Saint Boseph
Five-Star Recruit
I see this game playing out similarly to our game against South Carolina. Our D will keep us in the first half to third quarter of the game but the downfall will be a complete crapping of the bed by the husker O-line. That defensive line is going to toy with our O-line. They might blitz a little bit but Jarvis J. is going to make Sirles his you-know-what, just like Clowney and Melvin Ingram wrecked shop last year. The Husker O will largely manufacture 3-and-outs or turnovers because they can't keep D-linemen out of Taylor's face or let Rex even grab the handoff. In the 3rd-4th quarter the defense will have been on the field so long they will cave in, and that is when you will see the floodgates open with Gurley and Marshall running all over us. But they will be set up for failure because of shoddy O-line play.
I know being a Barney hater is a tired subject but it's true. I felt he should haven't been coaching after his God-awful performance in his first game as NU coach, the 2003 season opener against Oklahoma State. That offense was pretty horrid and you'll recall at the end of the first half where we scored a grand total of 3 points with Barney as Offensive coordinator, the supposedly "greatest fans in college football" were booing the team as they went into the locker room.That was the same game where I fell in love with Bo (also his first game as an NU coach), to the point that I still am 100% supportive of him. Barney's lines crap the bed against most good d-lines. I'll give him the MSU game this year, that D-line is nasty. Yes our O-line turns in great performances here and there, but this is big-time college football. You're paid a premium for consistently excellent job performance.
It kills me that, since Bo has been here, we'd have already had 2-3 BCS bowl appearances if we just had consistently good O-line play like the 90s. A dominant offensive line destroys the will of the other team. Our defenses get tired because the Offense can't stay on the field long enough to give them a break, because the O-line can't allow our skill guys to make plays consistently, and like any defense, they get tired as the game goes on.
I think Bo will recognize this and make some changes with an assistant or two. He did with Watson and Gilmore and I'd say Watson and Gilmore turned in better overall bodies of work than Barney Cotton. Being a Husker O-lineman and understanding the tradition doesn't mean you'll automatically be successful. Steve Pedersen was trumpeted when he was hired for his Nebraska roots.
I know being a Barney hater is a tired subject but it's true. I felt he should haven't been coaching after his God-awful performance in his first game as NU coach, the 2003 season opener against Oklahoma State. That offense was pretty horrid and you'll recall at the end of the first half where we scored a grand total of 3 points with Barney as Offensive coordinator, the supposedly "greatest fans in college football" were booing the team as they went into the locker room.That was the same game where I fell in love with Bo (also his first game as an NU coach), to the point that I still am 100% supportive of him. Barney's lines crap the bed against most good d-lines. I'll give him the MSU game this year, that D-line is nasty. Yes our O-line turns in great performances here and there, but this is big-time college football. You're paid a premium for consistently excellent job performance.
It kills me that, since Bo has been here, we'd have already had 2-3 BCS bowl appearances if we just had consistently good O-line play like the 90s. A dominant offensive line destroys the will of the other team. Our defenses get tired because the Offense can't stay on the field long enough to give them a break, because the O-line can't allow our skill guys to make plays consistently, and like any defense, they get tired as the game goes on.
I think Bo will recognize this and make some changes with an assistant or two. He did with Watson and Gilmore and I'd say Watson and Gilmore turned in better overall bodies of work than Barney Cotton. Being a Husker O-lineman and understanding the tradition doesn't mean you'll automatically be successful. Steve Pedersen was trumpeted when he was hired for his Nebraska roots.
