Five Keys to the Fall

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Nebraska: Five Keys to the Fall

Five keys to the fall: Nebraska
By Kendall Rogers

Nebraska is a perfect example of how things can change each season.

Two seasons ago, the Huskers compiled a 17-9 Big 12 record and a 41-16 overall record. They also hosted the Lincoln Regional.

Last season was a completely different story.

Not only did the Huskers fail to make an NCAA regional. They finished last in the Big 12 with an 8-19 record and also compiled an unimpressive 25-28 record.

In a fall and spring that could mean a lot for the future of Nebraska's program, the Huskers hope to make last season a distant memory sooner rather than later.

The Big Red has much work to do between now and the spring to turn the tide.

It's time to dissect the Huskers.

Nebraska's five fall keys

1. Use last season as a source of motivation -- The Huskers don't want to think about last season more than they have to, but it might be beneficial to use the campaign as a source of motivation this fall and in the spring. The Huskers finished last season with three wins, but still ended the campaign 2 1/2 games out of eighth place and a spot in the Big 12 tournament. To make matters worse, there was absolutely no consistency at the plate or on the mound the entire season. Last season is done, but the Huskers have the ability to use the failures to their advantage between now and the spring.

2. Formulate a better weekend rotation -- The Huskers are in the midst of fall workouts without at least one weekend starter from last year's club -- Erik Bird. Now the Huskers must find a way to replace him while also improving the rotation. Nebraska's rotation was unimpressive last season. Mike Nesseth started eight games and had a 5.01 ERA in 64 2/3 innings. Bird had a 5.10 ERA in 65 1/3 innings and Sean Yost started eight games and had a 6.02 ERA in 55 1/3 innings. Keep an eye on Casey Hauptman this fall. He started six games last season and had a 5.60 ERA in 62 2/3 innings. The Huskers had an excellent rotation two seasons ago. It showed in their overall record. Not much will change for Nebraska until the weekend rotation improves.

3. Improve as a whole on the mound -- It was rather surprising to me that the Huskers finished last season with a 6.22 ERA. We expected them to at least take a small step back without Johnny Dorn and others, but 6.22? That was unexpected. Now the Huskers hope to move forward betwee now and the spring. Some arms must rise to the occasion. We've already discussed Nesseth, Yost and Hauptman. Joining the list of pitchers that must improve are Jordan Roualdes, Michael Mariot and Kash Kalkowsi. Roualdes had a 6.79 ERA in 59 2/3 innings last season. Mariot had a 7.06 ERA in 51 innings and Kalkowski had a 7.08 ERA in 34 1/3 innings. The Huskers have much work to do in this department to be a regional contender in '10.

4. Lean on Bailey and Farst at the plate -- The Huskers didn't exactly knock the cover off the baseball last season, finishing the campaign with a .282 batting average. But in the spring, the Huskers need to lean on the big bats of Tyler Farst and Adam Bailey. Farst is a senior that hit .333 with 15 doubles, three homers and 36 RBIs last season. He also had a respectable .415 on-base percentage. Bailey, meanwhile, batted .325 with 15 doubles, a triple, 12 homers and 50 RBIs. Other returnees that must rise to the occasion include Kyle Bubak, DJ Belfonte and Cody Asche.

5. Regain the Husker attitude -- Whether it's football or baseball, the Huskers always have taken pride in being the team that works the hardest. Sure, the Huskers worked hard at times last season. But it's highly doubtful they always worked the hardest considering they finished last season with a horrendous record. Losing Johnny Dorn and other key leaders two seasons ago was tough on this program. But after last season, it's time for some new players, perhaps even some new faces, to step up and become big-time leaders. Nebraska's success in the spring hinges, in part, on the team establishing an identity sooner rather than later. Last year's team didn't have an identity. You saw how far that took them.
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Well, now that football is winding down - and the fact that I'm not a basketball fan....it's time to start focusing on Husker Baseball, no?

Any word on how our new guys are doing? Any surprises from our new pitchers? Did Lemke and Giller end up coming to NU?

 
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garn said:
moe said:
Well, now that football is winding down - and the fact that I'm not a basketball fan....it's time to start focusing on Husker Baseball, no?
Any word on how our new guys are doing? Any surprises from our new pitchers? Did Lemke and Giller end up coming to NU?
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I don't see either one listed in the link below.

http://www.huskers.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SP...tclid=204842746
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Thats a different list of recruits from the ones that had signed for last years class. That list you just showed is the list of kids that signed during the early signing period for the upcoming class.

But to answer your question moe, yes, both lemke and giller are on campus.. I believe baldwin was the only one we lost this year...

I missed this article on huskers.com earlier this year also...

Husker Baseball Recruiting Class Ranked 13th by Collegiate Baseball

Lincoln – Nebraska’s incoming baseball recruiting class was recognized nationally, as Collegiate Baseball rated the class No. 13 nationally in its rankings released Thursday. The rating is the highest ever for Nebraska in the publication’s 27-year history of ranking recruiting classes.

Nebraska’s recruiting class, which includes 16 freshmen and five junior college transfers, features four players who had been drafted previously before coming to Nebraska, pitchers Ryan Hughes (16th round in 2008), Tom Lemke (10th round in 2009), Kurt Giller (21st round in 2009) and Ryan Hander (38th round in 2009). Lemke was one of just 11 high school seniors selected in the top-10 rounds to not sign over the summer.

Of the 16 high school players in the class, 13 players garnered first-team state honors last year, including six players from Nebraska (Brian Donohoe, Kurt Farmer, Tyler Niederklein, Josh Scheffert, Dylan Vogt and Chris Williams).

Of the out-of-state recruits, Bryan Peters was the Gatorade Colorado Player of the Year in both football and baseball, becoming one of less than 10 athletes in Gatorade’s 25-year history of the award to ever earn two state honors in one year. Peters went 21-0 in his career on the diamond while hitting over .400 with 15 homers and 74 RBIs, leading Rocky Mountain High School to three consecutive Class 5A titles. Peters and right-hander Kurt Giller were named to Collegiate Baseball’s High School All-America team.

Tom Lemke was a three-time all-state performer at Northwest Christian in Scottsdale, Ariz., going a combined 25-9 with 2.01 ERA in his career, as he recorded 333 strikeouts in 193.2 career innings. Chad Christensen was a two-time all-state performer at Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Washington High School, where he finished his career holding nearly every record in program history, including the school’s all-time triple crown (.438-42-164).

The recruiting class was ranked second in the Big 12 by the publication, trailing only Texas, which was ranked 12th.
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I didn't hear too much out of fall practice, will have to wait til we get more going this spring.. but supposedly lemke is going to challenge for a spot in the rotation (no surprise there) and nesseth wants to close again. and im guessing we'll see yost, hauptman, rauldes, and mariot competing w/ lemke for the weekend spots if nesseth is the closer.

 
moe said:
huskerswrkhavoc said:
*bump* never showed up as a new post.. so make sure we see a response
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Thanks for the info. I'm getting excited already!
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Yessir. Me too. Hopefully this year will be much better than last.. lots of experience returning.. otherwise we could be in for a shakeup

 
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