melscott62
All-Conference
its more than just being a starter. the guy has had some good games against quality defenses. he just hasnt been consistently dominant, or consistently healthy. are the 2 connected? hopefully we find out next year.
Roy Helu Jr. running style
- Thread starter mmmtodd
- Start date
mmmtodd
All-Conference
I agree. The whole offensive mess of this year just has me really reserved. Even if Roy is healthy to start the year, if he goes down, I just wonder how much it affects/limits and changes the offense when he is not available. People forget that his shoulder was hurt in 2008 as well, and limited carries. Thats a pattern, folks. Its why he bulked up this year, and ultimately why this thread was started. Didnt help. What if he truly cant take a full year? Should the offense be tailored around him? Or should someone else be given the nod? Or is the committee approach the best way? I just really dont see Roy being dependable enough. You dont know if youre going to get VaTech, or Iowa State. He's a crap shoot. He had games when healthy that he disappeared in as well. People were proven right to worry with Q's departure last year, Roy and the Boys couldnt hang. There is no star, and so far, no one has proven to even be reliable (exception may be Burkhead, another have to wait and see type deal). Its been awhile since Nebraska has been so average, I guess; uncertain for sure, at the running back position IMO.
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Do you tell him all of this stuff while you're standing next to him or just hope that he might see it later on Huskerboard?
mmmtodd
All-Conference
hmm...i didnt foresee this turning into a biggest wiener competition...
Roy is a division 1 athlete...it comes with the territory. We all make and form opinions of players, thats why we are fan(atic)s, and thats why we are both here on Huskerboard. Just as Roy doesnt give a hoot what I think about him, I could care less what he thinks of me or my opinions. Would it have been more correct for me to stand there and tell him all of this, or the telling him of good luck and to get after them? I fail to see what you are trying to prove other than your inability to make an intelligent statement in regards to the theme of the thread.
EDIT: due to me having my panties in a knot. :dunno
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The irony here is that you say I am not making an intelligent statement in regards to the theme of the thread yet you actually said" all you have to do is stand next to him" as if that has anything to do with his running style in 2008-2009. Did you stand next to him once in '08 and once in '09 and you said to yourself "he just isn't holding himself the same way that he did last year..."
If I stand next to Darren Sproles, he's shorter than I am and does not have too much more muscle tone. Standing next to me, he wouldn't seem to be a football player, yet he is one of the quickest, fastest guys in the NFL. My point is, it is pretty ridiculous to assume anything about someone because you "stand next to him" and my initial response was more of a knock on one of your sources claiming that Roy is more or less a ho-hum back.
On a side note, (in order to make an intelligent statement in regards to the theme of this thread) I don't really see Rexy getting too much bigger over his time at Nebraska. With this in mind, I think that having a contrast of Roy as a bigger, "thud" back vs. Rexy's "slash and get through the hole" might work to the Huskers' advantage next year.
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mmmtodd
All-Conference
Have you read all of my posts in this thread? Standing next to Rex does not mold my entire opinion of him. Youre picking out one observation I made. The old eyeball test doesnt stand for much, but when put together with everything else I think about him, it doesnt help his case. Has nothing to do with him looking different from one year or another, or who or what looks like a football player. Hes not small and quick like Sproles, he cant play that way. He's not 6ft tall and he doesnt have the build to carry weight like a large back. He's just Roy. He's injury prone. He got hurt being himself. He got hurt the same way trying to be bigger and something he's not. He's an oddball, and not the particularly special, groundbreaking type. Shows flashes. Got some heart, I think. Hard to tell what being a running back and wearing a green jersey in practice means. Who's it helping?
I think people are saying a lot of goods things about this topic. Here are my thoughts on Roy, in general.
1) Major injury problems. Two years in a row he has been held out of the bowl game because of knee issues. He also had a multitude of injuries this year, which quite frankly impresses me that he put up over 1,000 yards.
2) I don't believe he is a good feature back in our system. Injuries in the RB position forced him to play extra snaps, but its obvious that he is most productive when he has somebody to share the load with equally. Burkhead is the better downhill runner, while Helu has elusiveness that makes him valuable as a nice change of pice
3) I believe Burkhead and Roy should get equal touches. But, if you need a guy to carry the brunt of the loads for one game, Burkhead should be your guy. Helu is a valuable asset that is better when he is healthy rather than injured. Helu is also a better asset when he isn't getting 25-30 touches a game. Burkhead appears more equipped to deal with that sort of thing if we needed it.
1) Major injury problems. Two years in a row he has been held out of the bowl game because of knee issues. He also had a multitude of injuries this year, which quite frankly impresses me that he put up over 1,000 yards.
2) I don't believe he is a good feature back in our system. Injuries in the RB position forced him to play extra snaps, but its obvious that he is most productive when he has somebody to share the load with equally. Burkhead is the better downhill runner, while Helu has elusiveness that makes him valuable as a nice change of pice
3) I believe Burkhead and Roy should get equal touches. But, if you need a guy to carry the brunt of the loads for one game, Burkhead should be your guy. Helu is a valuable asset that is better when he is healthy rather than injured. Helu is also a better asset when he isn't getting 25-30 touches a game. Burkhead appears more equipped to deal with that sort of thing if we needed it.
ESPY
Starter
Thank you Enhance89. It's like you took the words right out of my mouth.
Roy is explosively quick and elusive; he hits holes in a heartbeat (eg VaTech and MZ), and he has the speed to distance himself on long runs. Rex is a north-south runner with similar quickness and more toughness, evidenced by the 3 extra yards he got at the end of every run vs CU & AZ. Both have great vision and should succeed next season, especially if Watson uses the wildcat as often as he should (8-12 snaps per game). Rex is made for the wildcat, & Roy would do some damage in that formation with him. Plus, Rex will get 5-10 carries from other formations, which should match Roy's load. I see each getting 15-20 carries per game.
Bottom line I think Roy and Rex are both going to have a great 2010. My prediction is that Roy runs for 1100 while Rex hits the 800 mark. I also think both are equally potent as receivers, so tack on another 150+ for each.
Here's some more food for thought. Will Lee's performance as a passer be as anemic as it was in '09? I seriously doubt it. I know WRs need development to help him out in that area, but just imagine how much more dangerous Roy & Rex will be if the passing game clicks. Defenses will respect the pass, and that will make them more susceptible to our running game. Advantage - Roy and Rex.
Good point.
It was extremely impressive in my eyes, yet at the same time it still sticks a thorn in my side. The types of plays we ran out of the Wildcat will not be successful against a defense like Texas. That end-around to Niles Paul would have been cut down for a loss in the Big 12 Championship game.
While the Wildcat gives us a nice change of pace, it still doesn't detract from the fact that we have a lot of issues running successful plays out of base formations.
But, I digress. The thing I was most impressed with was creativity. Watson needs to keep this going if he wants to keep his job. We need drastic improvements for next year, not just moderate, if we want to have any hope of making a MNC run.
husker B-rent
All-Conference
i see nothing wrong with his running style...