Offensive MVP: Taylor Martinez by a mile. He had help, but it's been a long time since any Husker quarterback has looked as sharp running the offense as T-Magic did yesterday.
Defensive MVP: Will Compton by half a mile. 12 tackles and a sack from the senior yesterday. It's not going to make us forget Lavonte David, but it's a nice start.
Special Teams MVP: Ameer Abdullah, if I have to pick one. Rough day for the special teams unit, but Abdullah had a nice 16 yard punt return in the second quarter and a 21 yard return in the third. I like Abdullah's speed and elusiveness, as long as he holds onto the ball.
Freshman MVP: Has to go to RB Imani "Iron" Cross. Huge, powerful, falls forward. I'd like to see what he can do in the open field. Bright future here.
Play of the Game: Steven Osborne's 29 yard TD catch before halftime. Two minute drill? Who needs two minutes? There was a full minute left on the clock when Osborne pulled in a high pass in the front corner of the end zone. This play slammed the door on a Southern Miss comeback and energized the Huskers going into the break.
Play We Want Back: Obviously the 100 yard kickoff return right after NU had gone up 14-0. Without that return, who knows if the Eagles ever pose a threat in this game?
I want to see more...
*Braylon Heard. 3 touches, 34 yards and a touchdown. If Rex is sitting for a few weeks, Heard should get a few more touches.
*Great O-line play. No penalties, solid pass protection, 272 yards rushing and only 1 sack. I'm not an expert on the intricacies of the offensive line, but it looked like Barney Cotton's maulers did pretty well up front. Now consistency is the key.
*Taylor Martinez. T-Magic passed Zac Taylor for #2 all-time in total offense at just under 6000 yards. I want to see some of those magical runs, but as long as he's putting up points we can't be too picky.
*Of Ron Brown's deep RB pool. It sucks that Rex got hurt, but it gave NU an opportunity to show off one of the team's deepest positions.
*Of Rich Fisher's TE/WR pool. Ben Cotton got hurt? I barely noticed because Jake Long stepped way up. Steven Osborne? Tyler Evans? Tyler Wullenwaber? Where did these guys come from? Again, barely noticed Tim Marlowe's injury because this is the deepest postion on the team.
*Ron Kellogg III. If he really is the top backup to Martinez, then let him throw a pass or two with four and a half minutes left in the game. It was nice to see Imani Cross bulldozing down the field, but I want to see whether RKIII has the goods to lead this offense if Martinez gets hurt.
*Production from the defensive line. Baker Steinkuhler had a nice day, and the Southern Miss O-line was a pretty good one, but our boys got pushed around a little bit. Lots of room for the QBs to scramble when the pocket broke down.
*Forced turnovers. Kudos to Alonzo Whaley for jumping on that dropped handoff, but that fumble was more an error on Southern Miss' part than anything the Blackshirts forced. Let's see some INTs and forced fumbles please.
*Sean Fisher. One of those guys who was supposed to be "lightyears" ahead of last year. The stat sheet said he played, but I don't remember him doing anything. I would have expected more urgency from the senior.
I want to see less...
*Missed tackles. Whaley had a few epic whiffs. Andrew Green whiffed on Dominique Sullivan en route to a 24 yd TD. Lots of guys missed on QB Anthony Alford. When Big Ten season rolls around, this isn't going to fly.
*Of the new helmet rule. Such a dumb rule, and it definitely takes away from the game.
*Getting beat on WR screens. Credit Southern Miss for exploiting a weakness in the Husker defense, but it was pretty ridiculous.
*Missed FGs. I realize we Nebraska fans have been spoiled with good kicking the last few years, but Brett Maher is a preseason All-American kicker, and yesterday he kicked like a Jr High kid.
*Success on third down from opponents. Southern Miss converted a 3rd and 10 and a 3rd and 7 on their TD drive, and finished 7 of 14 on third downs. I'd like to see that percentage drop to 25% or so.
*Taylor Martinez in the 4th quarter. I thought he played 1 drive too many, but maybe I'm nit-picking. It's probably not easy to convince him he's done for the day.
*Injuries. I suppose that it's a little bit of instant karma for coming out of fall camp unscathed, but even the small injuries got pretty annoying by the end of the day. The only lasting injuries appear to be Rex Burkhead's MCL sprain and Tim Marlowe's broken collarbone. If you had to pick two positions to get hit by injuries, it would be RB and WR.
*Jeanine Edwards. I know ESPN is hurting for sex appeal since Erin Andrews defected to FOX, but Edwards is not the one to make up that gap. Every sideline report made me cringe. Dress your age.
Armchair head coach:
*Why did Southern Miss coach Ellis Johnson switch QBs after Chris Campbell tied the game in the second quarter? Ask him: “Chris did an excellent job controlling our offense. It became a little bit apparent in the second quarter that the running game was not going to be as effective with him. They were just sitting on the running back.
“When Anthony came in, the running game really exploded for several minutes. Anthony’s athleticism, even against a team like this, was impressive.”
It almost felt like he was using the Nebraska game as a high speed scrimmage to determine a starting QB for the C-USA season. That's either flattering or insulting depending on how you see it.
*Hard to nit pick the way Husker coaches called the game, but I think Nebraska should have gone for 4th and 3 at the Southern Miss 24 yard line in the 2nd quarter. At that point, Brett Maher had already missed at 44 yards, and Nebraska was only up 21-14. Brett Maher would miss and Southern Miss would drive the field to make it 21-17 with 1:32 left.
Jennifer's Take (my wife doesn't know much about football, but she still has opinions)
"They did a freakin' good job, but the defense needs to get better. Also, Taylor Martinez doesn't throw like a girl anymore."
Song of the Game
"Edge of Glory" by Lady Gaga
"I'm on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment of truth
Out on the edge of glory
And I'm hanging on a moment with you"
Gaga is definitely a guilty pleasure for this guy, but I think her words ring true to any hopeful Husker fans. Our team is capable of a great and glorious season, but we're still on the edge. Next week is a good road test against a capable UCLA team. Another big game by the offense and improvement on defense is going to upgrade the song to "Poker Face."
Beer of the Game
Shock Top Lemon Shandy
It's still summer and when this beer is nice and cold, it's the perfect beer for a hot day. Sweet but not too sweet lemon taste, and just enough hoppy bite to make it manly. Very nice for a bigger microbrew. If you can find it, the Leinenkugel Summer Shandy is better, but it's hard locate here in Georgia.
Best Commercial
Not a lot of great ones to choose from, but I love the DirecTV commercials with Deion Sanders and the Manning brothers. The best one I saw during the Nebraska game was the one with Peyton and the tapenade. Not gonna lie, I had to google tapenade, because I had no clue what it was. In case you're curious too.
Last thought
Tim Beck might be the maddest scientist in college football today. Look at this highlight of Kenny Bell's TD grab. But don't look at Kenny Bell, or Taylor Martinez, look at the two receivers at the top of the screen. See it yet? That was really, really cool. Beck always keeps it fresh.
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