingly enough, Nebraska’s offensive line has started to pass protect and provide Tanner Lee enough time that he has some options. I’d like to see Nebraska push more up tempo on offense and run shorter routes. If the line can keep Lee clean, let him use that quick passing with high accuracy to keep the defense on it’s heals.
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Score Prediction: Nebraska 24 – Purdue 18
I feel like I’m going out on a limb saying that Nebraska can win against Purdue. That tells you how this season has panned out. Nebraska has a lot of tools on offense. They need to pound Ozigbo, Wilbon and Bradley and look to challenge Purdue in space. Purdue will throw the kitchen sink at the defense, but they have a tendency to turn the ball over. We will find out if the Huskers heart is still beating this week. I think it is. GBR!!
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