Nebraska fans have had plenty to worry about, if they wanted this year. While the whole offense has been a concern, specifically the health of Roy Helu has been the barometer for how well the offense will perform. When Helu is limited the whole offense is limited. Because of those limitations, there's also some concern about relying on the defense too much. The 87 snaps against Oklahoma were 20 more than the season average. You may recall that in 2007, the Huskers had a game where the defense was on the field for over 100 snaps against Iowa State. Teams seldom win after such an outing and NU was no different as they took it on the chin against a rested Missouri team in Columbia the following week and the season continued to unravel from there.
The next three games are very critical for Nebraska. True, the Huskers could absorb a loss to Kansas in Lawrence and still take the division with wins at home over Kansas State and against Colorado in Boulder. But you wouldn't want to miss the opportunity to lock down the division a week early so that the Buffaloes don't play spoiler in the season finale (the've certainly spoiled enough seasons in the past, see 1989, 1990, 2001, 2002, 2004, & 2007). That means you have to go all out this week against KU.
Nebraska's best plan for victory the next three weeks will likely be to ride Roy Helu and rely on defense and special teams to gut out victories. If health and fatigue weren't an issue, you might consider giving Helu 100 touches over the next three games. Realistically, that seems like too much to ask and certainly might leave him completely spent in the event of a Big 12 title game appearance. Likewise, if the defense has to take 87 snaps a game, they could quickly stop looking like the unit that shut down Missouri, Baylor, and Oklahoma and start looking like a unit that's trying to catch it's breath.
But the alternative isn't all that appealing either. Trying to spare Helu and the defense by being overly aggressive offensively (i.e. going beyond the few strengths of the offense and trying to do too much) could backfire. That's why coaches get the big bucks, they can decide which course to take and then surely be criticized if it doesn't work out.
The good news is that Roy Helu did appear capable of carrying the offense against Oklahoma, just as he did against Virginia Tech. Those happen to be two of the best defenses in the country, so that's no small feat. He's also a lot more rested than most starting running backs at this point in the season. And while the Husker defense did see 87 snaps, the NU offense actually won the time of possession battle against OU. That wasn't the case in 2007 when ISU kept the defense on the field for nearly 40 minutes. The bigger concern against Kansas might just be getting up emotionally for an opponent that hasn't been particularly impressive this season, but will be playing at home on senior day trying to get bowl eligible. The Jayhawks won't lack motivation.
There's still a lot of work ahead for Nebraska. They've got just enough talent, but will they have enough in the tank to see it through and turn what was becoming a mediocre season into a memorable one?
