I do not understand why we cannot capitalize on good things such as better field position. It's almost like we don't play as hard in these instances. 99 yards to go or down by at least one score- go hard, catch passes and make plays- the guys can do it. Heaven forbid we use any of this stuff to our advantage. Lord knows how much better we'd look if we could capitalize in these situations.In the first half:
Nebraska's starting field position was their own 35 yard line. Exclude the boneheaded decision by Stevenson to run backwards on a kickoff return which started them at their own 9, and their average starting field position in the first half was their own 39 yard line. They had to go about 31 yards, just 3 first downs, in order to get into field goal range for Drew Brown.
Instead, we did this:
NEB 48: 9 plays, 26 yards: 4 runs, 10 yards, 4 passes, 2 completions, 16 yards--Field Goal
NEB 24: 8 plays, 38 yards: 2 runs, 5 yards, 6 passes, 4 completions, 40 yards--Punt
NEB 45: 3 plays, 7 yards: 1 run, 7 yards, 2 passes, 0 completions, 0 yards--Punt
NEB 37: 3 plays, 8 yards: 2 runs, 8 yards, 1 pass, 0 completions, 0 yards--Punt (This was the drive where Newby got 9 yards on 1st down and then we didn't run it up the middle like any other f'ing team would do on either 2nd or 3rd down)
NW 47: 6 plays, 18 yards: 3 runs, 13 yards, 3 passes, 1 completion, 5 yards--NW Pick Six
NEB 25: 13 plays, 75 yards: 6 runs, 2 yards, 7 passes, 3 completions, 38 yards--Touchdown (This is the drive where we though running outside with Cross was good--it wasn't, we lost 6 yards)
Thanks to that wonderful interception, Nebraska gained just 3 points on NW. Northwestern, on the other hand, started their drives on their own 20, which meant that they had to go about 50 yards (5 first downs) in order to get into field goal range. They got ONE FIRST DOWN in those 7 drives. The Huskers allowed Thorsen to scramble on a broken play for 68 yards (pretty much all of NW's first half offense) en route to a TD, but the Huskers got two points back on a safety before allowing Thorsen to again scramble for a big play setting up a FG right before halftime.
Northwestern with far worse field position, netted 8 points on Nebraska. That's where the game was lost, because the field position battle was more even in the second half.
You simply cannot do f#*k all with such an advantage in field position.
he looks bad and makes bad decisions when he is in the pocket trying to make wco readsWe ran the ball 38 times.
Why don't we just admit that the problem is not how much we passed or how much we ran, but more so how ineffective we seem to be at both. We seem to fail at the worst times.
We also throw the ball in some baffling spots. I don't like the pass on first down, and I don't like the pass on anything 3rd and 3 or less. Flip side of the coin is, Nebraska can only average 2 yards a carry, so Langs is in a tough spot.
Tommy had 291 yards passing but still looks very poor at times. Numbers don't tell the whole story there, he made some good choices and some bad ones. That pick six was ridiculously stupid. Still, if Tommy's receivers catch a few more passes the game probably goes the other way. 9 drops by seven receivers is the stat I heard. That's just plain bad.
The numbers don't lie in the run game. 38 rushes for 82 yards. This game was lost in that stat right there. More than anywhere else. This team will either decide to get a little more aggresive in the trenches, or they won't. Plain and simple. The coaches gave them more than enough opportunities to establish something on the ground.
Or we should probably stop running right into the teeth of the D. I don't remember a single toss play this year.If Turner keeps running Nebraska wins this game and Tommy's bad day looks a lot better on paper -- without changing much in reality.
That's how close things are one way or another.
As far as running, either there's some dynamite latent running game that the coaches are unable to find, or perhaps with the loss of Ameer and the new, struggling interior OL, it just isn't that good this year.
we have run like three option plays all year and they all worked great. Basically everything we have run has worked except the stuff from Riley's playbookOr we should probably stop running right into the teeth of the D. I don't remember a single toss play this year.If Turner keeps running Nebraska wins this game and Tommy's bad day looks a lot better on paper -- without changing much in reality.
That's how close things are one way or another.
As far as running, either there's some dynamite latent running game that the coaches are unable to find, or perhaps with the loss of Ameer and the new, struggling interior OL, it just isn't that good this year.
He'd sit for the next game. If true, that complete BS. If allowed, Riley has lost this team.I was at the game today....even after I told myself I wasn't going to another game this year. I saw some things I have never seen a Husker team do. Half assed walking through plays by the defense. Playing....or rather putting in time....without seemingly any passion. No one patting another player on the helmet after a good tackle. Partly because there were so few good tackles. I thought we had a pretty solid crew of receivers but they must have been reading their press clippings because they dropped passes like the ball was radioactive. To me it looks like these players have not bought in to what the coaches are selling. I understand they had to change loyalties mid career. You still play for the love of the game and for the guys you play with. It honestly would not surprise me to see wholesale transfers after the season based on what I saw today.
On another note did the tv cameras show Malik Collins after the PF penalty on the last NW drive? It looked to me like the coaches wanted to sub for him and he refused to come off the field. He kept waving off the coaches and the player trying to come in. If thats the case and I could be wrong then that young man needs to run some stairs.
To me, today was a total waste of 11 hours. Make that 10 hours. The BBQ meal was pretty good.
Try again. The runs were garbage, HB dive runs right into a stacked 9 man box on Northwestern's part. Better posters have already pointed out that NW's MIKE had more tackles this game alone than the past three, as well as the NW DLs, which suggests that the running game plan was uninspired...to say the least.We ran the ball 38 times.
Why don't we just admit that the problem is not how much we passed or how much we ran, but more so how ineffective we seem to be at both. We seem to fail at the worst times.
We also throw the ball in some baffling spots. I don't like the pass on first down, and I don't like the pass on anything 3rd and 3 or less. Flip side of the coin is, Nebraska can only average 2 yards a carry, so Langs is in a tough spot.
Tommy had 291 yards passing but still looks very poor at times. Numbers don't tell the whole story there, he made some good choices and some bad ones. That pick six was ridiculously stupid. Still, if Tommy's receivers catch a few more passes the game probably goes the other way. 9 drops by seven receivers is the stat I heard. That's just plain bad.
The numbers don't lie in the run game. 38 rushes for 82 yards. This game was lost in that stat right there. More than anywhere else. This team will either decide to get a little more aggresive in the trenches, or they won't. Plain and simple. The coaches gave them more than enough opportunities to establish something on the ground.
He'd sit for the next game. If true, that complete BS. If allowed, Riley has lost this team.