Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately), Bo Pelini's sideline antics and post-game comments overshadowed the generally poor performance by his team. The rumor and furor over the status of the head coach covered up one of the more disheartening losses of this decade. Nebraska's long list of injuries were on full ruinous display, and the inconsistent, but sharply talented defense again folded under the weight of the offensive mistakes.
And so 2013, a season that opened with a pyrrhic victory, comes to a close with a fourth bitter, self-inflicted defeat. Nebraska looks like it's headed to a pre-New Years bowl game with a 4th place Big 12 team. So where does that leave the program? Yet again, stuck in neutral with tons of promise for next year; probably Bo's last chance at turning his tenure around.
On with the review:
Offensive MVP: Brandon Scherff LT, Iowa. It's rare for an offensive lineman to be an MVP, but of Iowa's biggest plays of the day, they all seemed to go left and there was Scherff plowing over Avery Moss to set the edge, and then getting up-field to destroy whoever came into his path. Three TD's overall for Iowa over the left tackle, the other two came from passes, so you know he was doing his job there too.
Defensive MVP: Michael Rose LB. It's been a while since a Nebraska linebacker put forth such a valiant effort in a loss: 16 tackles, 5 for loss, and a pass break-up. If Nebraska, like Iowa, had two more linebackers playing on Rose's level, things might have ended differently yesterday. Rose needs to take the next step and start forcing turnovers.
Special Teams MVP: Connor Kornbrath P, Iowa. This game was all about field position, and Kornbrath's three punts downed inside the 20 helped force Nebraska's average starting position inside their 15 yard line in the first half. On a day when little else went right for the Cornhuskers, Kornbrath's punts always seemed to roll another 15 yards, just to rub a little salt in the wound.
Freshman MVP: Vincent Valentine DT. The redshirt freshman started the game on fire, getting a TFL on Iowa's first possession and a gorgeous sack in the second quarter. Valentine ended up with five tackles overall. Valentine is one of the chief reasons for optimism for this young Nebraska defense.
Assistant Coach MVP: Rick Kaczenski, Defensive line. The narrative for this game would be completely different if not for three turnovers, poor special teams, and some annoying penalties. Coach K's charges held up decently well against a veteran Iowa offensive line, and the difference in this group from game one until now is stark. If Coach K sticks around, I'm incredibly excited to see what Randy Gregory, Maliek Collins, Avery Moss, and Vincent Valentine will do in the coming years.
5 Who Stood out:
*Maliek Collins DT. It was Collins who was responsible for that 4th and 1 stop right after Nebraska's first turnover. The true freshman only had one more tackle, and drew that hands-to-the-face penalty after a late third down stop, but he clearly has a bright future and possesses the natural skills to be a game changer down the road.
*Ameer Abdullah RB. You never know how he gets all those yards, but lo and behold, going into the fourth quarter he was at 80 yards and should have had his 9th consecutive 100-yard game, had he not come up injured after that fumble, and had Nebraska not gone into desperation mode so quickly. Abdullah deserved a better record for all of his hard running this season, but perhaps that will come to fruition next year.
*Quincy Enunwa WR. Enunwa's freakish athleticism was on display one more time on that 15 yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. Enunwa's knack for the big play far outweighed his occasional stone hands this season. He will be missed.
*Ron Kellogg III QB. RKIII is far from the most talented quarterback on this team, but he shook off his poor start and kept fighting all game long, taking shots and getting up the entire game. I wish he could have had a more storybook ending to his career, but that wasn't in the cards. We'll see what happens in the bowl game, but I hope Ronnie gets a series or two.
*Drew Ott DE, Iowa. Ott, the true sophomore from Giltner, NE, helped lead the Hawkeyes defense in stuffing up the Husker's rushing attack. Ott only made four tackles, but he was all over the field all afternoon. Oh, and he should be wearing red. There's that.
Key Stat: 31.2 yards. That's the average length of the field Iowa traversed on each of their five touchdown drives yesterday. Way too short.
Play of the Game: Ameer Abdullah's five yard TD run. Nebraska came out on fire after half-time, getting chunks of yards running the ball and hitting short passes to bring the score to 14-10. Unfortunately that would be as good as it would get the rest of the afternoon.
Play We Want Back: That botched fake punt was ridiculous, and after Iowa scored on the ensuing play, Nebraska moved into full-on desperation mode on offense, despite only being down two scores with a quarter and a half to play. That was an incredibly ridiculous call, and not just because it didn't work. See more below.
Blown Call: I didn't like the pass interference call on Zaire Anderson. I didn't hate it as much as Pelini did, but I thought it was pretty ridiculous.
And of course, there's all that time that Rudock had to throw the ball most of the game. Certainly there was at least one play where there were Hawkeyes getting a bit grabby.
Hit of the Game: Abdullah got absolutely crushed on that third quarter fumble, and one can hardly blame him for fumbling. I'm not excusing his fumble, but I sure can understand it.
I want to see more...
*Discipline. Bo's getting one more year and in year seven of the Pelini era, I would love to see an even turnover margin (or just close to even), fewer game changing penalties, and just a better all around performance and mannerism about this team. That simply to happen next season.
*Takeaways. The biggest difference between Nebraska's defense and Iowa's defense yesterday was the three turnovers. In order to be truly dominant, these Blackshirts need to start forcing the issue.
*Shotgun counters. Remember when Roy Helu used to bust off big runs three or four times a game? Those deadly shotgun counters seem to have left with Shawn Watson, and that's really too bad. I think that Ameer Abdulah's skill-set is perfect for that play, and I'd like to see Tim Beck bring it back.
*Fullbacks. With our offensive line in shambles, why weren't there more power sets with fullbacks? Iowa's defense really isn't that good.
*Healthy players. I think at this point, with the sheer number of injuries the Huskers are dealing with, it has to be a strength and conditioning issue. The season ending injuries are one thing, but our players can't absorb mild hits without needing a 3 minute rest laying on the field or on the sideline. I'm thinking that that is one of the staff changes Bo will need to make in the offseason.
I want to see fewer...
*3rd and 1's. Iowa had far too many short third downs, especially early in the game. This is one of the natural issues that arise with younger, lighter players on the defensive line, especially playing a physical, run-first team like Iowa. Nebraska needed to be more creative with their run-blitzes to get better penetration.
*Turnovers. Different week, same story.
*Punt returns. Seriously, it's time to sell out trying to block every punt and let the ball roll where it may. It's just too embarrassing watching Jordan Westerkamp or anyone else muck around back there.
*Missed tackles. A big whiff by Andrew Green resulted in a 30 yard gain in the 2nd quarter, and he followed up by missing Mark Weisman on the very next play at the 5 as he went into the endzone. The defense showed nice flashes of good performance yesterday, but their small mistakes, with their backs against the wall, tipped the game
*Halftime interviews by Quint Kessenich. Bo stopped just short of calling Quint an idiot for that question about the two interceptions in the first half (and he would have been right to do so). This a week after similar questions were shot down by a stone-faced Mark Dantonio at the Michigan State-Northwestern game last week. Worst sideline reporter in football.
Armchair coach:
There was nothing right about that fake punt. Nothing at all. Bad time to call it, bad play, bad execution and horrible result. Just completely awful and inappropriate. And game-changing.
One play later, Iowa had a two score lead, and all of Nebraska's momentum vanished. After the game, Bo said that Sam Foltz was one block away from getting the first down. That assessment is optimistic.
Jennifer's Take (my wife doesn't know much about football, but she still has opinions)
Jennifer went shopping and missed the game. I'm not convinced that she didn't make the better choice.
Opponent Watch:
*I don't necessarily agree with Brady Hoke's decision to go for two at the end of the game with #3 Ohio State, but after Michigan gave up a combined 379 yards rushing to RB Carlos Hyde and QB Braxton Miller, I understand that he didn't like his chances in overtime. You know Sparty feels a lot better about their matchup with the Buckeyes next week; Ohio State is far from invincible, especially on defense.
*Speaking of Sparty, the #11 Spartans ground out a win over Minnesota 14-3. Michigan State was content to bang it out on the ground and only a couple turnovers kept the win from being more comfortable. Sparty has every chance in the world of beating Ohio State next week; Michigan exposed some deeply ingrained defensive issues for the Buckeyes.
*Penn State registered the surprise upset of the day, taking out #15 Wisconsin. Freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg (who is going to be a force if he can get a few decent receivers) threw four TDs, none to all-star WR Allen Robinson, and the Nittany Lions' defense forced the Badgers into four turnovers to carry the team to a 31-24 victory.
*Northwestern preserved a shred of dignity by beating Illinois in a 37-34 shootout. The Wildcats racked up 560 yards of offense, allowing 492 to the Illini, and finish the year 5-7 after starting 4-0.
*Hapless little Purdue finishes winless in Big Ten play after a 56-36 drubbing at the hands of Indiana. The Boilermakers couldn't stop the Hoosier offense, allowing 692 total yards in defeat. The good news for Purdue is that they have some skilled young players, and it really can't get worse.
*Wyoming fell 35-7 at Utah State, finishing 5-6 and home for the holidays. The Cowboys offense, which went over 600 yards at Nebraska, managed a paltry 190 total yards against the Aggies.
*How crazy is College Football? Southern Miss blasted UAB 62-27, committing only one turnover while forcing FIVE! The Golden Eagles avoid losing their 24th straight and manage a bit of momentum going into next season.
*#22 UCLA got their second consecutive win over #23 USC, establishing a benchmark of dominance in the LA area, and probably ending Ed Orgeron's storybook run as USC's head man. As inconsistent as the Bruins have been this season, they've definitely got the pieces to be very, very good the next several years.
Keeping an Eye on the Rest of the College Football World...
*It's not often that overhyped games live up to their billing, but #1 Alabama at #4 Auburn did just that. It's not going to be an easy week for Nick Saban, whose team needs a ton of help to get to the BCS Championship game after several questionable coaching decisions cost the Tide in a 34-28 defeat.
Hard to believe that exactly one year ago, Auburn fired their head coach after a 3-9 season.
*SEC defenses struggle with the triple option. Auburn repeatedly burned Alabama with their variation of the play. Georgia Southern scorched Florida with a more classic version of the play last week. And Georgia Tech nearly pulled off an upset over Georgia, losing in 2OT. For a league with such hyped defenses, it's funny that they struggle with such a simple scheme.
*Haven't talked much about #16 Fresno State this season because I knew that their utter lack of defense was eventually going to cost them. San Jose State was the team to nip the Bulldogs 62-52, costing the Mountain West millions of dollars in potential BCS money.
*#19 UCF nipped South Florida 23-20, securing at least a share of the AAC title, and keeping their BCS hopes alive. Anyone who doesn't think the Knights deserve a BCS shot need only ask South Carolina, who needed some 4th quarter magic to beat UCF earlier this season.
*Speaking of the #10 Gamecocks, they squeezed #6 Clemson 31-17 last night, potentially knocking the Tigers out of a BCS bowl. Spurrier's done some good work at USC, but he's stuck on that also-ran plateau.
*#14 Northern Illinois kept their BCS hopes alive though, beating Western Michigan handily behind QB Jordan Lynch's 341 yards rushing. No, that's not a typo. Lynch broke his own record for single-game rushing yards by a QB. The Huskies' game plan was obvious: get the game over as fast as possible. Understandable given the 17 degree temps and swirling wind.
*Florida kept it interesting for most of the first half, but #2 Florida State pulled away in the second to get a 37-7 victory. Jameis Winston probably won't win the Heisman because of the swirling sexual assault allegations, but he played well after the first quarter, throwing for 327 yards and three TDs.
*How about #24 Duke? The Blue Devils are 10-2 after edging North Carolina 27-25, and meet #2 Florida State in the ACC championship game next week. The Blue Devils have a chance to help create a fitting, chaotic finale to the BCS era if they can somehow get the win.
*Kansas State thrashed Kansas 31-10 yesterday. The Jayhawks finish 3-9 in their second year under Charlie Weis, which is clear improvement from the 2-10 mark in Turner Gill's second year. Good job, Kansas!
*I still hate #5 Missouri, but I have to grudgingly recognize their accomplishment in winning the SEC East this season. It would be interesting to go back to August and see what the Vegas odds for Auburn and Missouri being in the SEC title were. With a little help, the Tigers will be in the BCS Title Game with a doable win over Auburn.
Last Thought
So the crushing loss to Iowa is not going to be the end of the Bo Pelini era at Nebraska. Statements have been made by the Nebraska brass, Bo kind of apologized for his behavior, and the Huskers get about a month to heal, both physically and mentally.
The bowl game, wherever it is played and whomever it's played against, has a number of intriguing story lines. The starting offense could look up to 75% different than it did Friday morning if several key Huskers can recover from injuries. The starting defense, with a month to prepare for what is almost sure to be a sub-par team (especially with Wisconsin's loss) could be absolutely dominant. Taylor Martinez might get a chance to showcase a little more magic before his tenure at NU ends. Ameer Abdullah will get a chance to build up some buzz for what could be a special 2014. Yes, there's still plenty to play for.
Hopefully Husker Nation can do some healing over the month as well. Loud factions of the Husker faithful aren't happy with Pelini, and seem to be on the verge of jumping ship. The 2014 recruiting class is half-full, but has been stuck in neutral much of the season, and the recent weeks probably haven't done the Huskers any favors in that area. Regardless of how you felt about Pelini Saturday morning, he's not going anywhere anytime soon, so it's time to get back behind our team, and get the train rolling for another run in 2014.
Fan forecast: sun breaking through the clouds as the month progresses.
Jennifer went shopping and missed the game. I'm not convinced that she didn't make the better choice.
Opponent Watch:
*I don't necessarily agree with Brady Hoke's decision to go for two at the end of the game with #3 Ohio State, but after Michigan gave up a combined 379 yards rushing to RB Carlos Hyde and QB Braxton Miller, I understand that he didn't like his chances in overtime. You know Sparty feels a lot better about their matchup with the Buckeyes next week; Ohio State is far from invincible, especially on defense.
*Speaking of Sparty, the #11 Spartans ground out a win over Minnesota 14-3. Michigan State was content to bang it out on the ground and only a couple turnovers kept the win from being more comfortable. Sparty has every chance in the world of beating Ohio State next week; Michigan exposed some deeply ingrained defensive issues for the Buckeyes.
*Penn State registered the surprise upset of the day, taking out #15 Wisconsin. Freshman quarterback Christian Hackenberg (who is going to be a force if he can get a few decent receivers) threw four TDs, none to all-star WR Allen Robinson, and the Nittany Lions' defense forced the Badgers into four turnovers to carry the team to a 31-24 victory.
*Northwestern preserved a shred of dignity by beating Illinois in a 37-34 shootout. The Wildcats racked up 560 yards of offense, allowing 492 to the Illini, and finish the year 5-7 after starting 4-0.
*Hapless little Purdue finishes winless in Big Ten play after a 56-36 drubbing at the hands of Indiana. The Boilermakers couldn't stop the Hoosier offense, allowing 692 total yards in defeat. The good news for Purdue is that they have some skilled young players, and it really can't get worse.
*Wyoming fell 35-7 at Utah State, finishing 5-6 and home for the holidays. The Cowboys offense, which went over 600 yards at Nebraska, managed a paltry 190 total yards against the Aggies.
*How crazy is College Football? Southern Miss blasted UAB 62-27, committing only one turnover while forcing FIVE! The Golden Eagles avoid losing their 24th straight and manage a bit of momentum going into next season.
*#22 UCLA got their second consecutive win over #23 USC, establishing a benchmark of dominance in the LA area, and probably ending Ed Orgeron's storybook run as USC's head man. As inconsistent as the Bruins have been this season, they've definitely got the pieces to be very, very good the next several years.
Keeping an Eye on the Rest of the College Football World...
*It's not often that overhyped games live up to their billing, but #1 Alabama at #4 Auburn did just that. It's not going to be an easy week for Nick Saban, whose team needs a ton of help to get to the BCS Championship game after several questionable coaching decisions cost the Tide in a 34-28 defeat.
Hard to believe that exactly one year ago, Auburn fired their head coach after a 3-9 season.
*SEC defenses struggle with the triple option. Auburn repeatedly burned Alabama with their variation of the play. Georgia Southern scorched Florida with a more classic version of the play last week. And Georgia Tech nearly pulled off an upset over Georgia, losing in 2OT. For a league with such hyped defenses, it's funny that they struggle with such a simple scheme.
*Haven't talked much about #16 Fresno State this season because I knew that their utter lack of defense was eventually going to cost them. San Jose State was the team to nip the Bulldogs 62-52, costing the Mountain West millions of dollars in potential BCS money.
*#19 UCF nipped South Florida 23-20, securing at least a share of the AAC title, and keeping their BCS hopes alive. Anyone who doesn't think the Knights deserve a BCS shot need only ask South Carolina, who needed some 4th quarter magic to beat UCF earlier this season.
*Speaking of the #10 Gamecocks, they squeezed #6 Clemson 31-17 last night, potentially knocking the Tigers out of a BCS bowl. Spurrier's done some good work at USC, but he's stuck on that also-ran plateau.
*#14 Northern Illinois kept their BCS hopes alive though, beating Western Michigan handily behind QB Jordan Lynch's 341 yards rushing. No, that's not a typo. Lynch broke his own record for single-game rushing yards by a QB. The Huskies' game plan was obvious: get the game over as fast as possible. Understandable given the 17 degree temps and swirling wind.
*Florida kept it interesting for most of the first half, but #2 Florida State pulled away in the second to get a 37-7 victory. Jameis Winston probably won't win the Heisman because of the swirling sexual assault allegations, but he played well after the first quarter, throwing for 327 yards and three TDs.
*How about #24 Duke? The Blue Devils are 10-2 after edging North Carolina 27-25, and meet #2 Florida State in the ACC championship game next week. The Blue Devils have a chance to help create a fitting, chaotic finale to the BCS era if they can somehow get the win.
*Kansas State thrashed Kansas 31-10 yesterday. The Jayhawks finish 3-9 in their second year under Charlie Weis, which is clear improvement from the 2-10 mark in Turner Gill's second year. Good job, Kansas!
*I still hate #5 Missouri, but I have to grudgingly recognize their accomplishment in winning the SEC East this season. It would be interesting to go back to August and see what the Vegas odds for Auburn and Missouri being in the SEC title were. With a little help, the Tigers will be in the BCS Title Game with a doable win over Auburn.
Last Thought
So the crushing loss to Iowa is not going to be the end of the Bo Pelini era at Nebraska. Statements have been made by the Nebraska brass, Bo kind of apologized for his behavior, and the Huskers get about a month to heal, both physically and mentally.
The bowl game, wherever it is played and whomever it's played against, has a number of intriguing story lines. The starting offense could look up to 75% different than it did Friday morning if several key Huskers can recover from injuries. The starting defense, with a month to prepare for what is almost sure to be a sub-par team (especially with Wisconsin's loss) could be absolutely dominant. Taylor Martinez might get a chance to showcase a little more magic before his tenure at NU ends. Ameer Abdullah will get a chance to build up some buzz for what could be a special 2014. Yes, there's still plenty to play for.
Hopefully Husker Nation can do some healing over the month as well. Loud factions of the Husker faithful aren't happy with Pelini, and seem to be on the verge of jumping ship. The 2014 recruiting class is half-full, but has been stuck in neutral much of the season, and the recent weeks probably haven't done the Huskers any favors in that area. Regardless of how you felt about Pelini Saturday morning, he's not going anywhere anytime soon, so it's time to get back behind our team, and get the train rolling for another run in 2014.
Fan forecast: sun breaking through the clouds as the month progresses.
