LJS: No Excuses for Cav's Line This Year

Ameer Abdullah was an elite-level skill player who hit big plays like nobody's business. You don't have to be a tackle-breaking monster in a between-the-tackles system with top-tier road grading OL to accomplish that, and he certainly wasn't.

That said, Newby in a different system of course lodges a 1000-yd season or two, and maybe guys like Ozigbo shine more or guys like Helu and Burkhead shine less in a different offense.

I find not being able to pass a poor trade-off for that, which isn't to say it wasn't fun watching NU have this incredible RB talent, AA being the highlight among them. Our offense no longer runs through the RB position.

 
This years OL has a tremendous opportunity to do awesome things this year. Tanner Lee will help them out. There should be no excuses. We will be better at center and we are experienced. Gates said he is embarrassed by his bowl performance. Our back-ups also seem to be more talented as well. Can't wait to see if this group exceeds expectations. If they do, the rest of the B1G West will be in the rear view mirror!

Go Big Red!

 
zoogs said:
Our offense no longer runs through the RB position.
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Which would be fine if our offense ran "through" the offensive line. But in Mike Riley's system, it doesn't. Riley's resume and coaching history are proof of that.

But hey......once Mike Riley gets his quarterback, right?

 
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KingBlank said:
I didn't say drafted, I said money made. You keep using he was at an low tier program that didn't have resources. It's because he was a low tier coach, that excuse is tired, it's inaccurate and plain lazy. The lines our backs ran behind were pretty good, and the backs were also good. We have players that blocked for those guys making big dollars right now drafted or undrafted. It is a fair comparison, Cotton was blamed for"bad" lines, why don't you ask the backs who ran behind them.
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This feels like a straw man. Who legitimately thinks Nebraska had "bad" lines (overall) under Cotton? I'm sure some people may feel this way, but it would have to be a minority, no?

And this 1:1 comparison you're trying to draw between Cav/Cotton is disingenuous. There are just far too many variables in play.

Would you find it equally fair to compare Alabama's offensive line "money made" from 2008-2014 to Cotton?

 
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Landlord of Memorial Stadium said:
B.B. Hemingway said:
Aside from Mark Pelini (woah) the entire Oline returned in 2015. Where were the holes then? I'm not suggesting the line didn't do anything, but as I said before..... It had more to do with Ameer (and Rex/Helu before him).
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Interesting that they did so much better with a different coaching staff, huh? Of course Newby doesn't hold up to the talent of Ameer/Rex/Helu, but Newby could/would still have easily been a 1,000 yard rusher under Beck/Cotton/whoever's system, imo.
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B.B. Hemingway said:
Landlord of Memorial Stadium said:
AMEER ABDULLAH LED THE COUNTRY IN YARDS BEFORE CONTACT FOR MOST OF HIS SENIOR YEAR

Translation: He had some huge holes to run through. He was also an amazing back. Both are true.
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Aside from Mark Pelini (woah) the entire Oline returned in 2015. Where were the holes then? I'm not suggesting the line didn't do anything, but as I said before..... It had more to do with Ameer (and Rex/Helu before him).
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Armstrong's rushing production went down by 300 yards in 2015. And more tellingly, his yards per carry went down by .8yd behind, as you noted, essentially the same linemen.

 
I appreciate that Nebraska fans should want elite-caliber OL coaching, recruiting, and talent.

But, bro. Don't be pining for the days of Cotton (and Cotton's job security as OL coach) if that's the case.

 
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Enhance89 said:
KingBlank said:
I didn't say drafted, I said money made. You keep using he was at an low tier program that didn't have resources. It's because he was a low tier coach, that excuse is tired, it's inaccurate and plain lazy. The lines our backs ran behind were pretty good, and the backs were also good. We have players that blocked for those guys making big dollars right now drafted or undrafted. It is a fair comparison, Cotton was blamed for"bad" lines, why don't you ask the backs who ran behind them.
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This feels like a straw man. Who legitimately thinks Nebraska had "bad" lines (overall) under Cotton? I'm sure some people may feel this way, but it would have to be a minority, no?

And this 1:1 comparison you're trying to draw between Cav/Cotton is disingenuous. There are just far too many variables in play.

Would you find it equally fair to compare Alabama's offensive line "money made" from 2008-2014 to Cotton?
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Yes, and they also had "great" backs.

 
zoogs said:
I appreciate that Nebraska fans should want elite-caliber OL coaching, recruiting, and talent.

But, bro. Don't be pining for the days of Cotton (and Cotton's job security as OL coach) if that's the case.
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It would be an upgrade from what we have seen the last two years, I am not asking for anyone. I am agreeing with the article, the contrived excuse of "not enough resources", which again is the laziest, worst excuse for a coach not coaching well is over. That also holds true for the head coach.

 
KingBlank said:
Enhance89 said:
KingBlank said:
I didn't say drafted, I said money made. You keep using he was at an low tier program that didn't have resources. It's because he was a low tier coach, that excuse is tired, it's inaccurate and plain lazy. The lines our backs ran behind were pretty good, and the backs were also good. We have players that blocked for those guys making big dollars right now drafted or undrafted. It is a fair comparison, Cotton was blamed for"bad" lines, why don't you ask the backs who ran behind them.
Click to expand...
This feels like a straw man. Who legitimately thinks Nebraska had "bad" lines (overall) under Cotton? I'm sure some people may feel this way, but it would have to be a minority, no?

And this 1:1 comparison you're trying to draw between Cav/Cotton is disingenuous. There are just far too many variables in play.

Would you find it equally fair to compare Alabama's offensive line "money made" from 2008-2014 to Cotton?
Click to expand...
Yes, and they also had "great" backs.
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There's a logical gap in your argument you're either misunderstanding or ignoring. We'll have to agree to disagree on this particular topic.

 
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KingBlank said:
zoogs said:
I appreciate that Nebraska fans should want elite-caliber OL coaching, recruiting, and talent.

But, bro. Don't be pining for the days of Cotton (and Cotton's job security as OL coach) if that's the case.
Click to expand...
It would be an upgrade from what we have seen the last two years, I am not asking for anyone. I am agreeing with the article, the contrived excuse of "not enough resources", which again is the laziest, worst excuse for a coach not coaching well is over. That also holds true for the head coach.
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We really were up against it last year with the OL. Once the injuries hit our OL had to depend on walkons and untalented upperclassmen. True freshmen weren't the answer either.

That's why Cav survived last year when Banker and Read didn't. This year is a different story.

 
Yeah, first two seasons for the OL...IIRC, Callahan's OL took several to round into shape. There's a reason why Zac Taylor ('05-'06) was renowned for hanging in there, and it wasn't because Nebraska was suffering from poor OL coaching at the time. Quite the opposite, in fact.

Cav may be on notice but as far as I know, he's got one of the more solid position coach reputations on this staff. I'd certainly wonder about the RBs coach before wondering about him. It's not easy to get to a top-notch OL, and our recruiting in this area has unfortunately not inspired the greatest confidence either. Give Cav time, IMO.

 
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