tmfr15

I guess the question is really.... how far can Nebraska go this year? The answer, simply, is that we don't know. Coach Riley came here from Oregon State with many doubting that he would succeed. I was one of the doubters really, given his probable pro style passing system. I am not willing to say its working now. I am not willing to say it isn't working or will never work. This is all TBD. We won't know if MR's system will work until we've seen it with a passing QB. We have seen the staff adjust in year two and provide more chances for our talent to succeed now as we recruit with great effort in the hopes of getting great results. Again, TBD. The team is 5-0. And we got a win over a talented Oregon team. They had the ability to strike anywhere at any time. We got past that. Maybe the Ducks have quit now. That's not our fault. Remember that we won five games all of the last regular season. So I would say we have done as well as we could have so far. If we played Michigan tomorrow in a championship style setting, I wouldn't like our chances. But we won't play them tomorrow. We might not play them at all this year. Seasons evolve. Circumstances change. We can only worry about Indiana now. And they deserve respect from our guys in preparation and from the fans by not assuming victory. I am not saying we will win for sure. We certainly will have a great chance. If we lose, the season won't end. Hopefully the guys would fight hard going forward and learn from it. Once this is over, we will have work to do with Purdue. They beat Illinois. And we know that we had a good game against Illinois. Purdue will come in confident after having beaten us at their place last year. So, its a week at a time. We don't even know for sure what Purdue will look like in two weeks, let alone Wisconsin in three or Ohio State in four. Let it play out and don't count the Huskers out. That's my mantra. Let's just see how far this goes and do our best to enjoy it. In some ways its refreshing. Look at it this way. If we were Alabama or Ohio State, nothing but the Natty itself would do as the prize. We are 5-0 and already playing with house money, at least to a minor extent. I hope our guys have fun. I know I will have fun knowing that whatever the Huskers do from here on in.. it's going to be better than what we had a season ago.

Nah, based on last year's pre-season speak and in season results, his premise is solid. Your assertion that people are saying that "Riley is secretly plotting to fail" is absurd. Mike Riley's offensive systems are built around the pass. The rush is secondary. If the pass works, the rush adds to your offensive weapons. If the pass doesn't work, you get behind the sticks and you have to pass more. If you do it long enough and get behind on the scoreboard, you have to pass to catch up. Pass first coaches often say, as Billy C. did, "Well, once we got behind, we had to pass and so the numbers got out of whack." Trouble is that you don't have to pass when Nebraska is trailing 17-7 in the middle of the second quarter. It is the feeling of a lot of Husker observers that a solid ground game would set the stage for a more efficient pass game. Not the other way around. Devine not being at the top of the depth chart, possibly because Newby can pass pro better than Devine, could be a tip toward that pass game. To be fair, it could also be an indicator that Newby has taken control at RB and is ready for a break out season. Last year, we were told that the run would be featured and that Tommy's ability to hurt defenses with his feet would be a great addition to Mike's system as a luxury he didn't ever have before. When the season got going, Mike tended to lean on the pass more than the run. Because that is what he is comfortable with. A guy can have a bad plan. He can fail. And that doesn't mean he wants to do it or is plotting to do it. The coach can simply believe his plan will work when evidence suggests it won't.

Riley and Langsdorf will always go with the RB who is best in the pass game. Ozigbo may end up with more carries this year or may end up being the #1 guy later this season, but Riley and Langsdorf want that versatility at RB. From what I saw last year from running and catching. Gimme Ozigbo I would also rather have Ozigbo, but we aren't Riley or Langsdorf. They have different thoughts on the RB position that most of us on this board. We are going to be a run-based offense. Right? I mean you bring in a tight end and a fullback. And then you play tight to the LOS and use play action fakes to create time for the QB in the pass game. You don't need to have backs help on the rush as much in that circumstance. Unless Riley is full of it and plans to abandon the run and pass it all the time. That's what we are all fearing. Let's face facts. It could very well be that Newby ahead of Devine is a tip of the hat toward the pass over the run.

Great punter. He will be missed by the team greatly this year. We all know how invaluable a great punter like Sam can be. Obviously his loss will be felt off the field much, much MUCH more.

Surprise, surprise .... the fate of the team will depend on defense as much as it does QB. The linebacker and defensive back corps are the concern for the defense. We were facing a rebuild with the LBs last year. Plus side, I saw some definite LB development and some coaching ability from Riley and Banker that provided protection for those guys as they found their way. Now, considering the exodus from DL, we need to develop more there and recruit more. The LBs and line work hand in hand really. A good defensive line, when playing aggressively, creates play making chances for the LBs. If your LBs aren't that good, a strong but conservative Dline will allow the linebackers to flow toward the play without worrying that a mistaken assignment leads to a long TD run. Now that the line is weaker, or at least potentially weaker than what it was, the linebackers will have to read and fill with an aggressive mind set to clog up holes, make plays, and, at times might be asked to challenge offensive linemen directly... tough job there. Offensively, we are putting a bow on the TA era at the QB spot. We have a couple QBs on campus and one on the way. Maybe we can get a good passing QB in the next few years as we settle in and develop the other guys on offense. Through that development, an offensive style will emerge. With projects on both sides of the ball, however, the important thing will be to manage the game now and get as many wins as possible so that the recruiting can keep getting better. Best projection has us contending for a conference title in three or four years. At worst, we lose too many, fire the AD and coach and have this discussion all over again in two ....three years tops.

Like many of you, I am hoping for improvement. And maybe 7-5 is just me shooting low so that the Huskers can't do anything but exceed expectations. At the same time, I wonder what Oregon will bring to the table. They have good to great athletes and an ability to spread a defense apart and exploit weak links by staging certain match up issues and getting you out of sorts with fast paced action. We know Northwestern has been a tough place to play. And Madison has too. And the Buckeyes reload with studs every year. Maybe Iowa is that swing game where we win, get to eight wins and then shoot for nine in the bowl. Iowa may be decent this year or they may stink. It's hard to tell how that program is going to react to the success they enjoyed in 2015. All I can go by, and the reason why I fear loss, is that it took OT for Armstrong to beat the Hawks in Iowa City in 2014. None the less, my main concern with this Husker team is that we generate enough momentum, both on the field and in recruiting, to keep people, we are talking about the booster and big names behind the scenes, to continue to believe in MR. I do not want to start over until we know that MR had his shot and it didn't work. Judging by some of the momentum that's being created in recruiting, the Huskers could be ready to explode onto the national scene in the next three to four years. This season has me worriedl, but the future has me hopeful.

With the Oregon and Wyoming game times announced, I again RE-visited the schedule and prospects for wins-losses. Getting the feeling that we open 2-0 with easy wins over Fresno and Wyo, then run into a buzz saw against the Ducks and get nipped in a game at NW. After scoring three pretty easy conference wins to go 5-2, we lose in a heartbreaking decision to Whisky and run into another buzz saw vs tOSU. Now at 5-4, we get bowl eligible with back to back wins and then lose a tough one to the Hawks. So there it is 7-5. How's everybody feel about that?

Direction of the program is hard after one year. I agree with Red Dead..... I am looking at a season where we could improve some...but then fall back some in 2017 as we groom a young QB. The 2018 season figures to be better than 2016 or 2017. Make a run and make it to a Big 6 bowl game, possibly even a conference title in 2018. Shoot for the playoffs in 2019. That's about the brightest and best picture I can envision. Without QB development .... or busts at the QB....we are a VERY average team that is once in a while ranked and ends up in also ran bowl games.

SE might want to duck and cover at a few places. He's not everyone's favorite NU celebrity.

Win the games you should. Winning percentage against 50-50 opponents. And be competitive in the games where we are the clear underdog. If we have three or four losses, but feel like we could have won with a bounce here or there, I will be satisfied. I wouldn't be happy and won't count the coach as having broken through or achieved until we play in a Big Six bowl and/or win the conference championship game.

Call the adjustments whatever you want. Bottom line is that a new staff means adjustments. Sometimes they happen quick. Sometimes slower. I am just hoping the adjustment is over right now.

It's been quite a few months now since we parted ways with Bo. Both coaches have a year under their belts, MR at DONU and Bo at Youngstown. And yet, my feelings are the same. I really, really, really wish that Bo would have worked out. He wanted it badly. He tried as hard as he could. In the end, it didn't come together. He got frustrated. Tom left. And time ran out. That doesn't mean that Bo was or is a bad coach. It just wasn't meant to be. At the time of his firing, I felt sad that it turned out the way it did, but happy for all the memories of great wins that we had. And yes, we had some very nice wins. Seeing Bo leave the field with his family was always kind of a cool tradition for me. If I had the chance, and I am going to be in Ohio this summer for a bit, I would shake Bo's hand and thank him for giving it a go at Nebraska. Then tell him I wished him well going forward. That doesn't mean I will watch Youngstown football. Didn't watch any last year. Won't watch any this fall either. But I have no ill will toward Bo. The past is just that.

I didn't realize that KSU had that distinct of an advantage over KU in fans. And I didn't realize that Iowa had such a distinct edge over ISU fans. In both instances, I figured about a 50/50 split.

MR is building momentum in year two. No'S first class and his last class were virtually identical.

Riley is pass first, but not pass only. In the WCO world and in the professional ranks, this is solid thinking. Pass schemes are required to establish leads and the run game comes in more significantly later when you are throwing the finishing punches in the fourth quarter. In the end, I think you'll find that when the pass efficiency numbers improve, the pass attempts will drop and the run numbers will rise to meet them, creating what all coaches say they want, balance. If T.A. could finish 20-of-25 through the air, I think we would run it 30 or so times. As T.A. throws more and more incomplete passes, the attempts naturally rise because the missed throws put us in longer yardage situations, which then dictate more pass attempts.

I have heard people talking about this conservative group. And the Democratic candidates seem determined to dissolve it. Anybody know why?

This is not going to happen... LSU football will be fine. But it makes me think..... For some people out there... this possibility was about the same as a sexual fantasy. Far left wacky people would love nothing more than to just out right outlaw football as it is a demonstration of toxic masculinity. And it's not just football either. Competition should be outlawed. Here is hoping those types of mindsets never gain traction.

I'll bite and pick an evil.... I will say money under the table. If a coach sees a player in need and gives him a few bucks or pays a bill or something... that's a violation, but it's hard for me to care too much. Of course, I would be pissed when the NCAA came down and leveled a penalty.