When Can We Believe?

I want to tell you that Nebraska is back.  I want to tell you that that with Michigan State coming to town this weekend, the Huskers will win.  The problem is, do we know for sure that Nebraska is back to normal? I’m not completely sure, but I know this, we will know more by the end of Saturday afternoon about this Husker team than at probably any point this season.

You might say, “well look what they did against Ohio State!”  Nebraska probably should have beaten the Buckeyes. It’s hard to say what Ohio State’s mood was when Nebraska played them that day.  They were clearly still trying to recover from getting beat down by Purdue two weeks before. Despite all of this, however you want to look at it, the sample size of Nebraska against good teams still doesn’t look very good.

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What we do know is the Huskers were just getting warmed up on offense. Nebraska continued at their torrid pace and put up 54 on Illinois.  The Husker offense looks like it is going to start putting up offensive statistics that will break multiple school records.

What we don’t know yet though, is how Nebraska will do against a defense that is set up to take away the running game?  Michigan State comes into Lincoln boasting one of the top defenses in all of college football. They also were pounded soundly last weekend by Ohio State and probably don’t want to lose two in a row.  They have been done in by a putrid offense, but the Blackshirts haven’t exactly been on fire. The Spartans may get well on offense this week.

Michigan State by no means is a powerhouse, but if Nebraska is going to get to the upper echelon of the Big Ten, they need to start stepping on teams like the Spartans.  The Iowa and Northwesterns of the league need to be games Nebraska wins 90% of the time. Michigan State falls in that tier as well.

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Ohio State, Michigan and somewhat Penn State are what I consider the top tier in the conference.  You start beating them with regularity, that means you can win the conference. Those three teams rank in the top 15 annually in recruiting, they have bigger budgets for football than Nebraska and they are in rich recruiting areas.  

Wisconsin, Iowa and Michigan State have punctured that rarified air the last half dozen years, but part of that was because of the vacuum created by Nebraska.  The Huskers as we all know have been below par. The fact is, Nebraska, despite all their warts, is the only team that has the kind of pedigree to consistently knock on the door for Big Ten supremacy, based on history, budget, fan support and a name that still resonates throughout the country when they recruit.  To get to that step, the Huskers must show on the field that they can consistently beat those second level teams.

This weekend and next Black Friday will show everyone whether Nebraska has reached the point that they can start to see the next level.  After an 0-6 start, it’s hard to imagine Nebraska is really headed in that direction, but that’s why Scott Frost was hired. He didn’t come here to be in the same group as Wisconsin and Michigan State.  Based on what we have seen the last four weeks, Nebraska is going to be salty for a long time to come. It’s time to let the fans know if they can let their excitement start to catch up to the hyperbole that most fans had when Frost was hired.

ON WITH THE REWIND…

Our previous score prediction for the Illinois Game was Nebraska 31, Illinois 20.  The actual score was Nebraska boat racing the Illini 54-35. It wasn’t as close as the final score indicated.  In a race, Nebraska ended up lapping Illinois before the end, only to have them close and keep it somewhat respectable.  After a back and forth first quarter, the Huskers settled in a scored at will. I though the weather would be more of a factor, but Adrian Martinez threw the ball so well, it didn’t matter.

Quick Notes:

Devine Ozigbo…  Hey, I’m not leading off with Adrian Martinez!  Ozigbo solidified his name in the Husker record books last week with his three-touchdown performance.  Ziggy Stardust has been a huge find for the Huskers this year. His individual work to turn himself into an every down runner in this offense has been as big as Martinez’ improvement from game one.  Without Ozigbo, you don’t know where the Huskers would be, he has been a stud the last 6 weeks.

Stanley Morgan Jr…. Morgan will likely leave as the most prolific pass catcher in Husker history in two weeks.  That says a lot considering he will have missed out on two bowl games and never will have played in a conference championship.  Morgan has been a great player on bad teams. It’s unfortunate that he will have been on these bad teams because the kid is a winner.  I think Nebraska will miss him as much as anyone next season. He has stood tall in the wind when most others have blown over. Enjoy his last two games.

Special Teams Play …Nebraska blocked a punt last week and I about exploded out of Memorial Stadium!  It was great to see the special teams start to make some plays for the Huskers. You could argue that at least two losses stemmed from horrible special teams play this season.  I think that Nebraska has started to shore that area up. They need to play big this weekend. It will be another game that they can make a difference.

Score Prediction: Nebraska 28 – Michigan State 24

This game has a lot of implications for the Huskers and not much for the Spartans.  Even though the Huskers aren’t bowl eligible, they continue to play like they are battling for something.  Michigan State is going bowling no matter what. They may not want to lose two in a row, but what else is driving them?  They have huge issues at quarterback and haven’t been able to run the ball. If Nebraska plays even with Sparty on special teams, the Huskers should come out on top.  If the weather is good, increase the Huskers scoring to 35! GBR!!!