Jarhead In Red

Frost has been very clear that he's not going to criticize individual players, so what he says concerning player performance MAY need to be taken with a grain of salt....... I guess one can't expect anything else from Frost when he is pressed about critiquing specific players.....

And I thought our down 3 DL made some pretty good plays blowing the inside runs up. Daniels had a few TFL and Davis made a few nice plays. The QB keepers hurt us, but that was mainly because of poor reactions by the LBs and not doing well in space. With the exception of OSU, we seem to be a little more stout this year vs inside runs, and that is a welcomed improvement....

I guess the Big10 realignment talk just got real in a hurry.......

I figured we would not be a threat to win the West until next year at the earliest. The Defense lacks the necessary talent (especially at the LB positions), we don't have really good depth, and we have to learn how to play with some consistency. What I DIDN'T figure on is the regression of AM and the struggle to snap the ball halfway into the season. Those two things are surprising to me....

Amen to that. It will happen right after monkeys fly out of my arse.....

I think this is absolutely true. Unfortunately, sloppy play by the Huskers has seemingly entrenched itself right behind death and taxes on the things we can expect year after year....

Good idea. It is a more apples to apples comparison at this point. One thing I was thinking, and it may not matter, but I think the Defense has scored several more TDs this year than last year. Are those scores credited to the Offense in these stats?

Excellent points. AM has been put in some tough situations, without a lot of help at times, but just a few different decisions by AM while under duress can end up making a big difference in the outcome of several games this season....

If knapplc is a serial abuser, I guess I'm feeling left out. He hasn't beaten my a$$ yet......maybe I haven't been around long enough yet......

Good job reminding everyone about the reality of what the Big 12 had become. The other North teams were trying to screw us over every chance they got, and jumped at the chance to get help from Texas in doing just that. I agree, F them and I hope they are Texas's b!tch and get what they deserve. (I don't sound bitter, do I?)

I'm not sure in our case youth is a bad thing. I know the conventional wisdom is that youth will struggle, but with Frost inheriting a team having limited talent, a poor culture, including effort issues and issues with ingrained, poor habits, graduating the upperclassmen may be just what we need to move the program forward. Besides, if we look at our OL, most of the optimism for upgraded play rests on players who will be Soph, Redshirt Freshman or true Freshmen next year. And, on the DL, a bunch of young players are going to be in the two deep with all the Seniors graduating. If youth is truly an issue as people say it is, then we should probably expect to struggle mightily next year and maybe even regress. But, I have a feeling that the young guys will usher in an upgraded talent level next season, and start to narrow the gap with the other Big10 teams.

You would think some improvement could be realized while they were in a D1 program, but by the time they get to that level, they have probably been playing with the bad habits for a decade or so, and some habits run deep and are hard to change. And, if they were playing at schools like Alabama, Clemson, Etc. they would probably just be replaced after a season of poor ball security. Here, there really wasn't any QB competition while TM was here. Because of the lack of quality depth, he was going to play no matter what.....

I didn't see a team that quit. I maybe saw a little deflation when the NU Offense had it's 4th or 5th stalled drive. I saw some tired Defensive players who couldn't escape the Offensive onslaught of the OSU Offense, because the NU Offense couldn't sustain drives. I saw mistakes and pressing that led to a snowball, and a thorough a$$ kicking that was no doubt embarrassing for the players. But, I did NOT see them quit....

Well said. It doesn't make us desperate, it makes us realistic. We would all love to see an immediate turnaround, and it's tough as h$ll watching us lose, and to inferior teams (based on recruiting/talent ratings). I never bought into the idea that the UCF turnaround was going to happen here. We just have too many things that are broken right now, and we haven't played a game of more than 2 or 3 quarters of good football in years. After going 4-8 last year, let's focus on first getting to a bowl so we can benefit from all the extra practice reps to develop the young guys a little more. If we happen to get to 8 or 9 wins, then it's icing on the cake. It's not pleasant, but I think it's where we are right now........

I agree. If all goes well, Benhart, Banks, etc will be ready next year for the OL, and there are a few redshirts on the DL that look promising, but it will take a couple more classes to solidify the needed depth, and for Duvall to work his magic...

Thanks for the correction. I'm getting senile, my brain thinks one thing and my fingers type something else.....

1999 Big 12 CCG vs Texas.......and the 2000 Orange Bowl vs Tennessee

And, that makes me wonder if Frost shouldn't give Farniok some help when he is facing a dynamic pass rusher, knowing his weaknesses. I know he wouldn't want to go max protect all the time, but it might be effective to have a RB/TE/WR chip the edge on his way out in a pattern or something. I know all the OL problems aren't on Farniok, but damn it makes it tough when you got a guy weak in edge pro in a position that requires skill in that very same thing....

Thanks for taking the time to post the stats, because it does help clarify where we are at. It would also be interesting to know how we stack up against Colorado......

No doubt you are correct. Some penalties are incurred because of compensation for a mismatch. PI when you are beat, Offensive holding, etc. However, we have seen "unforced" errors for too often, and mistakes that get us beat by supposedly less talented teams.. Illegal motion, taking the wrong gap, poor pursuit angles, gross overthrows leading to INTs. But, your point is also correct in the sense that, once we are a more talented team, the penalties and mistakes will not matter as much, and we will be able to overcome them more easily. Just as all Husker fans are, I am eagerly looking forward for that day to come......

My wife and I were discussing that same thing Sat night. How the h$ll does the "killing ourselves" gene get passed on from team to team? Does enough of it remain with each class and coaching change that it gets absorbed into the new players and becomes part of the culture and the standard of play? You would think it could be turned around when a large number of current players are "purged" from the roster. Turnovers, penalties, blown assignments seem to be the only consistent thing in Husker football over the last decade.......A real head scratcher.......

IMO, we learned that our roster still needs quite a bit of work to get us back to relevancy. We also learned that we still struggle with turnovers and blown assignments. We also learned that Frost is utilizing some old school NU play packages, which I kinda like. Most of all, I think we learned that we are only 1.5 years into a long rebuilding project, and there have been plenty of bumps in the road. Personally, I learned how badly I want to see our 2019 OL recruits get on the field next season.......

And, then Wandale breaks out with a spin move in the backfield that can leave a Defender looking like a statue. I think Wandale could go untouched during a flag football game in a phone booth.....

It's impressive to me that Wandale can run inside as well as he does. He isn't a big guy, but the pile usually moves backward when he energetically slams into it. He's a fun dude to watch......

I think the Defense definitely demonstrated the toughness you mention vs CU. Even though they had been gashed for some big plays, they stiffened in OT and forced a field goal, which is putting the Offense in a pretty good position to win the game. Also, in regulation, the ST forced and recovered a fumble, giving the ball right back to the Offense. You can't do much above and beyond those two plays to help the effort.....