So that wasn’t exactly how it was supposed to go. Nebraska has been a media favorite to win the Big Ten West division all off season and it looked like South Alabama would be nothing more than a stepping stone on the way to that title. Then the offense took a turn into the ditch last week and as Nebraska only scored two offensive touchdowns on one of the worst offensive performances in Scott Frost’s coaching career.
So, what really happened? A couple of things stick out and your crack blogger Kenny Bloggins went to former college football players to see if the bloggin’ eyes were telling the truth.
What surprised me was that two former players, one from Nebraska and one from the Minnesota Vikings had varying opinions on how the offensive line performed. The former Husker told me that Cam Jurgens is going to need to be the “guy” at center. Right now, Will Farniok just isn’t ready to rumble in the Big Ten. He said that Jurgens will need to get as many reps as possible before Big Ten play and hope for the best. The rest of the offensive line will need to get better too, but to him Jurgens is the key to the season. So goes Jurgens, so go the Huskers. Can’t say that I disagree.
 |
| Bleedhuskerred.com |
The former Viking was a little big more optimistic. He said that hand placement was the biggest culprit for the Huskers against South Alabama. He explained that hand placement is a matter of repetition and after doing it for a couple of games, the offensive line would be fine. He expects offensive line coach, Greg Austin, to have it handled this week against Colorado. If they don’t, he said expect changes in personnel by week three.
From my vantage point and re-watching the first half about six times, the footwork was just as big an issue as hand placement. The Huskers looked slow up front, like they were stuck in concrete. Matt Farniok looked like he had an invisible plow hooked to his hips. Jurgens and new guard Trent Hixson didn’t look to be on the same page half the time. That is a communication issue and an experience issue. I think that will get cleaned up. The feet in the concrete though? I don’t know if you can fix that.
Nebraska is in a precarious situation right now. If the offense has a bad week against Colorado, the season may be headed toward .500 rather than any division titles. If the Huskers can’t take advantage of the young skill talent it has, I think the coaches are going to need to take a long look at playing some different players on the offensive line and giving them a chance to build stamina and learn on the fly. You can’t continue to put veteran players out in the trenches if they fail to perform repeatedly. Are better players on the Husker bench? I don’t think so unfortunately, but the staff may need to find out. This week more than probably any other, could foretell the rest of the season.
 |
| Carriker Chronicles at the Omaha World Herald |
ON WITH THE REWIND…
Last week’s prediction was Nebraska 40, South Alabama 17. The final score was Nebraska 35, South Alabama 21. We were close on the score, but certainly not on our prediction of how they would get there. Nebraska’s offense will need to be the bread winner this season for the Huskers to have great success. Hopefully South Alabama was an anomaly.
Quick Notes:
Blackshirts… You could have shocked me out of a coma if you told me before last week that the defense and punt return unit would carry Nebraska to victory. Give big kudos do defensive coordinator Erik Chinander. He called timely blitzes and the Blackshirts forced five turnovers. They may not be world beaters, but if this defense can turn the ball back to the offense with any kind of regularity, the overall team could be good. I don’t know if the defense can win many games for Nebraska, but it was nice to see them do it early in the season.
Maurice Washington…. Whatever you think of the suspension that Coach Frost handed Washington, it certainly was a lift to get Maurice back on the field. He is clearly a difference maker for Nebraska. He sees the field so well, and it doesn’t take great blocking for him to get to the next level. I’m not saying Dedrick Mills won’t have big games this year, but Washington clearly is a notch above almost any other athlete on the field. Nebraska needs Washington to play every game to increase their success.
Special Teams …I could tell that this unit was going to be improved, based on the depth of athletes on the roster this season. When you have veteran players on special teams like Cam Taylor-Britt and J.D. Spielman along with newcomers like Wan’dale Robinson, you can see that explosive plays can happen at any time. I foresee Nebraska having some big plays this year on both return teams. Now, Nebraska needs Barret Pickering to get healthy. If he shores up the kicking game, Nebraska will have a nice advantage on special teams in a lot of games.
Big Red Kool-Aid…With Adrian Martinez being so good as a true freshman, it was hard not to drink all the offseason hype with this offense. That first taste against South Alabama was bitter as hell though. I think we all can see that the difference between 4-8 of last season and a possible flip to 8-4 doesn’t leave a lot of room for Martinez not to be at his best each game. I expect the offensive line to get better, but I think it’s a lot to ask that they win the West division. It seems like even with the offseason hype, Frost’s initial prediction that it would be three years before this team is ready to make waves in the NCAA is probably closer to fact than what we would like to believe. Who knows though, smack Colorado around this week and you never know what confidence may fly out of Lincoln.
 |
| Bleedhuskerred.com |
Score Prediction: Nebraska 34 – Colorado 31
Before the season started, I really thought Nebraska would win this game by two touchdowns and maybe more. After last week, it is clear the team still has a lot of work to do before it blows out anyone. I’m not saying that Nebraska won’t play great this weekend, they certainly can. I just think the thought of scoring more than four touchdowns this week may be wishful thinking. I think Nebraska gets three touchdowns on offense and the defense scores again this week. The Blackshirts continue to create timely turnovers and Nebraska returns the favor in Folsom Field this season. GBR!!!
Editor’s Note: We regret putting North Alabama in last week’s score prediction. The fact that we were in Alabama last week with someone from South Alabama was our punishment for the error.
No comments:
Post a Comment