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Mo had kale on him?

I'm optimistic that we don't necessarily need to see dramatic improvements on the field in order to realize dramatic improvements on the scoreboard and the final record. The offense was already very productive and very dangerous with a totally new system, new coaching staff, and true freshman QB. There were a lot of games where we racked up tons of yards, but not enough points to reflect the production. Finishing drives and being more consistent throughout 4 quarters will lead to more wins. With an additional year under everyone's belt, I don't think that is too tall of an order. On defense, yeah there is a lot to be desired, but they did make improvements compared to Diaco's $h!tshow from the year before. With a similar level of improvement, even if it is not incredibly dramatic, that should translate to more wins as well. Overall, last year was a complete rebuild, but this year is about getting stronger, and getting more comfortable, consistent, and confident. I tend to think that minor improvements across the board, as long as everyone's head is in the game, will be enough to get us from 4 wins up to 9 or more.

Who were UCF's great and experienced RBs, receivers and OL from their 6-7 2016 season? You can't make this point at all without talking about that. You haven't given evidence that UCF looked better prepared before the 2017 season than Nebraska does now. They had no one returning from the top 100 rushers list and Tre'Quan Smith was #84 nationally for WRs (Spielman was #32 last season). Their top RB that year was Killins, a SO, and Otis Andersen a true freshmen. Their top 3 receivers were a Jr, So, Sr, the next 3 were all true freshmen. I'm looking at their 2017 roster right now and they only have 1 senior OL listed. They weren't a group of experienced veterans that were stars the previous year. I"m sure there are many reasons to question whether Nebraska's going to have a good season, but this comparison doesn't work if you aren't saying anything about how good UCF's players were.

Ssshhh, Whaddya tryin' to do, get another player in trouble? Of course he was alone.

Okay, this sucks. Wouldn’t have guessed this would be so difficult but each pick takes out a five year window. To make it easier (I thought) I ranked the importance of the position groups based on Nebraska’s usual style of play or at least how important I perceive these groups to usually be. Had to start with the best possible lines up front. I also gave more weight to the list of names rather than specific years those names performed great. So a guy who may not have played as much as a frosh or soph but was awesome later in his career got weighted highly for all years he played. It was working pretty well until I came to the last category With this methodology I came up with; OL: 1994 (Stai, Wiegert, Zatechka, Taylor, Graham, Wilkes) DL: 1997 (Wistrom, Peter, Kelsey, Rucker, Warren) RB: 1982 (Rozier, Craig, Smith, Schellen, Rathman) QB: 2001 (Crouch) DB: 2009 (Prince, Asante, Dennard, Gomes, Hagg, O’Hanlon) LB: 1989 (Croel, Mills, Petko, Tyrance) WR/TE: 1971 (Rodgers, Woody Cox, Frosty Anderson, Jerry List) bonus- Johnny boosts the return game for ST P/PK: 1968 (Paul Rogers) this one is sort of weak but he did likely save Devaney’s job and pffft....they’re kickers and Henery wasn’t an option. Really would’ve liked to somehow get Tommie or LP or Gill or Suh in here...but rules.

Scott Frost?

Here's a 2017 preview for UCF, I think you are overestimating what they had going into the season. https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2017/4/25/15400678/central-florida-football-2017-preview-schedule-roster

OU just landed 1 of their top backs on their board and are no longer interested in Sevion. Things could change but it sounds like we are in the driver's seat here.

We're supposed to applaud Trump for threatening Mexico with a gigantic tax hike ON US because conservatives are comically afraid of brown people and obviously the answer is more border guards, walls, etc.

I sure as hell don't, but at the same time he is not a great reflection on our University right now. I really hope the kid can grow up and grow up fast. He should have felt he was on thin ice well before the drug paraphernalia issue came out.

Milton and the UCF offense showed a major improvement between year 1 and 2, but IMO much of the credit also goes to RBs, receivers & OL who understood the system much better and gave Frost more play calling options. This makes me think the improvement will be less at Nebraska. JD Speilman, Mo and Warner are the only experienced skill players returning, and if bad luck happens we may not have Mo, and JD could be hindered by concussions. Throw in a new center, and this offense does not have the same level of experience with Frost's offense as the UCF team did in year two.

Here are comments about the 2017 UCF depth chart before their first game: Of note on the depth chart: There are 15 upperclassmen listed on the defensive two-deep, including five of six on the defensive line. The Knights list 15 total freshmen on the depth chart, including 10 true freshmen. Seven of 10 true freshmen are on the offense and four are wide receivers. OFFENSE After setting a UCF freshman record for completions in 2016, McKenzie Milton returns to lead a young group of quarterbacks. Freshmen Noah Vedral and Darriel Mack, Jr. are both listed as the backup. A pair of sophomores are on the depth chart at running back with last year's leading rusher Jawon Hamilton and big play threat Adrian Killins, Jr. Junior Taj McGowan is also in the mix after rushing for 4.5 yards per rush last season At tight end it is a trio of seniors on the depth chart as Jordan Akins, Jordan Franks and Michael Colubiale lead the way. Tre'Quan Smith UCF with 853 receiving yards and five touchdowns in 2016 and is back to lead a young group of wide receivers for the Knights in 2017. Four true freshmen join Smith, junior Cam Stewart and sophomore Dredrick Snelson as the seven receivers listed on the depth chart Freshmen Gabriel Davis, Emmanuel Logan-Greene, Marlon Williams and Otis Anderson will all look to see time on the field in their first season in Black and Gold. Veteran starters at tackle Aaron Evans and Wyatt Miller will look to lead the offensive line again this season. Upperclassmen Tyler Hudanick and Chavis Dickey are also atop the depth chart at guard, while sophomore Jordan Johnson moves to center for 2017. Although their situation may have been slightly better than what Nebraska is returning, it doesn't seem too far off. Thin at WR experience with 4 true freshman making up the top seven wide receivers. Two starting tackles returning on the offensive line. A sophomore moved to the center position in 2017 starting. 2nd year starter at qb. RB seems like the only spot where they had slightly more experience returning.

so much for being progressive - talking openly about policy ideas. The DNC may find a way yet to blow this election against Trump in 2020

Ehhh turns out Tanner Lee was pretty proven

Where have you seen people saying he'll have a bigger year than Martinez? There are arguments to be had about how good he could be/will be, but I have not seen anyone (even OSU fans) predicting a bigger year than Martinez. All players start from having accomplished nothing, but we get excited about them anyway. This time of year is all about hype anyway, gotta be excited about something and the shiny new players are appealing. Are you quashing the Wan'Dale hype as well?

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2017/01/29/why-so-many-college-students-decide-to-transfer/ This article says roughly 38% of students transfer at least once, 45% of those transferring more than once during their college education. https://www.sbnation.com/college-football/2018/5/14/17329390/ncaa-transfer-rule-changes-2018 This article says football players on the FBS level transfer at about a 13% clip

It's really early on Adrian Martinez, but really tempting. Certainly worth freeing up players from the glory eras. Or to put it another way; look what Adrian Martinez did with units that wouldn't come close to anyone's "best of" lists.

Don't necessarily agree. You're assuming that just because a player doesn't have game experience, they are going to come into the season as green to the system as the starters last year. That simply isn't the case. ALL players (starters and backups) will have been in the system for two full springs, a season and two fall camps. That is very very different than the entire team coming into spring and fall camp not even knowing what they are supposed to do in drills....etc.

The OP's theory actually isn't that bad. It's pretty much a hodge podge roster right now heading into year 2 with some leftovers from Riley that honestly aren't very talented / some really, really good incoming true freshmen / some guys that redshirted last year that are honestly just total unknowns one way or the other. If Duvall & Greg Austin can get our big guys into that nasty, gritty mindset headed into September and Martinez has time to throw the ball, we will seriously destroy probably 8 out of the 12 teams on our schedule with a floor of a nine win season. If they don't...Martinez isn't going to just dance around and win games all by himself, no matter how badly the fan base wants to believe that.

Another day, another Trump supporter threatening to kill congressmen. This guy has the whole Fox News/Brietbart playbook memorized.

I don't think all those 1990s fit withing the rules either

I thought this was a new way to frame this discussion and frankly should be a bit more disturbing for those of us lacking somewhat in perspective. I know his words kind of struck me in a way that this hadn't before.

Troy Aikman, Vince Ferragamo, Baker Mayfield, and as Nebfanatic pointed out there are several poised to make an impact moving forward in Fields, Martell, etc. Not a quarterback example, but do you think Tre Neal lacked mental fortitude? Rumor was he was not going to start at UCF, which factored into his transfer decision. I think kids are just realizing 4-5 years is not a lot of time, and if you're not playing at Clemson/Alabama/Georgia there are still plenty of places you can play. Especially at QB where only one guy plays. And in this case Fields a better fit for Ohio State's offense anyway, maybe he just realized that too late.

This is a walk off home run, right here.

Frost really killing it on recruiting trail, today he is in TX visiting some real studs!

Here’s one that pissed me off after watching the movie on the Central Park 5 that by itself should have been enough for people not to vote for him. They had DNA from the scene and none of it matched any of the 5 boys. They were 14-16 and some were interrogated without their parents there and 4 didn’t have lawyers there. A serial rapist confessed to the crime in 2002 and they took his DNA, and it matched the DNA from the scene. Trump in 2016: Someone who is too stupid or too racist or too unwilling to admit their prior mistakes to be able to compare the newfound evidence to the confessions of intimidated boys alone at a police station for hours has no business anywhere near the White House and this by itself should have ruled him out from people’s minds as a candidate for the job. There are so many individual instances like this that show him to be a disgusting human being that should have been enough to rule him out, but his supporters just keep filing them away in a place in the dark recesses of their brains where they can conveniently ignore them. I don’t know how they can do it but I hope I’m never able to do the same thing for anyone. Also, Trump in 2014, when the 5 were awarded $40 million: https://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/donald-trump-central-park-settlement-disgrace-article-1.1838467 One of the boys was 16 at the time and was beaten and raped for the next 13 years in prison so no I doubt he's laughing at how stupid the city is for paying him. Also Trump isn't a taxpayer so why did he care?

I disagree with this sentiment. We will be a team no defense wants to face starting this year. There were already flashes a year ago despite all the early season frustration. After a year in the system and with much stronger buy in from the players I forsee us playing more consistently than last year and finishing drives with points instead of sputtering. This season we will see an offense unlike anything we have had in the past 20 years.

I agree that our D will be much improved, I just don't think the O will make the same jump that the UCF O did in year 2 because we will have too many key O players that are in year 1. I think we will be better, but the improvement will not be as dramatic as it was for UCF.

Just what Mo needs: more trouble with the law.

All four drafted and played at least two or three seasons in the NFL. Prince is still playing.

There is a lot of truth to what you have stated in this thread - however it is equal to or out weighted by the fact that this staff has had 4ish years together and they have become much more efficient at running this ship. Either way, it's going to be fun to watch it play out....

Watched Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas last night...

Good for the donor for speaking up, there are plenty of ways to spend that money in ways that might actually go toward overturning the law in AR or getting assistance to women from the state that need help now that their state is opting not to support them. I'm sure if he/she was telling folks to boycott the University, they are happy to take back the funding. And I guess it's admirable that the university (or at least trustees) feel so strongly about something and they are sticking by that. Far more an example to set than the GOP who talks morals and ethics and refuses to return funds from convicted criminals (I think they just more from Winn right? Is there a moral/ethics clause they work under at the University? I know the south is religious but didn't think state universities got involved in that stuff.

dude, too soon....

You got that right and then the American manufacturer and citizen will really suffer. Like I said, tariffs are like daring someone to hit you in the face. Our industries aren't prepared to find new suppliers as soon as Trump emotionally makes a decision like this. Example: My wife and I are looking for a sofa. We went to a furniture store here in Tulsa and the sales guy was pointing out while the sofa was made in the USA the fabric comes from China. Guess what - the manufacturer of said sofa just sent out notices of price increases due to the tariff on the fabric. On the other side of the coin, our farmers cannot find instant markets for the soybeans that China is placing retaliatory tariffs on.

^^^ Another sign of the Cult of Trump. Trumpism is a personality cult- it has gripped the minds of his followers. If he said to drink the poison Kool-aid they would fight for the first cup.

This is true, but on paper (and I believe in reality), UCF’s talent level was quite a bit worse than Nebraska’s as well. Maybe we have too many players who haven’t shown that talent on the field yet but I trust it’s coming with the better coaching I believe they’re receiving.

I was wondering the same thing. If Mexico does a cost benefit analysis and decides adding more border security costs more than they get from it, then why do it?

Wow lol that is a bold comparison to say the least. They should probably keep quiet considering what happened up there under their last coach...

I'm willing to listen to an argument that UCF took a big leap due to a combo of jelling and the fact the AAC is essentially a 7 on 7 league but I'm going to counter it by saying the level of offensive talent that Frost has been able to recruit to Lincoln dwarfs what Frost was able to get to UCF. Plus, with Frost having a couple more years under his belt as a HC you'd think he's refined things a little bit to help guys get integrated faster. The fun thing is we'll be able to see how it plays out!

I think you can continue to try and temper your own expectations with stuff like this, or you can relax and allow yourself to drink the kool aid. No they aren't going 12-0, but the days of crushing disappointment are ending. Have some fun!

These are all pretty solid, but you don't have to be old to reach back and grab Johnny Rodgers over Demornay Pierson-El.

This thread gave me a concussion.

This is fun off season fodder. QB: 2019 RB: 1982 WR/TE: 2014 OL: 1995 DL: 1988 LB: 1992 DB: 1999 ST: 1972 Changing my mind on ST back before I existed thanks to @Guy Chamberlin

Yeah, the guy lets his closers throw fastballs for crissakes!

Kinda funny that ours is considered tough when it’s easier than last year’s.

https://www.tennisrecruiting.net/list.asp?id=1199 Huskers landed a good looking prospect from California: Andre Saleh rated #57 nationally. 19-6 record including 10-6 vs Blue Chip, Five Star, and Four star players. Should be a nice building block for Coach Maymi to work with going forward. http://www.huskers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=100&ATCLID=211780766

Dead to Me seems promising. Edit: Finished it up and highly recommend it if you like dark comedy. Though, it’s more dark than comedy.