24 hours after Nebraska lost to Minnesota (that hurts to type) it appears that everything outside of the Husker universe is still just fine (or as fine as it was yesterday). That is important to note, because everything inside the Husker universe is in shambles. Or something. I don't really know. I'm about as lost as David Santos trying to cover a TE on a playaction pass.
The reality is that yesterday's loss hurt really bad. The 2013 Huskers are a weak football team. Period. They were exposed in all of their ignominy yesterday, physically, mentally, emotionally and just about any other way you can be weak, the Huskers showed it. The Golden Gophers applied smothering pressure on both sides of the ball and the Huskers caved. There's no nice way to put it: the whole psyche of Husker nation has done a complete 180 in 24 hours and instead of a Big 10 championship game in Indy, the Husker faithful (if there still are any) are now seriously concerned about making a bowl game.
We might want to pump the brakes on the doom and gloom though. There are still five games to play, and no amount of hand-wringing by the fans is going to make it any easier to beat Michigan State. This team is still talented enough to win every game on their schedule if somebody, anybody steps up and takes ownership of the team.
On with the review:
Offensive MVP: Phillip Nelson, QB Minnesota. Nelson came in for Mitch Leidner midway through the second quarter and led the Gophers down the field on his first drive and threw a 33 yard TD on 4th and 10 to give the Gophers a halftime lead. Minnesota had success with RB David Cobb, but Nelson's timely throws and gutsy running made the difference for Minnesota yesterday.
Defensive MVP: RaShede Hageman, DT Minnesota. Hageman did his best Ndamukong Suh impression, blowing up runs, running down screens, and making life miserable for Taylor Martinez and Mike Moudy. Hageman was credited with a sack and a TFL, but he had two other sacks negated by facemask penalties. No doubt Bo would trade any of his guys for Hageman.
Special Teams MVP: Pat Smith, K. Smith was the only Husker who did his job 100% of the time yesterday, hitting three field goals, including two from beyond 40 yards, and relieving the anxiety over his lack of attempts this season.
Freshman MVP: Donovahn Jones, RB Minnesota. The true freshman RB played an integral role in the sweep game yesterday. Even when he didn't take the ball around the end for ten yards at a time, he was consistently in motion, and the linbackers accounting for him watched David Cobb rumble up the middle for six or seven yards.
Assistant Coach MVP: Tracy Claeys, Minnesota DC. Claeys, acting as interim head coach, made several gutsy calls, and his aggressive game plan paid off as the Gophers stymied the Husker offense and blasted through the Blackshirts. Claeys is now 2-0 as acting head coach with wins over teams perceived to be at the top of the Legends division (Northwestern and Nebraska).
5 Who Stood out:
*Alonzo Moore WR. We've heard so much hype over the freshman and seeing him on the field on the first play, taking a little WR screen for 13 yards was exactly the sort of thing we've been waiting to see. He did an alright job returning kicks, but disappeared from the offense after the first quarter.
*Jordan Westerkamp WR. His 17 yard punt return in the first quarter was seemingly Nebraska's longest punt return since DeJuan Groce was back there. He got a little cocky though, taking a few shots the rest of the first half before he started calling for fair catches in the second half.
*Avery Moss DE. The freshman does a better job setting the edge and collapsing a pocket than Jason Ankrah. Why he's not starting over the senior is a mystery to me.
*Ameer Abdullah RB. 165 yards and 8.7 yards per carry. The fact that he only had 19 touches in a game like that is damning for Tim Beck.
*Sam Cotton TE. Nice job on the easy touchdown catch. The freshman TE is beginning to make the plays that will get him on the field more often, he shows well blocking, and ran his delayed route perfectly.
Key Stat: 95. Midway through the fourth quarter, ESPN flashed a graphic that showed that 95 of Minnesota RB David Cobb's 112 yards rushing came after contact. Nebraska defenders either missed tackles, or simply got run over all afternoon and couldn't get stops when it mattered.
Play of the Game: Taylor Martinez's 42 yard pass to Kenny Bell was the one nice play that Nebraska wide receivers made yesterday. Bell adjusted to the under thrown ball, and secured the catch to set up Nebraska's first TD. Martinez tried to duplicate that success several more times yesterday, but his passes were continually under thrown and his receivers, with DBs draped all over them, couldn't find the handle.
Play We Want Back: With about four minutes left in the game, Nebraska was down four points and took over at their ten yard line. After a one yard run and an incomplete pass, the Huskers faced 3rd and 9 and Tim Beck called a QB draw. And it failed miserably. On a day of questionable play calls, this one stands out.
Blown Call: I cannot believe they waved off that personal foul penalty after Martinez's long run in the third quarter. I've seen so many light taps on the sideline draw a 15 yard penalty that it's maddening when a clear penalty gets waved off. Coupled with the missed targeting hit two plays later, it lends some credence to the conspiracy crowd. Didn't really affect the game, but it was just one more thing that went against the Big Red yesterday.
Hit of the Game: Quincy Enunwa, known for delivering crushing hits, took a shot to the ribs in the first quarter from a Minnesota safety and had to come off the field. Enunwa didn't really seem like himself for the rest of the game.
I want to see more...
*Spencer Long. The right side of Nebraska's offensive line is much softer without Long. Mike Moudy got run over several times by Rashede Hageman, and the line that allowed three sacks coming into this game allowed three in the first half (two were negated by penalties).
*Option. Martinez isn't as proficient as Tommy Armstrong, but if he can move the ball to the edge and flip it to Abdullah, this play is still one of the best in Beck's book. Too bad Beck is fixated on making WR screens work instead.
*Leadership. Nebraska is a very fragile team mentally, especially on defense. When the Blackshirts are down, nobody seems capable of making a play to take back momentum. There weren't any sacks, no turnovers, heck making a stop after only a yard would have been something.
*Flags for defensive holding. Granted the Nebraska WRs had their share of issues yesterday, but they certainly weren't helped by the constant grabbing employed by the Gopher DBs. I don't even know how to express my disgust with the overall performance of the referees yesterday.
*Takeaways. On a day when the defense is getting pounded into the ground, someone, anyone has to make a play. I don't recall anyone coming close to getting a takeaway yesterday.
I want to see less...
*Of that super annoying shadow covering half the field in the first half. Pet peeve.
*Missed tackles. And by missed tackles, I'm including all the plays where a ballcarrier ran over a Nebraska defender for 3 extra yards. Which was almost every play.
*Wide open tight ends. Memo to Ross Els: Tight ends are eligible receivers and need to be covered at all times.
*FUMBLES. Taylor Martinez got blindsided and sack-stripped, Abdullah got the ball punched out on after a 15 yard run, Martinez made an ill-advised pitch (albeit while having his facemask pulled) and the Huskers continued their ball security futility.
*Gut-busting drives. The Gophers shredded Nebraska's front seven on their first quarter TD drive, with 14 rushing plays in the 75 yard drive.
*Worn footballs. Seriously. Every game ESPN calls, they feel like they have to mention Nebraska's worn out footballs. Getting kind of annoying.
*Clock mismanagement. Nebraska's two-minute drill at the end of the first half was far from a thing of beauty. Once the Huskers got near field goal range, the play-calling became conservative and the clock management got sloppy. 15 seconds were wasted before the Husker's last timeout was called.
*Drops. Kenny Bell is the main culprit here, letting several passes, including a sure TD at the end of the first half, go through his hands. Enunwa dropped two first downs in the third quarter.
*Stupid camera angles inside the red zone. ESPN kept putting the camera behind the running backs inside the 10 yard line because you know, it's not like the goal line view is important or anything. So annoying.
Armchair coach:
With Abdullah averaging 7 yards per rush, Beck called 3 straight passing plays in the first quarter. When Nebraska fell behind by 11 in the third quarter, Beck forgot about the running game altogether until Martinez busted off a nice 35 yard zone read. On Nebraska's last drive that mattered (the one that started at their own 10), Abdullah was tackled after a one yard gain, and Nebraska immediately went to a pass (incomplete) and a QB draw on third and 9 for a two yard loss. And so it was, that Ameer Abdullah, who rushed for 165 yards rushing yesterday, was a complete non-factor on the most important offensive drive of 2013. Ridiculous.
Jennifer's Take (my wife doesn't know much about football, but she still has opinions)
"I think the defense is protesting Martinez's comeback."
Makes as much sense as anything else...
Opponent Watch:
*Iowa beat Northwestern 17-10 in an overtime slugfest. Northwestern was still missing it's best offensive weapon in Venric Mark, and fell to 0-4 in the Big Ten. Iowa on the other hand, is looking good after taking Ohio State to the brink and beating the former Legends division favorite. The Hawkeyes play tough defense and run the ball pretty well, so pump the brakes on any thoughts of another Black Friday beat down.
*Michigan State continued it's offensive renaissance at Illinois scoring six TDs (all by the offense!) in a 42-3 shellacking. The Spartans remain the best statistical defense in the nation, allowing 128 total yards to the Illini.
*#4 Ohio State seems to have got the memo about needing to win more impressively to improve their BCS standing, and they proceeded to crush Penn State in a 63-14 bloodbath. Penn State turned the ball over three times and allowed 686 yards to the Buckeyes. Penn State hasn't been beaten so badly since a 64-5 beatdown by the Duquesne Athletic Club in 1899. Fun fact.
*Zach Zenner had 106 yards and a TD as South Dakota State eked out a 37-34 overtime victory over Northern Illinois.
*Southern Miss was down 41-7 at home against North Texas and went on to lose 55-14. The Golden Eagles committed five more turnovers and managed a measly 39 yards rushing against the mighty Mean Green.
*Wyoming lost a 51-44 shootout to San Jose State and falls to 4-4. If the Cowboys don't make a bowl game, how bad does that Aug 30th game look?
*#12 UCLA kept it tight through three quarters, but a 21 point 4th quarter onslaught by #3 Oregon led to a 42-14 win for the Ducks. Oregon QB Marcus Mariota still has yet to throw an interception this season.
Keeping an Eye on the Rest of the College Football World...
*Two more unbeatens fell last night as #5 Missouri and #10 Texas Tech fell apart in the 4th quarter of their respective games against #21 South Carolina and #15 Oklahoma. #7 Miami needed a one yard TD in the last minute to win at home versus Wake Forest and remain unbeaten. The winner of the Miami-Florida State game next week should be one of four unbeaten teams in the top four 3/4 of the way through the season. I can't wait for the visceral outpouring of BCS hate if they're still unbeaten the first of December. And watch out for #8 Baylor lurking just outside should one of the top 4 go down.
*And of course there are the BCS Busters. #17 Fresno State eked out an overtime win over San Diego State, while #18 Northern Illinois blasted Eastern Michigan 59-20. It's likely that only one of those two can get into a BCS bowl if they stay undefeated, so style points really matter.
*#1 Alabama continues to roll, this time through a helpless Tennessee team in Tuscaloosa, 45-10. Not much to say about the Tide, they play great defense, run the ball and score lots of points.
*Coaches always downplay the revenge angle, but you know that #2 Florida State had to enjoy leaping out to a 35 point lead in the first quarter of their grudge match with NC State. The Seminoles eased off the rest of the game, cruising to a 49-17 win in their final tune-up for the Miami game next week.
*#14 Virginia Tech lost a 13-10 snoozer to Duke at home. Both teams threw four interceptions and were flagged six times each, but Duke K Ross Martin hit 51 and 53 yard field goals while his counterpart hit only 1 of 3 field goals to doom the Hokies.
*Remember Boise State? The Broncos fell to 5-3 last night with a 37-20 loss to BYU. The hardest part of the schedule is behind the Broncos, so their 9th consecutive 10 win season and their 4th consecutive berth in the Maaco Las Vegas Bowl is still a distinct possibility, despite their numerous injuries.
*TCU was on the wrong side of a 30-7 beat down at home versus Texas. The Frogs are now 3-5, so maybe Gary Patterson will be looking for a defensive coordinator job in December...
Last Thought
So what do we do about these infuriating Cornhuskers? At 5-2 the season is hardly over, but looking at the stretch of games remaining, it's easy to imagine a 7-5 finish. Or 5-7. Or 10-2.
We just don't know, and that's the most maddening part of this season. There's nothing that this team can hang it's hat on, no identity. Yesterday, Ameer Abdullah was clearly the best player on the field, but it just seemed like Tim Beck wanted to put the game in Martinez's hands, and he simply was not capable of making plays to win. Where does this team go?
Depends. Tim Beck needs a dose of humility. He might need to put a little more Alabama into his offense and take out a bit of the Texas A&M. Perhaps the future is now for Tommy Armstrong or Ron Kellogg. Abdullah and Imani Cross need at least 5 more touches per game each.
And John Papuchis needs to go. I'm not saying that a midseason firing is in order, but there is no reason he should still be around in January. Bo needs to take control of the defense now and figure something out; the defense is good enough to survive the rest of the season while leaning on the offense. Come January, we need some fresh blood. Will Muschamp might be available. So too might Gary Patterson. Perhaps someone from the Nick Saban tree. Bo made a huge mistake not wooing Mike Stoops to town when he had the chance, and now he needs new ideas and new methods because his current staff is clearly at a loss. I'll reserve judgement on the head man until the end of the season, but he's officially on notice now, and he needs to make some bold moves.
Fan forecast: stormy, cold and bitter.
"I think the defense is protesting Martinez's comeback."
Makes as much sense as anything else...
Opponent Watch:
*Iowa beat Northwestern 17-10 in an overtime slugfest. Northwestern was still missing it's best offensive weapon in Venric Mark, and fell to 0-4 in the Big Ten. Iowa on the other hand, is looking good after taking Ohio State to the brink and beating the former Legends division favorite. The Hawkeyes play tough defense and run the ball pretty well, so pump the brakes on any thoughts of another Black Friday beat down.
*Michigan State continued it's offensive renaissance at Illinois scoring six TDs (all by the offense!) in a 42-3 shellacking. The Spartans remain the best statistical defense in the nation, allowing 128 total yards to the Illini.
*#4 Ohio State seems to have got the memo about needing to win more impressively to improve their BCS standing, and they proceeded to crush Penn State in a 63-14 bloodbath. Penn State turned the ball over three times and allowed 686 yards to the Buckeyes. Penn State hasn't been beaten so badly since a 64-5 beatdown by the Duquesne Athletic Club in 1899. Fun fact.
*Zach Zenner had 106 yards and a TD as South Dakota State eked out a 37-34 overtime victory over Northern Illinois.
*Southern Miss was down 41-7 at home against North Texas and went on to lose 55-14. The Golden Eagles committed five more turnovers and managed a measly 39 yards rushing against the mighty Mean Green.
*Wyoming lost a 51-44 shootout to San Jose State and falls to 4-4. If the Cowboys don't make a bowl game, how bad does that Aug 30th game look?
*#12 UCLA kept it tight through three quarters, but a 21 point 4th quarter onslaught by #3 Oregon led to a 42-14 win for the Ducks. Oregon QB Marcus Mariota still has yet to throw an interception this season.
Keeping an Eye on the Rest of the College Football World...
*Two more unbeatens fell last night as #5 Missouri and #10 Texas Tech fell apart in the 4th quarter of their respective games against #21 South Carolina and #15 Oklahoma. #7 Miami needed a one yard TD in the last minute to win at home versus Wake Forest and remain unbeaten. The winner of the Miami-Florida State game next week should be one of four unbeaten teams in the top four 3/4 of the way through the season. I can't wait for the visceral outpouring of BCS hate if they're still unbeaten the first of December. And watch out for #8 Baylor lurking just outside should one of the top 4 go down.
*And of course there are the BCS Busters. #17 Fresno State eked out an overtime win over San Diego State, while #18 Northern Illinois blasted Eastern Michigan 59-20. It's likely that only one of those two can get into a BCS bowl if they stay undefeated, so style points really matter.
*#1 Alabama continues to roll, this time through a helpless Tennessee team in Tuscaloosa, 45-10. Not much to say about the Tide, they play great defense, run the ball and score lots of points.
*Coaches always downplay the revenge angle, but you know that #2 Florida State had to enjoy leaping out to a 35 point lead in the first quarter of their grudge match with NC State. The Seminoles eased off the rest of the game, cruising to a 49-17 win in their final tune-up for the Miami game next week.
*#14 Virginia Tech lost a 13-10 snoozer to Duke at home. Both teams threw four interceptions and were flagged six times each, but Duke K Ross Martin hit 51 and 53 yard field goals while his counterpart hit only 1 of 3 field goals to doom the Hokies.
*Remember Boise State? The Broncos fell to 5-3 last night with a 37-20 loss to BYU. The hardest part of the schedule is behind the Broncos, so their 9th consecutive 10 win season and their 4th consecutive berth in the Maaco Las Vegas Bowl is still a distinct possibility, despite their numerous injuries.
*TCU was on the wrong side of a 30-7 beat down at home versus Texas. The Frogs are now 3-5, so maybe Gary Patterson will be looking for a defensive coordinator job in December...
Last Thought
So what do we do about these infuriating Cornhuskers? At 5-2 the season is hardly over, but looking at the stretch of games remaining, it's easy to imagine a 7-5 finish. Or 5-7. Or 10-2.
We just don't know, and that's the most maddening part of this season. There's nothing that this team can hang it's hat on, no identity. Yesterday, Ameer Abdullah was clearly the best player on the field, but it just seemed like Tim Beck wanted to put the game in Martinez's hands, and he simply was not capable of making plays to win. Where does this team go?
Depends. Tim Beck needs a dose of humility. He might need to put a little more Alabama into his offense and take out a bit of the Texas A&M. Perhaps the future is now for Tommy Armstrong or Ron Kellogg. Abdullah and Imani Cross need at least 5 more touches per game each.
And John Papuchis needs to go. I'm not saying that a midseason firing is in order, but there is no reason he should still be around in January. Bo needs to take control of the defense now and figure something out; the defense is good enough to survive the rest of the season while leaning on the offense. Come January, we need some fresh blood. Will Muschamp might be available. So too might Gary Patterson. Perhaps someone from the Nick Saban tree. Bo made a huge mistake not wooing Mike Stoops to town when he had the chance, and now he needs new ideas and new methods because his current staff is clearly at a loss. I'll reserve judgement on the head man until the end of the season, but he's officially on notice now, and he needs to make some bold moves.
Fan forecast: stormy, cold and bitter.
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