Big12 opponent series 2: Iowa State

[NamelessHusker]

PART 1:

 

We continue looking at Big12 opponents in this next series which features a road game at Iowa St. Nebraska has lost its last 2 games in Ames by scores of 27-34 and 14-36. Iowa St has managed to win the last 2 out of 4 but Nebraska still leads this series 82-16-2 and has shutout Iowa St 23 times during that series (the last shutout was 28-0 in Lincoln) to Iowa St's 4 shutouts against NU (the last coming in 1957 on a 13-0 score in Ames). Iowa St has failed for 2 consecutive seasons to win a game that would have sent them to the Big12 title games in 2005 and 2004. Iowa St finished last season with a 7-5 record (3-5 Big12) after losing to ranked TCU (11-1) in the Houston bowl 27-24.

 

Iowa St will be losing several players. We begin our breakdown with Iowa St's defense in this part and examine their defense and dissect it and see where NU could hit it in it's weak spots. The players listed are listed according to what class they will be next season. Players in bold are graduating seniors who wont be back. Iowa St plays a pure 4-3 defensive alignment and nothing else.

 

Iowa St finished with 22 interceptions last year resulting in 2 touchdown returns. They also recovered 1 fumble for a TD.

 

Defensive starters returning: 4

 

DEFENSIVE LINE: 2 of 4 starters

 

Left DE:

Cephus Johnson (Sr.)

Shawn Moorehead (Sr.)

Nick Howe (RS Soph.)

 

 

Cephus Johnson will be a loss for Iowa St to replace, but they shouldn't miss a beat in Senior Shawn Morehead. If he plays to his potential, he should have an outstanding season. He has had some extensive playing time and the stats to back it up. From tackles, forced fumbles, sacks, and a blocked field goal against Nebraska, he's done it all. Iowa St will look for him to shore up the left side of the DL. In case of injury, then RS Soph. Nick Howe will battle it out on the depth chart with incoming recruits.

 

 

Right DE:

Jason Berryman (Jr.)

Korey Smith (Sr.)

 

Jason Berryman is no stranger to the starting lineup. He has played in 24 games, racking up 2 interceptions, 72 tackles, 14 TFL's, 9 sacks, 7 QB hurries, 1 forced fumble and 2 defended passes. He was a full time starter last year and looks to have an even bigger year on defense. This is a guy that will cause problems for opposing QB's. Senior Korey smith will also share defensive responsibilities rotating in and out and giving Berryman some rest on 3rd and long situations. Korey will be used mainly for his speed to get to the QB. However, one thing to note is that Korey graduates in May, so the odds of him coming back for the season could be slim at the moment. The spring game will tell us what Korey's plans are.

 

 

DT:

Brent Curvey (SR.)

Jason McGinty (RS Soph.)

 

Iowa St will return an experienced DT in Brent Curvey. Curvey's career stats include a interceptions return for a touchdown, 2 fumbles recoveries for 2 touchdowns, 61 tackles, 10 TFL's, 7 sacks, 4 QB hurries, and 1 blocked kick. Backing him up will be a true RS Soph in Jason McGinty who saw limited playing time last year behind Curvey.

 

 

NT:

Nick Leaders (Sr.)

Bryce Braaksma (Jr.)

Stephon Dale (RS Soph.)

 

The biggest loss on the defensive line will be Nick Leaders. He was the heart and soul of that unit. A 3 year starter on defense. Replacing him will be the job of junior Bryce Braaksma who has very limited playing time. Bryce will have to step it up and keep the unit functioning as well as it did last year in stopping the run which ranked 12 in the nation last year, allowing only 102 yards per game.

 

LINEBACKERS: 1 of 3 starters

 

MIKE:

Tim Dobbins (Sr.)

Matt Robertson (Sr.)

Tyrone McKenzie (r.)

 

Quite arguably, ISU's best linebacker. Finished his career with 3 interceptions, 103 tackles, 9 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 9 QB hurries and 3 pass breakups. The duty now falls on the shoulder of Senior Matt Robertson who should be one of the leaders on defense next season. Matt is no stranger to the starting position even though he was the backup last year. He has played in 40 games, intercepting 3 balls (1 for TD), 103 tackles, 6 sacks, and 4 pass breakups. It's unclear who will be the backup, but needless to say, Matt will likely be the starter all season unless he goes down with an injury.

 

WILL:

Jamarr Buchanan (Sr.)

Adam Carper (So.)

 

Jamarr Buchanan is the second linebacker not returning. He was a 2 year starter and was the second best linebacker on the team. The duty will now fall upon Adam Carper who saw limited playing time last season and is inexperienced. Carper started early in the season before losing the starting spot. He will battle it out with other incoming freshman and his role as the backup is not guaranteed. Anyone can challenge him and earn a starting spot. This will be a position to watch for during spring competition.

 

SAM:

Matt Robertson (Sr.)

Alvin Bowen (Jr.)

 

When Dobbins was playing outside linebacker, Matt Robertson was opposite of him on the other side of the field. Matt is expected to take over the Will position leaving the duty of linebacker on Alvin Bowens. Bowens a JUCO transfer from Garden City C.C college should win this job. The linebackers unit should be the weakness of ISU's defense and if the front 4 can't stop the run, ISU could be in for a long season because ISU loses both safties and a CB.

 

DEFENSIVE BACKS: 1 of 4

 

Strong Safety:

Nik Moser (Sr.)

Caleb Berg (Jr.)

 

ISU loses its starting SS Moser and returns Jr. Caleb Berg. Saw only playing time during small mopup duties and teams will look to expose ISU's weakness in the backfield. Caleb, one of 18 kids from Nebraska on ISU's roster last year should be pumped up to play this game against a team he grew up watching. The talent level coming in to Nebraska at the WR position might be a little to much for him.

 

Free Safety:

Steve Paris (Sr.)

Jon Banks (Jr.)

Brandon Hunley (Jr.)

 

The other safety ISU loses is Steve Paris. Having started and played in 36 games, he racked up 6 interceptions (1 for TD), 2 fumble recoveries (1 TD), 65 tackles, and 2 pass breakups on his career. Likely starter will be Juco transfer Jon Banks who did not play last year and served more or less as a backup.

 

Right CB:

LaMarcus Hicks (Sr.)

Chris Brown (Soph.)

 

The biggest loss on the defensive unit after Nick Reids. He gave QB's problems with his coverage on WR's, picking them off 6 times for 2 touchdown returns, 55 tackles, 7 pass breakups, and 1 QB hurry. It's up to Chris Brown to come in and be as effective as Hicks was. Chris brown will likely be picked on next season not only because of his experience, but his 5-10 frame against the larger WR's in the Big12. He should get 4 weeks of consecutive workouts when ISU visits Texas to open up Big12 play followed by a home-game against NU and then a road game in Norman against Oklahoma followed by a home-game against Texas Tech. Brown needs to mature fast this season if he hopes to remain the starter.

 

 

Left CB:

DeAndre Jackson (Sr.)

Chris Singleton (Soph.)

 

DeAndre is the lone starter returning next season. Players will look up to him for leadership. Through 24 games, he has picked off 6 interceptions, 55 tackles, 8 pass breakups, and 4 forced fumbles. Last year he picked off 5 of his 6 career interceptions as a starter. Teams will likely avoid his side of the field and focus on the inexperience of Chris Brown.

 

 

Although ISU will be losing 7 starters, they return some excellent talent next year in addition to inexperience. ISU will more then likely have problems defending the pass but the pas rush shouldn't see that big of a drop off unless teams can force ISU to drop back in coverage and open up some running lanes. ISU will have a brutal schedule next year in the Big12 with back to back to back games against NU, and OU and Texas Tech, in addition to kicking off the Big12 against Texas and a non-conference game against Iowa at Iowa City. ISU was recently ranked 24th in Pat Forde's pre-season top25 for next year. Similar to KU, the offense will likely have to carry the defense if it hopes on going anywhere next season and competing for a Big12 title.

 

2005 Key defensive stats:

Rush Defense: 12th (4th Big12)

Pass Defense: 82nd (10th Big12)

Pass Efficiency Defense: 20th (5th Big12)

Total Defense: 35th (6th Big12)

Scoring Defense: 20th (3rd Big12)

Turnovers gained: 4th (1st Big12) (13 fumble recoveries, 22 interceptions)

Tackles for loss: 73rd

3rd down defense: 27th

4th down defense: 56th

sacks: 57th

[SouthDakotaHusker]

Nameless,

 

Whether recruiting information, or information about other Big 12 teams, your work is amazing.

 

For us husker fans that are "out of the loop" 9 months of the year because of geographic location, your tireless effort to bring us the latest information is deeply appreciated.

 

Nameless, Eric, and the other adminstators, thanks for making this one of the best college football websites in the country.

[huskergriff]

I have to agree here Nameless. I have lived in Cincinnati since March and this sight has been a godsend for me. Thank all of you guys for running such a smooth ship and keep up the AMAZING work.

[HawkSker]

Iowa St finished last season with a 7-5 record (3-5 Big12) after beating ranked TCU (11-1) in the Houston bowl 27-24.

 

Good stuff but Iowa State lost to TCU

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/bowls05/bowl...ls?game=houston

[NamelessHusker]

Iowa St finished last season with a 7-5 record (3-5 Big12) after beating ranked TCU (11-1) in the Houston bowl 27-24.

 

Good stuff but Iowa State lost to TCU

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/bowls05/bowl...ls?game=houston

Thanks for catching that. I don't know why i thought TCU lost to Iowa St. I went ahead and corrected it

[HawkSker]

good stuff none the less, and its not like you're trying to get my approval by your post.

[clone]

My "upset special" number two. NU hasn't won in Ames since 2000 and it took two OT's and a record breaking day by Taylor to do it in Lincoln in 2005.

[chuckd]

My "upset special" number two. NU hasn't won in Ames since 2000 and it took two OT's and a record breaking day by Taylor to do it in Lincoln in 2005.

I can definitely understand why people would think this is a game we could lose and probably with some decent argument behind them.

 

But that is exactly why I don't think we will lose. It seems that the "upsets" we suffer are ones that nobody sees coming. I think "a lot" of people may be calling this as one of our games that we may lose but it just seems to me that those are the games we tend to win. Now don't get me wrong, this isn't the same as people saying we may lose to USC or Texas, because those are in a different league than ISU at this point.

 

I just think that if we do suffer an upset it will be a game that nobody will think of. That just seems to be the trend of us losing to teams we should probably beat.

 

FWIW I don't think we will have one of those games as I believe we will only lose 2 games next year (either USC or Texas and either big12 or bowl).

[KansasHusker]

Nameless,

 

Whether recruiting information, or information about other Big 12 teams, your work is amazing.

 

For us husker fans that are "out of the loop" 9 months of the year because of geographic location, your tireless effort to bring us the latest information is deeply appreciated.

 

Nameless, Eric, and the other adminstators, thanks for making this one of the best college football websites in the country.

yeah that...thanks nameless, eric and all...

[DaveH]

Nameless,

 

Whether recruiting information, or information about other Big 12 teams, your work is amazing.

 

For us husker fans that are "out of the loop" 9 months of the year because of geographic location, your tireless effort to bring us the latest information is deeply appreciated.

 

Nameless, Eric, and the other adminstators, thanks for making this one of the best college football websites in the country.

Thanks for the compliments and thanks for being part of the board!

[NamelessHusker]

In my opinion, looking at who ISU returns from starters on offense (i will break that down in a few days or so), not just defense, this game will be closer then some people think. The game is in Ames and NU just recently started doing good on the road (Michigan, CU). If we lose this game, it will set us back in my opinion. We need this W more then anything next year if we are going to start improving. This is the year NU should make a serious run for a BCS bowl at the least. I expect us to make the Big12 title game. Anything less then that is a dissapointment.

[HANC]

Hey, NU should beat ISU next year..... their defense takes a big hit.. but their offense (which I am assuming that we will discuss later) is going to be very good...

 

I have made way too many trips to Ames to see a talented NU team struggle with a victory,and have even seen talented NU teams upset a couple of times.....

 

Ames is becoming a tough place to win, but not impossible....NU will have to be clicking onn all cylinders, or this will be another long trip home once again.

 

Honestly, this is a game that the Huskers better be looking at as the "key" game for the North title..... I still believe that even though this year ended extremely well, if ISU had ANY running game the day we played them, NU probably loses that game... in Lincoln

[BIGREDIOWAN]

Yes I will say that ISU did play a good game in Lincoln and if the QB would have put his pass where he intended it to go we would have lost that game. Having said that I still believe that NU will go into Ames and win. ISU tends to choke in big situations and that has been proven for the last few years. IMO they will feel that once again next year against NU but I still won't take away from them that they are a up and coming team.

[pigsonthewing]

The NU team that played ISU in october 05 is not the same team that played CU and michigan. NU should win in Ames for the first time since 2000 i believe.

[HawkSker]

I agree. I expect there to be little if any overall improvement from ISU from this season to next. Plus we saw a huge improvement from the 'skers' throughout the season, and they ended up a completely different team. I expect improvement on both sides of the ball and in the confidence of the Huskers. Should be a fun season. Many a highlight tapes will be made next year!