Does Nebraska Have A Chance In Hawkeye Land?

The other side of the ugly coin flipped on Nebraska last weekend.  Nebraska fans are accustomed to lousy losses the last decade, so why did a loss to Illinois feel like such a punch to the gut?

The main reason it felt so terrible is that through the first three games the Huskers played, while not always clean, they competed.  The opener against Ohio State was supposed to be a blow out, but Nebraska played the first half like they were going to compete for a Big Ten West crown.  The next game was cancelled, but the next week the Huskers played Northwestern hard.  They probably should have won the game, but poor execution in the red zone killed any chance of that.

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Next Nebraska played a wounded Penn State and they jumped out on them so hard in the first half, even a second half collapse wasn’t enough to keep the Huskers from winning.  It seemed as though Nebraska was finding itself in this shortened season.

So, when Illinois was slated to come to Memorial Stadium and open the home schedule, Nebraska looked poised to continue the building process.  The problem was the Illini didn’t care about Nebraska’s rebuild and they steamrolled the Huskers.  

An opening forward pass that was ruled a fumble by Luke McCaffrey sent the Huskers into a funk.  It was compounded by some other questionable referee decisions.  Nebraska couldn’t get a stop on defense and the offense couldn’t get out of its own way.  The Huskers gave Illinois so many opportunities with five turnovers, it was hard to see any progress in Scott Frost’s program.  If anything, it showed most Husker fans that we are a long way from any sense of challenging the upper tier programs in the Big Ten.

It’s my conclusion that Coach Frost is going through some growing pains.  It’s hard to understand that the wide receivers didn’t practice hard prior to the game.  Why is that?  Why with a new wide receiver coach (Matt Lubick) and a young team was there a lackadaisical approach to a game Nebraska needed to win?  Good coaches have that weeded out by the third year in their program.  This team has a lot of issues that still aren’t weeded out.

Nebraska football that we remember from the Coach Osborne years was physical, well executed and disciplined.  That’s what most Husker fans expect.  We see glimpses of it sometimes with this group of Huskers, but it’s not enough.  Nebraska has had no identity to hang their hat on since Coach Frost took over.  They resemble nothing of the teams that he played on in the 90s.

I can forgive a lot of things with Nebraska football the last three seasons.  I have typed many thoughts about this coaching staff, which many of you have read.  Most of those things have seen the positive within the growth of Coach Frost and the Huskers.  Last week was different.  Nebraska went back to the same unfocused play that has plagued them over the last five years.  It wasn’t Frost that started that slide, but it was disappointing that he hasn’t stopped it by now.  You start to wonder if he will ever get it stopped.

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ON WITH THE REWIND…

Last game prediction was Nebraska 34, Illinois 24.  The actual score was Illinois 41, Nebraska 23.  A game that most people thought Nebraska should win was a disaster from the opening snap.  Five turnovers will do that to you.  Nebraska’s inability to pass the ball effectively was only compounded by its inability of the “Blackshirts” to stop anyone.  The worst defeat of a an already murky 1-3 start.

Quick Notes:

Offense…I think it’s safe to ask if this 2020 version of Nebraska will be competent on offense.  Losing Dedrick Mills has blown a hole in the running back room that has had little success.  The wide receiver talent looks good on some possessions but is randomly absent from most games when they are needed the most.  The old quarterback axiom that when you have two quarterbacks, you really have none couldn’t be more true right now.  Nebraska’s inability to throw the ball downfield has caught up with them and teams simply force the Huskers to run into eight or nine players each possession.  Coach Frost is supposed to be a play calling genius, and I think he still is, but Nebraska must figure out how to stretch the field vertically.  Until they do that, they won’t be anything other than bottom dweller in the Big Ten. 

Collin Miller…I must admit, I didn’t even watch the play live when Miller was hurt.  As I sat on the couch, I couldn’t figure out what was happening, and replay wasn’t giving us much either.  Those kinds of plays happen in football.  Luckily for Miller it sounds like he will be ok but will miss the rest of the season.  That’s another big loss for the Blackshirts.  Miller has been the leader of the team.  He has also been one of the more consistent tacklers that Nebraska has.  His loss will be hard to overcome for a defense that still has too many run fit issues and can’t seem to hold up the line of scrimmage half the time.  Get well Collin, Husker Nation is behind you!

Penalties…In three seasons, Coach Frost’s Husker squads have really struggled with penalties in the first half of the season.  For whatever reasons, they have settled down as the season wore on and cut them down the last half.  Will this season be the same?  It better be.  Nebraska’s inability to come out of timeouts with the right personnel or formation or sometime snap the ball before the play clock runs out is as frustrating as anything going right now.  Good teams don’t have those issues.  It’s simply an organizational thing that must be corrected.  What is missing from Coach Frost’s program that this continues season after season?  It needs to be figured out, yesterday.

Quarterbacks…We should have foreseen what was going to happen with Luke McCaffrey when teams started making him throw the ball.  He simply is too inexperienced to handle different pressures and too eager to turn on those jets when he doesn’t have an easy open read.  It made Adrian Martinez look like an NFL quarterback last weekend, compared to McCaffrey.  It’s not all on the quarterbacks that the offense has been shockingly bad.  A combination of poor offensive line play, young wide receivers and questionable coaching decisions in the run game have earned Nebraska a place at the back of the line.  The best game Nebraska played was when Martinez was the starter and Luke was used as a jack of all trades.  I would expect Nebraska to go back to Martinez this week.  I hope that they keep Luke on the field, even if it isn’t at quarterback.  You need game changers out on the field and McCaffrey is certainly that.  It just isn’t at quarterback right now, at least for most possessions.  

Score Prediction:  Iowa 31 Nebraska 17 

It pains me to say this, but Nebraska is lost right now, Iowa is not.  At this juncture it is as simple as that.  Iowa knows they are going to run the ball and they are going to force you to beat them in the air.  Nebraska has weakness in both of those areas.  It will be difficult to exploit any Iowa issues if you have no strengths to rely on.  Nebraska will score on a couple of drives in a crazy short amount of time.  It will be the same shock when they are unable to control the ball on most others.  We will be riding out a Thanksgiving turkey hangover.  We will still cheer on the Huskers.  As always, GBR!!

Nebraska At Home in 2020 Take 2!

A New Era, Will it be the Same Results?

If nothing else, Nebraska fans can be finicky.  After pulling out a close win over a winless Penn State team, I found myself at odds with the second half offense.  The defense rose to the occasion, two times shutting out Penn State in the final quarter, to help hold on to the victory.

The final defensive hold was great, and the defensive backfield played great late in the game, but what happened to the offense?  Luke McCaffrey started the game so well.  Nebraska looked like they were going to be a well-oiled machine when the rolled out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and with some help from the defense, extended it to 27-6 at halftime.

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After halftime, I found myself wondering if we were watching the second half in Boulder last season.  Or the final drive against Purdue last year, or for that matter every loss in the last two years that came down to a late lead lost in the fourth quarter under Head Coach Scott Frost.

Then I started to review a few things.  First and foremost, Nebraska was playing on offense with a bunch of new players.  Even the veterans, weren’t all that veteran outside of a couple of linemen.  Cam Jurgens, redshirt freshman, Wan’dale Robinson, sophomore, Zavier Betts, true freshman, Marcus Fleming, true freshman, Ethan Piper, redshirt freshman and finally Luke McCaffrey, redshirt freshman.  I’m leaving a few players out, but the fact of the matter is, Nebraska is going through a youth movement on the offensive end.

Tack on that Penn State is probably in the top two teams in overall talent in the Big Ten and you start to see that the win, while dicey, was a much bigger deal than it seemed as we held our breath.

If you have been a fan of this team for as long as most of you reading this blog, the last five years have been nothing but disappointment and despair for the most part.  Scott Frost was supposed to come in and save the day, but along the way, talent simply wasn’t in place to take the league by storm.  There was no impressive coaching to win close games and honestly, I’m sure Frost would tell you, he had to learn a few hard lessons in his initial run through the Big Ten.

Nebraska is working on a reboot of a storied program.  Quite honestly, we only avoided rock bottom thanks to the brand that the red “N” provides in recruiting.  Frost has done a lot to rebuild both sides of the ball, but the reality is, three head coaches in a four-year span of recruiting hurt Nebraska as much as any coaching has.  It’s hard to build a program with that type of turnover.  There are still crumbles in the foundation that are starting to be filled.

Nebraska will eventually get there, where they are old on both sides of the ball.  That’s when you start to challenge for the Big Ten title.  It may be a couple years away.  In the meantime, I need to remind myself to enjoy the wins.  There may not be many more this season, and while it’s our right as fans to judge everything in the program, I will try and enjoy the young players and their growing pains.  We saw a bright light across the Husker universe last week in that first half.  Hopefully we start to see the stars shine on a longer basis.

ON WITH THE REWIND…

Last game prediction was Penn State 24, Nebraska 21.  The actual score was Nebraska 30, Penn State 23.  The Huskers had to hold on for dear life in the second half after building a huge first half lead.  Nebraska seems to have confidence in the first quarter, then looks a bit skittish after that.  They need to build off that and start the second half as focused as they do the first.  If they can do that, they will start to win at a more consistent clip. 

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Quick Notes:

Wide Receivers…When you play freshman at wide receiver, especially talented ones, you will see some great highs and generally some weeks that nothing happens.  Marcus Fleming, Zavier Betts and Alante Brown are going to be really good players at Nebraska.  They already are starting to show why they were four-star recruits.  The issue with playing that talent is the other teams have coaches too and they know enough to throw the kitchen sink at them to see how they respond.  Moving Wan’dale Robinson to tailback probably limited the amount of passing that Nebraska wanted to do in the second half against Penn State.  If you are the coach of the Huskers, you hope to let these three guys contribute more every week.  They need them all to play and play well.  Be ready for some ups and downs.

Deontai Williams…Williams continue to make big plays for the Huskers.  He along with Cam Taylor-Britt have provided a big spark to the Blackshirts.  Williams’ sack, strip, fumble recovery for a touchdown was a play that the Huskers need to see more of when they play better teams.  He hasn’t been shy laying the wood, but he has been caught out of position more times than the coaches would like.  You take those busts when he can provide a play like that against Penn State.  If he can sure up the more mundane parts of the game, he could be an all-conference type player this year for the Big Red.

Connor Culp…After last seasons debacle at kicker, Culp has been a breath of fresh air.  He has been consistent on field goals and he has been uber-valuable on kickoffs.  Nebraska has benefited from that type of play, when last year, it was lucky if they made half those plays.  If Culp continues to provide consistent kicking, Nebraska could win a close game down the road, that they have lost in the past.  It has provided a big boost to the team and should allow Frost to be more confident calling plays in the red zone.  Despite a few hiccups against Northwestern, he had a stellar weekend against Penn State.

Offensive Line…For most of my life, Nebraska was synonymous with the “Pipeline” and the envy of most college football programs.  The first game of the season, Nebraska looked like a return of the Pipeline was closer than it had been in years.  Since then, injuries, inconsistency and miscommunication probably brought results that were closer to reality.  Against good front lines on defense, the Huskers still don’t have the build to just line up and bust someone in the mouth.  They struggle to drive good players off the line and the pass protection has been less than average.  If Nebraska wants to finish strong this year, the offensive line will need to be the reason why.  Nebraska is relying on a young group of skill players and a veteran tight end group to move the ball.  Without the offensive line paving the way, it will continue to be a struggle.

Score Prediction:  Nebraska 34 Illinois 24

I predicted a Penn State win last week and for about a half hour, I was worried I would be right.  Last week was a relief and this week, Nebraska needs to build on that quick start and try to maintain it for 60 minutes.  Illinois is probably in the bottom three teams in the conference.  For the Huskers to take that next step, they need to dominate in these types of games.  I don’t know that the Huskers will do that just yet, but if they can control the line of scrimmage this week, they should have a comfortable margin.  If McCaffrey doesn’t end up in Victory formation this weekend, it will be a big blow to Husker Nation.  I think they will end up closing out a game that they should, for a change.  As always, GBR!!

Nittany Lions, Martinez, and McCaffrey! Oh My!

So sorry, but I must interrupt our usual blog with the news that Nebrasketball just landed their first 5-star recruit in Bryce McGowens.  Not since Andre Woolridge picked Nebraska in the early 90s have the Huskers landed a recruit of this magnitude.  I have no doubt, Coach Hoiberg is about to launch a great run of Husker Hoops…now back to football!

Another week, another Husker heartbreaking loss.  I will give Coach Frost credit he knows how to keep the games close.  On the other hand, he has yet to get over the hump with most of these close ones.

Cornteened Shirts

Since Coach Frost arrived at Nebraska, he has tied his team to the coat tails of Adrian Martinez.  In the first season, Martinez played well early, was hurt, then returned and looked like he was going to be a four-year starter that would take the Huskers back to the glory of the past.

As last season started, playing in Boulder, Nebraska’s first half really looked like we had turned the corner.  Nebraska has a large half time lead and Martinez looked like he was going to have a great season.  We all know how that game turned out.  So far Martinez, like the Huskers haven’t seemed to recover. 

After two game this year, it is apparent that a change is coming, and likely this weekend.  Luke McCaffrey will probably start the first game of his Husker career against Penn State, with minimal number of fans in the stands.  Not exactly how we all drew it up last spring.

Luke has earned the shot, as much as Martinez has lost it, but it does make this fan feel melancholy.  Martinez has put a lot of his life into the Husker program.  So many of us have cheered him on, celebrated his achievements and genuinely hoped he would be the leader we all want our Husker quarterbacks to be.

Maybe it won’t be permanent, maybe McCaffrey falters and Adrian must come back and save the day.  It wouldn’t be the first time a starting quarterback was benched and came back better than he was before.  More likely though, without injury, the future of Nebraska and Scott Frost rides with McCaffrey.

We all feel the struggle of this season.  I’m sure Martinez feels is as much if not more than many of us.  It is a situation where a lack of early nonconference games has limited several players of showing their potential.  Unfortunately, with Nebraska’s schedule, time is of the essence to win and win now.  

Will McCaffrey be the answer we all have hoped for this last half decade?  Maybe.  McCaffrey has shown that he is an incredible athlete.  He gets the ball out of his hands in a hurry and makes quick decisions.  He seems to be the “fast blinker” that the staff raves about.  He has answered the bell when he has been on the field so far in minimal duty. This time, he will likely get an entire game to show us what he is all about.  Husker Nation will get a chance to find out if this is a new era of Husker football.  

ON WITH THE REWIND…

Last game prediction was Nebraska 28, Northwestern 17.  The actual score was Northwestern 21, Nebraska 13.  Nebraska will regret that game all season.  They had ample opportunities in the red zone and came away with just one touchdown.  If the Huskers can’t right the offense, this season has the potential to be disastrous.  They are lucky the defense is playing above expectations, if they weren’t, I think we all would be in a panic.

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Quick Notes:

Running Backs…You might say what happened to Nebraska’s running game?  However, the quarterbacks have ran the ball effectively.  On the flip side, the Husker running backs have been a shell of what they were the previous year.  Dedrick Mills hasn’t gotten going and outside of a few plays by Marvin Scott III and Ronald Thompkins, nothing has jumped out about any running back.  Part of it is play calling, and whether Mills can get to the perimeter like they need.  Another part is the offensive line.  As good as they looked against Ohio State by times, they have yet to just dominate a game.  The running backs need some holes, but they also need to attack their opportunities better.

Quarterbacks…As I talked about above, McCaffrey will likely get his first shot to run the Husker show.  He deserves a shot.  Martinez has been just above horrendous in the passing game and most of the time, can’t even play above that.  This offense requires accuracy.  We know from watching players like Marcus Mariota and McKenzie Milton that an accurate quarterback is a nightmare for defensive coordinators in this offense.  Coach Frost needs someone that can make the easy passes, to lessen the pressure on the offensive line, which in turn should open the running game up and hopefully allow Nebraska to play downfield more in the passing game.  Martinez wasn’t getting it done, so we will find out if it was just him, or a larger concern of the team altogether.

Defensive Line…Man, I don’t want to talk about these guys again, but seriously, Ty Robinson and Casey Rogers are going to be good for a long time in Lincoln.  Throw in Ben Stille and Damion Daniels, along with up and comers Jordon Riley and Keem Green and this group looks to be possibly the best position group for the Huskers.   Nebraska is giving up about 4.2 yards per carry, which isn’t great, but they have been much better against the run that last season.  They also have played two of the better running offenses in the Big Ten.  Penn State doesn’t have a great running attack.  If Nebraska can make them one dimensional, they should have success this weekend.

Special Teams…The Huskers continue to be snake bit on special teams.  A missed field goal, poor punting, awful punt returns, and average kickoff game has limited Nebraska in several ways.  We all know the Huskers were at their best the last decade when they had strong kicking game and made something out of their returns.  Nebraska is still not good enough to be able to play week to week with subpar special teams play.  If they want to win any games going forward, they must clean that up.  We shall see…

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Score Prediction:  Penn State 24 Nebraska 21 

After last week, I just don’t know how Nebraska is going to beat a wounded Penn State team.  Nebraska offensively has been as bad as I can remember them, at least since the awful Bo Pelini group that still almost rode Ndamukong Suh to a Big XII title.  If a change at quarterback is all that separates Nebraska from revving it up this weekend, I think it’s fair to ask Coach Frost what took so long.  On the other side, Penn State is 0-3 and needs a win just as bad as Nebraska.  I expect them to hit Nebraska in the mouth early and often.  If the Huskers play like they did last weekend, I just don’t see it ending well for the Huskers.  I will still be on my couch screaming away, let us all hope that my prediction is the worst thing that happens this weekend.  Here's to hoping I am wrong! GBR!!

Guess Who's Back? Back Again? Husker Football Is Back! Tell A Friend!

So last weekend sucked.  I don’t want to belabor the point, but Wisconsin having an outbreak of Covid-19 within their players and staff put a blunt reminder that this season isn’t going to be easy.  Early in the week, we knew that Wisconsin would be without their starting quarterback, Graham Mertz.  On Wednesday, Nebraska’s game with the Badgers was cancelled.

Nebraska made a very interesting move to try and play Tennessee-Chattanooga as a replacement game, but the Big Ten put a stop to that, as the vote was made that no out of conference games would be played by Big Ten teams in 2020.

I believe this was a mistake on the part of the Big Ten.  Wisconsin is missing another game this weekend, this time against Purdue.  If the Badgers miss another game, and remember, it doesn’t have to be them that has to cancel, they are out of the title hunt in the Big Ten conference.  You can’t miss more than three games and qualify for the Big Ten title game.  Nebraska is also at the mercy of that rule, with limited room for error.  What happens if an outbreak occurs in the East division of the conference?  Ohio State has bigger fish to reel in.  If they miss enough games, they won’t qualify for the end of year playoffs.  That is a killer for a team that looks like they are going to be a threat to win a National Title in a shortened season.

If the Big Ten had allowed replacement games, that could have given the rest of the conference a cushion to avoid a situation like this.  Nebraska did everything that they could in order to play more football this year.  So far, the Big Ten has punished Nebraska’s efforts by limiting their games to in conference only.   

It is not an option to leave the Big Ten conference for Nebraska.  It might seem like a smart move in the short term, but the reality of it is, athletics is only a small part of what being a member of the Big Ten is all about.  Academic standing is important to the University as well.  While most of us Husker fans feel cheated about missing more games, it will just have to be par for the course for 2020.

The great thing is that so far all systems are a “go” to play at Northwestern this weekend.  Nebraska has a real opportunity to make a statement this weekend in Evanston.  The Wildcats are 2-0, with a big win over Iowa last week.  Nebraska has two weeks to stew on football.  If they can build on their experience against Ohio State, the Huskers should match up well this weekend.  Nebraska showed that they should be able to limit the run.  Northwestern is a running team.  

The big question?  How can Nebraska produce yards with players other than their quarterbacks?  Nebraska has a lot of weapons on offense, they need to get them more involved moving forward.  Losing Jack Stoll for a few weeks isn’t ideal, but they have capable backups at tight end.  Nebraska needs to get Dedrick Mills more involved, along with Wan’Dale Robinson.  If they can get them both a combined 30-35 touches, Nebraska will be in great shape.  Nebraska needs to take advantage of better recruiting the last three years at the skill positions.  If they do, they should have a good outcome on Saturday.

ON WITH THE REWIND…

Last game prediction was Ohio State 54 Nebraska 28.  The actual score was Ohio State 52, Nebraska 17, a game that was close for a little less than two quarters.  After the first two Nebraska scores, it looked like the Huskers were going to give the Buckeyes a game.  Eventually, errors by Nebraska and overall talent for OSU won out.  Nebraska didn’t score anything other than a field goal after a couple of quick, early touchdowns.  

Quick Notes:

Defensive Backs Missing a Half…Nebraska had some lousy luck on penalties against Ohio State.  Deontai Williams and Cam Taylor-Britt both had personal fouls and were ejected in that game for targeting.  Now they sit the first half of this game against Northwestern.  If there was a pronounced weakness in the first game, is was Nebraska’s inability to stop the pass.  The Wildcats are nowhere near as potent as Ohio State, but Myles Farmer and Quentin Newsome will have to be ready to go.  Nebraska lost Braxton Clark for the season before camp was over, but Newsome played last season as a true frosh and has been someone DB Coach Travis Fisher has groomed to be ready for this.  If Nebraska can survive the first half by not giving up any big pass plays, they should be in good shape.

Quarterbacks…Luke McCaffrey is electric.  There is simply no way to not be excited when he enters a game, either at quarterback, running back or wide receiver.  His combination with Adrian Martinez gave Husker fans a lot to ponder for the future.  Martinez played very well against Ohio State.  He wasn’t given enough time to push the ball down the field, but he ran the ball well.  The biggest issue with these two, is simply turnovers.  If Nebraska is going to have any chance to win games, these guys can’t put the ball on the turf.  The two of them seem to get along, so no QB controversy is looming.  If they continue to play off each other, it could be the rare season that two quarterbacks can play well.

Defensive Line…A big unknown coming into this season, the defensive line showed well against a powerful Ohio State offensive line.  Nebraska limited Ohio State to 222 rushing yards.  The line also played well enough that the linebackers were able to get three sacks.  I will take that against a top 3 team.  If the Huskers continue to rotate fresh bodies up front, they should be able to wear lesser teams down as the season goes on.  Casey Rogers, Ben Stille, Damion Daniels, Ty Robinson and Keem Green are all Big Ten looking players.  They are big, strong and seem to finally fit the defense Coach Erik Chinander wants to run.  The linebackers looked much improved, but it helped that the defensive line played at a high level. 

Offensive Line…Nebraska imposed its will on Ohio State on two early drives.  It was beautiful to watch.   On the face of it, it was one of the best offensive line performances I have seen from Nebraska since at least 2016, and possibly since 2012.  Cam Jurgens continues to have some issues with snaps and Matt Farniok was beaten a few times, albeit by a stud tackle, with a quick inside rush.  For a unit that is playing together for the first time, to show out like that against the Buckeyes, well…it was a sight for sore eyes.  I expect this unit to be the leader for the Huskers this season.  I must admit, they did not disappoint.  They have a lot of room to get better.  If they do, by the end of the year, they could be a top 3 unit in the entire conference.

Score Prediction:  Nebraska 28 Northwestern 17

Nebraska has been sitting back, taking grief from national press about wanting to play football.  They were laughed at, basically because when they were fighting to play. They were given a difficult schedule, as if it was some type of comeuppance for making noise.  They came out and punched Ohio State in the mouth.  They couldn’t maintain it, with a couple of bad turnovers and some questionable penalties and they ended up getting blown out.  I think this week, Nebraska will push the ball down field better than they did in their first game.  If Nebraska controls the run game as well as they did against Ohio State, Nebraska should win this game.  Northwestern won’t make many errors and it will be a close game, but I see the Huskers taking out frustration this weekend. GBR!!