SpartanMacks

I didn't even know that was the rule, I see returners do that all the time.

This game is not over. The MSU D does not look formidable. The only thing shutting down the Husker O is the Husker O. Our D looks so flat. Your paper OL is blasting open holes. Game is far from over.

We play 5 different LBs regularly (outside the starters, it's RS Sr Kyler Elsworth and RS Soph Ed Davis). RS Soph Darien Harris may get some looks because he's a converted safety and might be more of an asset in coverage. Elsworth has a lot of playing experience, former walk-on who is a big play machine. Davis is a bit more raw and is being groomed as Allen's replacement at SAM. Not sure on his coverage ability yet. Our 5th DB (RJ Williamson) is essentially a co-starter and he is every bit as good as the starting 4. So no dropoff there. When we start getting to 6 and more then there's more inexperience. We don't tend to go pass-happy a lot but we usually go with a 3 WR/1TE/1RB or 4 WR/1TE set on obvious passing downs. How are your nickel guys?

TA works better in NU's offense, CC works better in MSU's offense. I don't think either of us would want to trade QBs. Nebraska needs more running ability and offensive firepower than Cook would provide. MSU just wants someone who can manage the game, and TA would be on the bench very quickly if he kept turning the ball over the way he has. Different philosophies, different skillsets.

Times like what? Maybe times like when they've been injury plagued for a few seasons, so close to greatness but being dealt a bad hand. When they've had their chances against a team for two years now and come up short. When they're healthy at just the right time, focused and ready to get that monkey off their back. When they're finally ready, after two seasons of near misses, to get to their highest ceiling with the perfect storm of circumstances finally going their way. You can make just as good and just as sentimental narratives for Michigan State. It's anybody's ball game. Yeah i'm not sure I buy the whole "backs against the wall" thing. I think Nebraska will (and should) have a chip on their shoulder because you're absolutely right, nobody is giving you any respect nationally. But this is the game that in all likelihood will decide who plays in Indianapolis. Neither team should have trouble getting motivated for it. If they do, then they probably don't deserve to be in Indy.

Has MSU faced any option this season? I've watched some MSU games and haven't seen a single option play run against their defense. Since option is a classic counter to blitzes, I'm excited to see if NU challenges the blitz with speed and lead options. Ameer could really hurt them on the edges with some good option calls. Also throwing to Ameer in the flats may be effective. Denicos Allen has the speed to get outside with Ameer, but Bullough and the other LB (forgot his name) don't look to have the lateral quickness. Allen is the best defender for MSU, IMO. That guy tackles well, takes on blockers, and has good speed. Hopefully NU can get into the right play calls to take advantage when Allen blitzes. YSU used some option, Indiana used the option a lot against us but their scheme is not really the same as Nebraska's. UM tried to use the option but the DL was in the backfield essentially from the snap so that didn't really work. Allen does have speed to the outside. The weakside LB Taiwan Jones is actually pretty fast for his size (6'3 250lbs) and was really good in defending Indiana's lateral attacks with their speed guys. He should actually be a big benefit against the option. Bullough is definitely our best overall defender though. No question. Both Jones and Bullough are pretty fast for their size, but IMO not fast enough to cover Ameer in the flat. I wouldn't be at all surprised for NU to try and get Bullough matched up in coverage. Bullough is intelligent, good leader, great taking on and getting off blocks, but he's too stiff in coverage. I'd be more than happy with any of our backs, TE, or WR against Bullough in space. Bullough gets the most hype and pub, but Allen is still the best defender on your D IMO, although I'm sure I've seen less of MSU than you. Bullough's value is more than just his play. He is like having another DC on the field. He's not elite in coverage but he's not a liability either. He's also the MLB, so i'm not entirely sure why he'd be matched up with Abdullah in the flats barring a total defensive breakdown. Across the middle maybe you'd get that matchup (Abdullah out of the slot or something) but in that case I'd be surprised if we didn't try to keep a safety somewhat low to help. Abdullah is the biggest threat on your team unless proven otherwise.

This is a neat article, thanks for sharing.

Has MSU faced any option this season? I've watched some MSU games and haven't seen a single option play run against their defense. Since option is a classic counter to blitzes, I'm excited to see if NU challenges the blitz with speed and lead options. Ameer could really hurt them on the edges with some good option calls. Also throwing to Ameer in the flats may be effective. Denicos Allen has the speed to get outside with Ameer, but Bullough and the other LB (forgot his name) don't look to have the lateral quickness. Allen is the best defender for MSU, IMO. That guy tackles well, takes on blockers, and has good speed. Hopefully NU can get into the right play calls to take advantage when Allen blitzes. YSU used some option, Indiana used the option a lot against us but their scheme is not really the same as Nebraska's. UM tried to use the option but the DL was in the backfield essentially from the snap so that didn't really work. Allen does have speed to the outside. The weakside LB Taiwan Jones is actually pretty fast for his size (6'3 250lbs) and was really good in defending Indiana's lateral attacks with their speed guys. He should actually be a big benefit against the option. Bullough is definitely our best overall defender though. No question.

@ Carlfense My point was not to discount the long run, it was to point out that we're good at making adjustments. At no point did I try to say that it was a fluke or make excuses for the fact that it happened. Also, please enlighten me as to how "the Purdue game was an aberration" equates to me saying that MSU is the best team in the country.

Agreed. I think the other big thing about this game will be timing of penalties and then which team connects when a receiver gets open deep. I think NU really needs to hit the TE on a couple long throws to get MSU's safeties thinking instead of always coming downhill against the run. MSU needs to hit Fowler the same way. There's a pro/con to MSU's passing attack. Nobody particularly stands out, but by that same reason it makes it hard for defenses to key in on one person. We've had multiple games where we target 9+ receivers. Fowler is the #1 guy though, if he has a big game then it will really open up the run. And this is what you should truly be worrying about. Your Defense yes is scary good, but is your offense going to be able to put up points against a defense that has made huge strides in the past couple of weeks? I think we're capable of putting up 20-27 depending on how it goes. With TA's TD/INT ratio I could also see a defensive score or short fields leading to scores. I think it depends on how much the NU O has its way. MSU's offense is not built to come back from large deficits, it's built to chew clock.

After two years of having similar luck on the OL, yes for the most part. Our co-starter at STAR LB (weakside) Jairus Jones sprained his MCL during the ND game. We were hoping to get him back for Nebraska but last week we learned he's done for the year and his career is over. So that's a bit of a bummer. WR Aaron Burbridge has been out for a couple of weeks with a hamstring issue. He was arguably our best WR last year as a true frosh but has been quiet this year. Should be back for this game. DT Tyler Hoover has had a great season this year but had a calf (?) injury. He did not play vs. Illinois and UM. We've hoping to have him back for this game but no guarantees. No other injuries of note.

Agreed. I think the other big thing about this game will be timing of penalties and then which team connects when a receiver gets open deep. I think NU really needs to hit the TE on a couple long throws to get MSU's safeties thinking instead of always coming downhill against the run. MSU needs to hit Fowler the same way. There's a pro/con to MSU's passing attack. Nobody particularly stands out, but by that same reason it makes it hard for defenses to key in on one person. We've had multiple games where we target 9+ receivers. Fowler is the #1 guy though, if he has a big game then it will really open up the run.

How come you only put up 7 points and under 300 yards on Purdue? Give em credit. They scored 42 on Indiana. Err, nm. That aint exactly great either. LOL. And yet you guys needed a last second hail mary to beat an injury ravaged Northwestern team (winless in conference play) in Lincoln giving up 245 rushing yards and 3 TDs. Their 3rd string RB ran for 3 TDs and 195 yards (7.8 YPC) against you guys. So is your defense actually any good or not? For every mediocre offensive performance that you're pointing out by MSU, there's an equally bad one defensively by Nebraska. So Saturday should theoretically be a battle of who sucks less? I don't mean to argue with you, because your'e completely right. Our D has been a huge question mark. In NW's first two drives they piled up 150 yards, but after that, they only gained 161. What most of us are eluding to about your offense is the same thing you're saying about our defense; they're wildly inconsistent. Although, the NW and Michigan games would've been blowouts if not for two particular reasons- turnovers and penalties. In both games turnovers and penalties spurred our offense on promising drives while giving our opponents their only real chance at staying in the game. This has been true for NU as well as MSU. In conference play, we have been -9 in t/o margin (-5 in last two) while you have been +5. Our offense needs to stop the costly turnovers to score, while your defense needs them to give your offense a chance. Your defense is amazing, and they have to be. Your offense scores by attrition, sooner or later they will score. That's why I believe the turnover battle will be a, if not THE, deciding stat when it comes to who wins, or losses. If we are positive or at least neutral, we win. If we are negative, we lose. I agree that turnover battle is #1, but the run game is #2. If Abdullah gets going and busts some big ones then MSU will have to play a lot less aggressive in defending the option and that opens things up a lot for TA. If MSU's run game gets going then Nebraska's D is going to be battling uphill on TOP which is how we typically like to dictate games.

How come you only put up 7 points and under 300 yards on Purdue? Give em credit. They scored 42 on Indiana. Err, nm. That aint exactly great either. LOL. And yet you guys needed a last second hail mary to beat an injury ravaged Northwestern team (winless in conference play) in Lincoln giving up 245 rushing yards and 3 TDs. Their 3rd string RB ran for 3 TDs and 195 yards (7.8 YPC) against you guys. So is your defense actually any good or not? For every mediocre offensive performance that you're pointing out by MSU, there's an equally bad one defensively by Nebraska. So Saturday should theoretically be a battle of who sucks less? Again, I told you to look at stats from 2nd half of NW game through Michigan game. Most, outside of a few, think that the team had something click since the 2nd half of that game. Then again, why do I keep hearing why the Purdue and ND game are an accurate indicator of what our offense is like?

How come you only put up 7 points and under 300 yards on Purdue? Give em credit. They scored 42 on Indiana. Err, nm. That aint exactly great either. LOL. And yet you guys needed a last second hail mary to beat an injury ravaged Northwestern team (winless in conference play) in Lincoln giving up 245 rushing yards and 3 TDs. Their 3rd string RB ran for 3 TDs and 195 yards (7.8 YPC) against you guys. So is your defense actually any good or not? For every mediocre offensive performance that you're pointing out by MSU, there's an equally bad one defensively by Nebraska. So Saturday should theoretically be a battle of who sucks less?

Not sure what you mean by combined. #1 in run D and total D (yardage) and #3 in scoring D (points). #1 in pass efficiency D. I'm not familiar with the metric you refer to though.

I read that too, but a Husker poster said that it was being reported by some dude who has a class with him. Maybe not an official source yet?

Hmm... Western Michigan - 1 Offensive TD USF - 1 Offensive TD Notre Dame - 1 Offensive TD Iowa - 2 Offensive TD's Purdue - 1 Offensive TD Michigan - 3 Offensive TD's WMU and USF were a combination of 3 different QBs - Cook didn't actually get named the starting QB until YSU. Notre Dame was a poor offensive performance for sure, Cook's first ever road start and we did not play well. Rushing game was doing decent but we decided to throw it away with an ill advised trick play. Iowa and Michigan were fairly solid offensive performances against a couple of decent defenses. This MSU offense is not built to put up 40 points, but they don't really need to. If we're discounting game-to-game improvement, then should I keep bringing up how FCS SDSU rushed for 6 YPC, 2 TDs and 200+ yards on your defense? I think it's safe to say that the MSU O and NU D are both better than they were to begin the season. We aren't talking about Nebraska. We're talking about how you said the Purdue game was an abberation. So what other games have we scored 7 offensive points in? Iowa - 26 Indiana - 42 Purdue - 7 Illinois - 49 Michigan - 29 We even scored 13 in a pretty terrible offensive performance against ND, and the offense has improved by leaps and bounds since then.

Hmm... Western Michigan - 1 Offensive TD USF - 1 Offensive TD Notre Dame - 1 Offensive TD Iowa - 2 Offensive TD's Purdue - 1 Offensive TD Michigan - 3 Offensive TD's WMU and USF were a combination of 3 different QBs - Cook didn't actually get named the starting QB until YSU. Notre Dame was a poor offensive performance for sure, Cook's first ever road start and we did not play well. Rushing game was doing decent but we decided to throw it away with an ill advised trick play. Iowa and Michigan were fairly solid offensive performances against a couple of decent defenses. This MSU offense is not built to put up 40 points, but they don't really need to. If we're discounting game-to-game improvement, then should I keep bringing up how FCS SDSU rushed for 6 YPC, 2 TDs and 200+ yards on your defense? I think it's safe to say that the MSU O and NU D are both better than they were to begin the season.

Pretty weak excuse, I agree, but there's a bit of truth to it (although obviously in the long run it should make no difference). MSU does play very physical. And MSU's opponents are currently 1-8 the week after the MSU game. The team with the win is Youngstown State (FCS). Just shows how weak your schedule is. Yours is hardly intimidating either.

How come you only put up 7 points and under 300 yards on Purdue? I'm not claiming that MSU's offense is fantastic, though. The Purdue game was bad, i'll be the first to admit that. But it was clearly an abberration - Cook was missing wide open receivers. Young QBs will have up and down days (as you've seen with TA), and based on coach quotes we had a very underwhelming week of practice. A young QB read a few too many press clippings after his first road win (Iowa) and didn't respect the opponent. I would be more concerned about Purdue if we had continued to struggle offensively vs. Illinois and Michigan. But we didn't, and similar to your D since the Minnesota game, our O is showing growth. I think Abdullah is a great back and TA is showing a lot of promise, but i'm not seeing how you guys will light us up being down 3 offensive linemen and being so banged up at WR. Abdullah averaged 3 YPC vs. Michigan. MSU's front 7 is a lot better than theirs and we sneak up our safeties a lot (unlike Michigan who tends to keep them higher out - and I think they started 2 backups against you but i'm not positive). He's a fantastic player and he will get his plays, but this game won't be on him to win because he's primary target #1 for the D to focus on. TA will have to be the playmaker and make the D respect his legs and passing ability.

We don't protect all that much with our TEs if I am remembering correctly in pass protection. I actually am a lot more confident in our pass pro now than I was following Minnesota. Armstrong has a better feel for the pocket in my personal opinion. Whether he is able to read the coverage is yet to be seen. The good thing will be that whoever is stepping in for Sirles will at least have a full week of reps with the 1s, so there'll be more chemistry and preparation. The bad thing is that MSU's pass rush is a lot better than Michigan's, and the secondary is too. I'm also interested in seeing how TA reads coverage. Our MLB Bullough has a free reign on audibling with the defense. Multiple times during the ND game he was matching Tommy Rees' audibles to the point where Rees had to call timeouts. Narduzzi loves blitzing, but we'll often fake the blitz and drop 8 into coverage, or send a corner off the edge. Our bread and butter is the double A-gap blitz which is devastating when timed well. We also do a lot of stunting on the DL, which is not something we did at all the last several years (got a new DL coach this year). Does NU use throwback screens much? The difference is, Michigan tries to do it behind arguably the worst OL in FBS, and a horrible OC (something that MSU fans have been used to for the last two years). MSU's OL isn't great at blasting open holes until late in the game, but we don't allow a lot of TFL either. Playcalling on both O and D will be big here. Need to keep your D honest. If the OL gets some good push that could really dictate the pace of the game. If not, it'll be a long day. Our RBs have appeared to miss some pickups lately. Coupled with the injury situation on the interior line, uh oh. This will be key. As I mentioned above, we looooove the double A-gap blitz. A lot of times that falls squarely on the RB to pick it up.

Giving up fewer yards per game. Yeah when people say "#1 defense/offense" they're generally referring to total O/D, which is just yards. Not sure why people don't use scoring O/D instead.

I think you do need to take deep shots to prevent the safeties from cheating up. Question is, how confident are you in your pass protection? Injury ravaged OL for sure. How is Abdullah in pass protection? Do you use your TEs to block at all?

To be fair, MSU's D has the respect of basically anyone who isn't entirely delusional or batsh#t insane. Excellent reasoning! Well not really. Now anyone who doesn't agree that MSU's D has to have respect is lumped in with delusional or insane people. Still, you've committed a logical fallacy and used a rhetorical device to hammer your point home so it really doesn't mean much. MSU's defense will demand respect if they shut down our rushing offense. We're the highest ranked one they've faced all year so far. Until then, no conclusions can be made except that they have shut down some of the worst offenses in college football in games to this point. Agreed. FWIW, Indiana's rushing offense actually averages more YPC than you (5.36 vs. 5.15) and has two more TDs (23 to 21). Not a big difference. So our offense is similar to Indiana's but not quite as good. That's what you're saying? So, I'll take 24 points and at the same time, I don't think your anemic offense will be able to put up more than 17 on our defense in Lincoln. I'm refuting the statement that you're the best rushing O we've faced to date. And our anemic offense is averaging just as many PPG as yours in conference play. For how much you guys talk up your offense (and I don't doubt that you have some explosive playmakers, i've seen them do damage) how come you only put up 17 points and under 300 yards on Michigan?