Early expectations for this year.

[True2tRA]

I expect some young players to see the field this year. I keep reading from various websites how deep Nebraska is at certain positions. I am not sure how a player on the depth chart who has never taken a meaningful snap is considered as adding depth. You can have 10 DT's on the team, but if only 3 of them have ever played a game, can you really expect the other 7 to make an immediate impact? If so, why? I expect Bo Pelini to learn the value of repetition on the collegiate level. Reps, reps, and more reps. The more reps, for more guys, the better the team. My biggest expectation from this season, is for Bo to learn the hard way that he needs to SIMPLIFY. SIMPLE, SIMPLE, SIMPLE. Be GREAT at something, not mediocre at 10 things.

I vote for you to be coach when we fire Bo after this season, you seem to have it all figured out.

Damn! If only the coaching position came down to a voting system....I already have 1 vote, which is more than most people have. Plus it's HuskerFowlers vote, so that counts for something.

 

[knapplc]

LOL at Knapplc for having a tossup for darn near every game, way to go out on a limb.

I really, really didn't want to do that. I know it's stupid. But realistically, after watching the way we demolished Ohio State in 20 minutes and the way we pissed the Northwestern game down our leg, can you truly say you know which Husker team is going to show up in any given game? That's my main point - inconsistency. It kills this team. It makes a world-beater out of this team.

I'm damned if I know which Huskers are going to take the field.

 

[HuskerFowler]

I expect some young players to see the field this year. I keep reading from various websites how deep Nebraska is at certain positions. I am not sure how a player on the depth chart who has never taken a meaningful snap is considered as adding depth. You can have 10 DT's on the team, but if only 3 of them have ever played a game, can you really expect the other 7 to make an immediate impact? If so, why? I expect Bo Pelini to learn the value of repetition on the collegiate level. Reps, reps, and more reps. The more reps, for more guys, the better the team. My biggest expectation from this season, is for Bo to learn the hard way that he needs to SIMPLIFY. SIMPLE, SIMPLE, SIMPLE. Be GREAT at something, not mediocre at 10 things.

I vote for you to be coach when we fire Bo after this season, you seem to have it all figured out.

Damn! If only the coaching position came down to a voting system....I already have 1 vote, which is more than most people have. Plus it's HuskerFowlers vote, so that counts for something.

Counts for about as much as your opinion of what Bo should learn about coaching college kids. i'll make sure i tell him next time i see him flying out on a recruiting trip. Bo, this random guy on the internet thinks you need to learn to get the kids more reps and you need to simplify things, please change your defensive scheme because some fans dont understand it or think it doesnt work. I dont mean to attack you but your post just screamed i know more then BO.

The new husker recruiting jet is pretty sweet by the way.

 

[HuskerFowler]

LOL at Knapplc for having a tossup for darn near every game, way to go out on a limb.

I really, really didn't want to do that. I know it's stupid. But realistically, after watching the way we demolished Ohio State in 20 minutes and the way we pissed the Northwestern game down our leg, can you truly say you know which Husker team is going to show up in any given game? That's my main point - inconsistency. It kills this team. It makes a world-beater out of this team.

I'm damned if I know which Huskers are going to take the field.

Ya after i laughed i realized thats kind of right, you just never know what your going to get. We need to be more consistent thats for sure. #Take the next step

 

[Guy Chamberlin]

UCLA is not a tossup. That's a W.

Every game in the Big 10 could go either way. Depends on which team shows up.

And that's kinda the point about gauging returning starters, schedule strength, home vs. away and previous years' results. Bo Pelini took the same defensive personnel that failed so miserably in 2007 and turned them into a good defense in 2008 and a great defense in 2009. Unfortunately the offense went south, and the team started playing better on the road than at home.

So much of it is about chemistry and motivation and unpredictible injuries. I'm happy about Nebraska's returning starters, but more interested in how they plan to do things differently this year. Talent is vital, but it's still largely a head game.

I think we differ in the fact that I really believe the coaching staff has failed this team. I don't see it so much as the team failing. You clearly put the focus on the players, but I think you can watch the games and see that we are truly not helping them improve. We have repeatedly had a very poor game plan on both sides of the ball. Player development, talent development has been almost obsolete. I assure you from your last comment, these players are not planning on how to do things differently, the coaches expect these young men to execute "THE COACHES PLAN", not the other way around. Nebraska's returning starters aren't drawing up the gameplan, or calling the plays, they are only asked to execute them. Execution has been on a very rapid decline the last 2 years, it makes you wonder why?

I don't think we differ at all. When you have the same personnel and they play erratically from game to game and quarter to quarter, that's almost entirely on the coaching staff. It's the coachs' job to get their players head in the game, and sometimes Bo tends to freak out his own players. He gets credit for turning the defense around -- and for letting it slide back down -- but he's the head coach and this season will hinge on head coaching. Could go either way, but my money is on modest improvement.

 

[kchusker_chris]

Nevertheless I still think it wears on them. Heh, let's just say their ooc schedule is a LOT tougher than last year. I really, really doubt they'll push Notre Dame & Alabama around much on the road. They'll be lucky to get a split but more likely go 0 - 2 with those guys. Now, maybe that won't make any difference? Maybe.

We'll see!

This post is filled with entirely too much Notre Dame respect. Michigan >>>>> Notre Dame - even on the road. The only team worth a crap they beat last year was MSU. Otherwise, they lose to any other team even close to being ranked. Notre Dame is a 5-7 team this year, with losses to MSU, MIchigan, Miami, Stanford, BYU, Oklahoma, and USC.

 

[knapplc]

Notre Dame is basically as good as Nebraska. They have decent talent at some positions, they lack the necessary depth to make a strong push for a BCS bowl, and they have inconsistent play. The two programs are very similar right now (sad to say).

 

[kchusker_chris]

You could say that about almost any team ranked between #15 and #45 though. We have 4, 9-10 win seasons. Sure we're erratic, and we lose a game (or two) we shouldn't...but Notre Dame loses a bunch that they shouldn't. You can pretty well say we'll get those 9 wins. I don't think you can say that with any confidence when discussing Notre Dame. Other than inconsistent play (which honestly describes all but about 7-10 teams in the BCS)...our recent history proves we aren't all that close to being like Notre Dame. (at least when it comes to results)

I could however see Notre Dame putting up a 12 win season before us. Kind of like Georgia. It's why the "Bo is one of only 6 coaches to win 9 games in 4 years" BS means nothing to me. I'd rather have a down year explained by depth, injuries, graduating talent, loss of a coach, competition, etc followed by some great years that are executed as planned - than Nebraska...who can't explain 1-2 losses per year. 4 losses is the the one thing we are able to count on as Husker fans (sad to say).

 

[knapplc]

I would say that about most of those teams - that's my point. We're a second-tier team right now. Not much separates us from the Domers or anyone else in that range.

 

[kchusker_chris]

when you put it like that it seems like there isn't much to be hopeful for as a Husker fan. nothing is really changing as far as recruiting goes. the coaching staff is actually getting more inexperienced as the seasons progress. we've graduated away the best leftovers from Callahan, and the best JUCO guys Pelini was able to find. We have a rough schedule, operating a "spread killing" defense in a non-spread conference, with a history of being completely unable to stop any QB even remotely close to being mobile (see R. Wilson's rushing numbers from last year and where he got a good chunk of them), playing 5-6 teams a year with mobile QBs, all the while trying to be a power offense with finesse players.

this is depressing. 8 hours of meetings ahead and i'm actually excited to go just to get away from this thread

 

[carlfense]

when you put it like that it seems like there isn't much to be hopeful for as a Husker fan. nothing is really changing as far as recruiting goes. the coaching staff is actually getting more inexperienced as the seasons progress. we've graduated away the best leftovers from Callahan, and the best JUCO guys Pelini was able to find. We have a rough schedule, operating a "spread killing" defense in a non-spread conference, with a history of being completely unable to stop any QB even remotely close to being mobile (see R. Wilson's rushing numbers from last year and where he got a good chunk of them), playing 5-6 teams a year with mobile QBs, all the while trying to be a power offense with finesse players.

this is depressing. 8 hours of meetings ahead and i'm actually excited to go just to get away from this thread

Whether you are joking or not . . . this is basically my opinion of the program at the moment. It's not a good feeling. I don't see much changing in the near future.

One way or another, I'd bet that Pelini won't be coaching here in 3 years. Hopefully he wins a conference championship or BCS game before then and proves me wrong.

 

[ladyhawke]

Interesting thread. Question: For those who think this year will be a 'not so great one' are you only basing your opinion on what has happened in the past few seasons or on the players that will be returning/new coaches (Kaz, etc.) I guess for my part, it would be illogical for me to base everything on what I've already seen. So here's my criteria that leads me to believe that we will have a better season this year than we did last year: This year we have some new variables that we didn't have last year. We have some new coaches, we have some new players, we have some old players who are more experienced. Now on the 'negative' side we don't have David/Dennard/Crick, but I think there will be some new players or more experienced players that will play at least up to their standards-I could be totally wrong. So that is my criteria for being hopeful that we may see a really good season this year.

What is your criteria for the doom and gloom? (I also think it is illogical for posters to say that there has been NO change. Of course there has been change. It might be small but there has been change-just look at Taylor Martinez if you want some criteria for change. When he first started he was intercepted all the time, made poor decisions, wasn't a leader at all but this past year he really stepped up to the plate. Yeah, his stance is all wrong and his throwing motion is weird looking but in many of the games last year he wasn't the reason we lost. It was refreshing to watch him grow. So, I'm sorry but to say that there has been NO change is incorrect.)

 

[VectorVictor]

Based off of Bo's history with this team and their penchant to play down to competition, I dare say I'm more concerned about the unknowns we have coming up on our non-conference schedule than, say, tOSU or Michigan at this point.

And when I especially think about the Southern Miss and UCLA games, this image keeps appearing:

 

[kchusker_chris]

Interesting thread. Question: For those who think this year will be a 'not so great one' are you only basing your opinion on what has happened in the past few seasons or on the players that will be returning/new coaches (Kaz, etc.) I guess for my part, it would be illogical for me to base everything on what I've already seen. So here's my criteria that leads me to believe that we will have a better season this year than we did last year: This year we have some new variables that we didn't have last year. We have some new coaches, we have some new players, we have some old players who are more experienced. Now on the 'negative' side we don't have David/Dennard/Crick, but I think there will be some new players or more experienced players that will play at least up to their standards-I could be totally wrong. So that is my criteria for being hopeful that we may see a really good season this year.

What is your criteria for the doom and gloom? (I also think it is illogical for posters to say that there has been NO change. Of course there has been change. It might be small but there has been change-just look at Taylor Martinez if you want some criteria for change. When he first started he was intercepted all the time, made poor decisions, wasn't a leader at all but this past year he really stepped up to the plate. Yeah, his stance is all wrong and his throwing motion is weird looking but in many of the games last year he wasn't the reason we lost. It was refreshing to watch him grow. So, I'm sorry but to say that there has been NO change is incorrect.)

Both. Last year we could have had 10 page threads discussing how Crick, Dennard, David, Rex, Kinnie, Reed, etc were going to have great seasons. We had some truly proven (key word there) impact players returning. Pre-season all-American, headed to the NFL draft type guys. Martinez was healed up and should have been back to early 10' form. We had a ton of depth (bodies) on the DL and we were going to be extremely strong up front. The OL was going to improve because of Garrison/Stai and some newcomers. Yada, yada, yada.

Sounds excactly like this year...only this year we have 2 returning "proven" impact players. Rex/Martinez. You can argue there are more, but nothing like last year. Nothing even close to David/Crick/Dennard. And Martinez needs to make a HUGE jump to get back to his early 10' impact form. I don't know what happened with last year, and I agree with you that he was certainly not the reason for some of our losses - but his "growth" was completely negated by his regression in other areas of his game. He was not a guy you'd say could take it to the house any give play. He was not anywhere near the running threat he once was, and because of that defenses loaded up on us. I put a lot of this on Beck/scheme not Martinez - but that is a constant, and won't be changing this year either.

If you have to stretch so far as to look at Martinez's interceptions to find something different and improved about this team you see the exact thing many of us are worried about. There isn't much. And really - that change was made between 10' and 11', it's not something that will improve much between 11', and 12'...and that's what we're worried about.

 

[knapplc]

Clearly Martinez was not fully healed from his ankle injuries last year. He was not the same runner AT ALL that he was pre-injury in 2010.