History of Nebraska Offenses

[84HuskerLaw]

Wisconsin did attempt to mimick NU under Alvarez.   He tried but never has been able to do it really.  You might want to think of Wiscy as "Little Red" as opposed to Big Red.  After 2000, we have never really been Big Red.   There were brief glimpses and perhaps 20% of that time we've been comparable to Little Red.  Offensive line play and playcalling have been, in my view, the biggest reasons why we can't get over the hump and back in the top ten in the standings.  We have not played great defense many years since then either, except for Suuuuh.  Bo was a dam good defensive coordinator and game strategist.  Had he been a D coordinator for Tom, he would have been just as good, if not better, than McBride.  He just didn't find an offense.

We had some fun offensive plays, etc with Crouch and a few games a year were exciting with TMagic but he was not consistant and his locker kicking fit ruined his career and took away his speed advantage which was tremendous.  He was not even an average QB without his electrifying speed.  Callahan was perhaps one of the best ever at play calling in the two minute offense each half.  The rest of the time, he was mediocre.   I don't think any other offenses by NU since Devaney (Osborne was his O.C. for his national championships as well btw. 

Defense is easier, in my view, for Frost to restore to a champ competitive level than offense, simply because you need fewer big guys and speed can make up for a lot of other weak points.

Frost needs to find 4 great offensive line recruits each of the next three years if we are going to get back to Big Ten challengers. 

 

[Making Chimichangas]

Wisconsin is boring, unimaginative football. I throw up every time someone compares our old teams to them. It's how I stay so skinny.

Yeah, well that "...boring, unimaginative..." type of football has utterly dominated and owned Nebraska since the Huskers joined the Big 10.  I'll take boring and unimaginative football that wins 10+ games every year.

 

[Hilltop]

All the younger crowd seems concerned with us catching up or copying another team..  Wisconsin ie.  That isn't what Nebraska is.  Wisconsin doesn't hold a candle to where we have been.  Alabama...  Maybe getting in the ballpark.  Nebraska is different and will be again.  

 

[ColoradoHusk]

All the younger crowd seems concerned with us catching up or copying another team..  Wisconsin ie.  That isn't what Nebraska is.  Wisconsin doesn't hold a candle to where we have been.  Alabama...  Maybe getting in the ballpark.  Nebraska is different and will be again.  

I agree with your statement, but the first step is to get to Wisconsin’s level, and the 2nd step is to exceed that. The ultimate goal is to compete with the best in the country, but don’t want to lose the first goals of competing within the West division, then the best in the East. 

 

[brophog]

I'll take boring and unimaginative football that wins 10+ games every year.

Then move to Wisconsin.

 

[MichiganDad3]

Don't forget, the Huskers had top-ranked defenses for Osborne's entire career.  They gave up 10 - 15 points a game, tops.

Problem was, there was always an Oklahoma or two that had offensive speed we couldn't contain, and elite defenses of their own. In the '90s Osborne started recruiting defensive speed specially for the faster, better teams -- not necessarily in our conference at that time. There are a lot more of those teams now. 

I don't remember it this way. I don't think the Huskers had top-ranked defenses for TO entire career. McBride was not well liked until the early 90s when he began to emphasize speed.  I can't find any old defensive rankings, but I did find a fun article when looking.

http://www.complex.com/sports/2012/12/the-50-most-badass-college-football-teams-of-all-time/1983-nebraska-cornhuskers

 

[Guy Chamberlin]

I don't remember it this way. I don't think the Huskers had top-ranked defenses for TO entire career. McBride was not well liked until the early 90s when he began to emphasize speed.  I can't find any old defensive rankings, but I did find a fun article when looking.

http://www.complex.com/sports/2012/12/the-50-most-badass-college-football-teams-of-all-time/1983-nebraska-cornhuskers

Well now you made me go back and look. The only handy defensive stat I could find is scoring defense:

In Tom Osborne's first 20 seasons 1973 - 1992 Nebraska was in the Top 10 in Scoring Defense 6 times and in the Top 20 another six times. They were #9 in his second season and the #1 scoring defense in 1984. They had a bad three year stretch in the mid-70s, but after being 50th in 1978 they bounced back to #8 in 79.

So there were some worse defensive years than I remembered, but the Huskers were still recognized for their defense pre-1992.

Here's the progression that's really baffling: the Nebraska scoring defense for the past 10 years

2007  #114

2008  #82

2009  #1

2010 #9

2011 #42

2012 #58

2013 #51

2014 #60

2015 #76

2016 #34

2017 #117

 

[Making Chimichangas]

Then move to Wisconsin.

I am going to go out on a limb and say that you're probably 25 or younger and therefore know almost nothing about the history of Nebraska football.  If you did know something, you'd already have realized how ironic your position is.  Prior to Nebraska's 90's run, the national media called Nebraska's offense: boring, three yards and a cloud of dust, unimaginative, said Nebraska couldn't win a national championship with such an out-dated offense.  They were wrong--about everything.  Fun history lesson: Joe Gibbs, when he was coaching the Washington Redskins, took Tom Osborne's Counter Trey running play, and rode it all the way to a SuperBowl win.  Maybe I am too old, but I'll take a "boring and unimaginative" offense that beats the opposition into a bloody pulp over a "modern" offense that is a soft, finese, pass happy, abomination that leaves Nebraska sitting at 4-8 after the regular season has concluded.  

I am not saying Nebraska should copy Wisconsin.  I am saying that Nebraska should return to the type of offense that won us three national championships in four years: hard-nosed, physical, smash your face style.  We've tried this soft, passy happy WCO twice and it has failed miserably twice.  Enough is enough.  We need to get back to our "boring and unimaginative" offensive roots.

 

[JJ Husker]

Here's the progression that's really baffling: the Nebraska scoring defense for the past 10 years

2007  #114

2008  #82

2009  #1

2010 #9

2011 #42

2012 #58

2013 #51

2014 #60

2015 #76

2016 #34

2017 #117

Not really baffling. It’s been below average to bad except for a man named Suh.

My recollection is that Nebraska’s defense was always pretty solid with a few off years but everything changed when we got tired of not competing with the speed of the Florida teams and got some speed of our own. In the grand scheme that really was a fairly short lived phenomenon but it occurred at the pinnacle of Husker football in the mid 90’s and now most people think that is what blackshirts defense is and always was. Not so fast my friends.....

 

[MichiganDad3]

Not really baffling. It’s been below average to bad except for a man named Suh.

My recollection is that Nebraska’s defense was always pretty solid with a few off years but everything changed when we got tired of not competing with the speed of the Florida teams and got some speed of our own. In the grand scheme that really was a fairly short lived phenomenon but it occurred at the pinnacle of Husker football in the mid 90’s and now most people think that is what blackshirts defense is and always was. Not so fast my friends.....

I wonder if  losing Carl and Marvin hurt Bo more than losing Suh. We were pretty solid defensively the year after Suh left. It still baffles me how the same DC could coach the 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2014 defenses.

 

[Landlord]

Our first step is to get to Wisconsin's level in the division, but I don't want NU to be content on being on the level of Wisconsin. 

idk personally i'd be entirely content with being on wisconsin's level for the foreseeable future. In the past 7 years they've had 3 conference championships (6 appearances), 4 Rose Bowl appearances, 6 10-win seasons and 4 top-10 finishes. 

Not really baffling. It’s been below average to bad except for a man named Suh.

And 2010...

 

[JJ Husker]

I wonder if  losing Carl and Marvin hurt Bo more than losing Suh. We were pretty solid defensively the year after Suh left. It still baffles me how the same DC could coach the 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2014 defenses.

And 2010...

Okay, I’ll back the truck up a little bit. Those 2009 and 2010 defenses also had some talent that wasn’t named Suh. I don’t think the coaching staff left any question that the good results were definitely more a result of player talent than much of anything the coaches were doing. My point was guys like Suh transcend any system or scheme and can make a whole defense perform better. That’s pretty much why I’ve never understood the defensive guru tag Pelini seemed to attract. Melvin Gordon and a few others should’ve put that soundly to bed.

 

[The Dude]

Here's the progression that's really baffling: the Nebraska scoring defense for the past 10 years

2007  #114

2008  #82

2009  #1

2010 #9

2011 #42

2012 #58

2013 #51

2014 #60

2015 #76

2016 #34

2017 #117

What's most baffling to me is when people try to use modern rules and modern offenses to justify our poor defenses.

All those teams ranked above us play against modern offenses as well!

 

[JJ Husker]

What's most baffling to me is when people try to use modern rules and modern offenses to justify our poor defenses.

All those teams ranked above us play against modern offenses as well!

+1

And the same people will discount our great defenses of yesteryear by pointing out how much easier it was back in 

those days. If it was so easy how did we manage top rankings while others struggled? Listening to some you would think Husker football operates in a vacuum and has no relationship to the era it occurs in.

 

[1994 Husker]

Great post ERN. +1!

I posted this in another thread a couple days ago - There are a ton of the '94 games on youtube. Younger fans should watch some of the games where Berringer started when Tommie was out. Osborne had so many weapons in the playbook and had the ability to almost toy with a defense and just crush them with play action and throws to the tight end - even against good defenses. 

It was smash mouth but it was so much more than that. It had the 'big play ability' at any given point.

..Brother, I love that 94 team..it was peculiar from all the other years. I know that every year the teams has its own identity, however the 94 husker were my favorite of ALL Husker teams..as a observer, it appeared that years Offensive line set the nasty mood for the team. I also think that years O line was the most powerful and mean bunch Huskers ever had..I’ve watched every game of that season so many times and the grand daddy against Miami perhaps 25 times..that game and that Miami team truly showed how dominant the Husker line was..

..a case could be made that years Miami Defensive line was one of their best..that whole Miami defense was remarkably well coached, fast and mean..and the Huskers bull dozers took their constitution away mid 3rd quarter..Stai..probably the most powerful linemen ever at NU, was a sight to watch that night..he had the duty, if I remember rightly, of keeping Warren Sapp out of the backfield, sapps mouth wasn’t running in 4th quarter..he was on his knees...