McKewon: The Great Nebraska Talent Debate

[BigRedBuster]

This isn't an explanation of anything, just interesting to see where the old Big 8/Big XII teams are right now.

And I just read this morning that Utah had 8 players drafted in the NFL, tops in the Pac 12 and just behind Alabama.

All the excuses we have for handicapping Nebraska's ability to recruit top talent apply to Salt Lake City....and then some.

Utah football has quickly gotten to the point where a 9 win season is a disappointment.

Really???

Haven't they only won more than 9 games once in the last 6 years since joining the Pac 12?

 

[Hilltop]

1. There are really people on here who blame Tommy for the losses?

This has been a routine scapegoat around here for years, and is popular at other universities, too. People like to ignore the less glamorous parts of the team (i.e. of the offensive line) while paying far too much attention to what the quarterback does. Part of that is the nature of the position but also the average fan's football knowledge - it's often easier to tell when a quarterback does something wrong over other positions, especially in the moment.

Frankly judging someones football knowledge based on a post is ridiculous. Yes, a bad quarterback can create more losses just as much as a great quarterback can generate more wins on a mediocre team. You won't find a sports analyst, coach, AD ...etc that wouldn't agree with that statement.

 

[RedSavage]

This isn't an explanation of anything, just interesting to see where the old Big 8/Big XII teams are right now.

And I just read this morning that Utah had 8 players drafted in the NFL, tops in the Pac 12 and just behind Alabama.

All the excuses we have for handicapping Nebraska's ability to recruit top talent apply to Salt Lake City....and then some.

Utah football has quickly gotten to the point where a 9 win season is a disappointment.

Really???

Haven't they only won more than 9 games once in the last 6 years since joining the Pac 12?

8-5, 5-7, 5-7, 9-4, 10-3, 9-4 (2011-2016). Utah is becoming one of the better teams in the Pac 12 but they've certainly benefited from being in that conference. In their best season (2015), they played 2 ranked teams, Oregon who was #13 at the time they played and finished 9-4 and California who was ranked #23 at the time and finished 8-5. Not exactly a gauntlet. I'd argue they wouldn't have had near the success they've had if they were in the B1G. But I digress. I agree, the "can't recruit to Nebraska" excuse has become pretty much nothing more than just that, an excuse.

 

[Guy Chamberlin]

This isn't an explanation of anything, just interesting to see where the old Big 8/Big XII teams are right now.

And I just read this morning that Utah had 8 players drafted in the NFL, tops in the Pac 12 and just behind Alabama.

All the excuses we have for handicapping Nebraska's ability to recruit top talent apply to Salt Lake City....and then some.

Utah football has quickly gotten to the point where a 9 win season is a disappointment.

Really???

Haven't they only won more than 9 games once in the last 6 years since joining the Pac 12?

They really thought they had a good shot at the Pac 12 this year. Even the pundits called it a disappointing year for the Utes.

That's why I used the word "quickly".

 

[knapplc]

Nebraska is 52-27 since joining the Big Ten against an average SOS of 44.6.

Utah is 46-30 in the same span, against an average SOS of 36.1.

Neither place is easy to recruit to. It just takes a good coach and some player development.

 

[Guy Chamberlin]

Another way to look at this is that Nebraska has been landing recruiting classes generally ranked #26 - #30, and finishing their seasons ranked roughly the same.

 

[NUinID]

1. There are really people on here who blame Tommy for the losses?

This has been a routine scapegoat around here for years, and is popular at other universities, too. People like to ignore the less glamorous parts of the team (i.e. of the offensive line) while paying far too much attention to what the quarterback does. Part of that is the nature of the position but also the average fan's football knowledge - it's often easier to tell when a quarterback does something wrong over other positions, especially in the moment.

I wouldn't say TA was to blame for all th losses, but he wasn't the solution either. I will lay a lot of the blame for the Iowa loss in 2015 at his feet though. The big problem is that NU has not had a true difference maker at QB for a long time. I mean a QB that can will his team to victory or a QB that actually makes his teammates better.

 

[BigRedBuster]

1. There are really people on here who blame Tommy for the losses?

This has been a routine scapegoat around here for years, and is popular at other universities, too. People like to ignore the less glamorous parts of the team (i.e. of the offensive line) while paying far too much attention to what the quarterback does. Part of that is the nature of the position but also the average fan's football knowledge - it's often easier to tell when a quarterback does something wrong over other positions, especially in the moment.

I wouldn't say TA was to blame for all th losses, but he wasn't the solution either. I will lay a lot of the blame for the Iowa loss in 2015 at his feet though. The big problem is that NU has not had a true difference maker at QB for a long time. I mean a QB that can will his team to victory or a QB that actually makes his teammates better.

There were definitely times that both TMart and TA did that.....just not consistently.

 

[Guy Chamberlin]

I think the Todd Blackledge quote about Taylor Martinez -- which also worked for Tommy -- was that he had the unique ability to keep both teams in the game.

 

[Elf]

I think the Todd Blackledge quote about Taylor Martinez -- which also worked for Tommy -- was that he had the unique ability to keep both teams in the game.

I'm trying to find fault with that and I'm coming up empty.

 

[Toe]

Another way to look at this is that Nebraska has been landing recruiting classes generally ranked #26 - #30, and finishing their seasons ranked roughly the same.

I've said that for years. Callahan could recruit, but couldn't coach guys up to their potential. Pelini, on the other hand, was just OK at recruiting. And overall, as you said, the performance of his teams matched the recruiting rankings - neither coached up nor coached down. You wonder how Bo might have fared if he'd hired some serious recruiters, instead of filling his staff with inexperienced assistants.

 

[Enhance]

1. There are really people on here who blame Tommy for the losses?

This has been a routine scapegoat around here for years, and is popular at other universities, too. People like to ignore the less glamorous parts of the team (i.e. of the offensive line) while paying far too much attention to what the quarterback does. Part of that is the nature of the position but also the average fan's football knowledge - it's often easier to tell when a quarterback does something wrong over other positions, especially in the moment.

Frankly judging someones football knowledge based on a post is ridiculous. Yes, a bad quarterback can create more losses just as much as a great quarterback can generate more wins on a mediocre team. You won't find a sports analyst, coach, AD ...etc that wouldn't agree with that statement.

I was speaking in generalities - I was not judging any one person or poster. Hence the phrase "average fan."

As for your second line, I never argued otherwise.

 

[Enhance]

1. There are really people on here who blame Tommy for the losses?

This has been a routine scapegoat around here for years, and is popular at other universities, too. People like to ignore the less glamorous parts of the team (i.e. of the offensive line) while paying far too much attention to what the quarterback does. Part of that is the nature of the position but also the average fan's football knowledge - it's often easier to tell when a quarterback does something wrong over other positions, especially in the moment.

I wouldn't say TA was to blame for all th losses, but he wasn't the solution either. I will lay a lot of the blame for the Iowa loss in 2015 at his feet though. The big problem is that NU has not had a true difference maker at QB for a long time. I mean a QB that can will his team to victory or a QB that actually makes his teammates better.

I would say TA, and TMart, were more assets to their respective teams than they were liabilities. Unfortunately, if a team is going to try to win a conference title with anything less than really good or great quarterback play, the other parts of the team have to be able to make up for it. Nebraska hasn't been in a position to do that for several years.

 

[zoogs]

I disagree with that. Zac Taylor is an example of "less than really good" quarterback play yet he was clearly an asset that lifted the team up with his ability to run the offense. If the QB limits the offense and limits how much you can use your various receivers and is prone to poor decision-making, it's a fairly serious liability. You can have a QB of limited raw talent who nonetheless plays smart and is attuned to the system -- a pretty common model.

 

[Nebfanatic]

I disagree with that. Zac Taylor is an example of "less than really good" quarterback play yet he was clearly an asset that lifted the team up with his ability to run the offense. If the QB limits the offense and limits how much you can use your various receivers and is prone to poor decision-making, it's a fairly serious liability. You can have a QB of limited raw talent who nonetheless plays smart and is attuned to the system -- a pretty common model.

the Alabama model until recently.