The post is long, Nebula, but I think it's well worth the read. It's not doom and gloom - it's precise, it's exact. It gets to our team's issues at their most basic levels and lays them out like pieces on a chess board. Nebraska's going to have to maneuver and destroy these issues if they want to improve.
I'd like to bring more attention to the defensive line, something I talked about at length last week. I don't think coaching is the issue here - we've seen that Pelini can put together a well-oiled defensive machine if he has talent. It's now painfully obvious we don't have the talent there, and Nebula did well echoing my thoughts. They play patty-cake, get out-gunned, out-positioned, and flat out beat. It's embarrassing. UCLA averaged 6.1 YPC, a hefty blow to a defense that allowed USM 3.9 YPC. These are the same players who played 14 games last year and allowed teams to average 4.0 YPC. At some point you have to look beyond the scheme and ask "Can my players do what I need them to do to make our scheme successful?" No, they can't. That said...
This isn't to say we don't have "talent" there. Ankrah has often been lauded for his physicality and athleticism, Rome is a four star recruit IIRC, and Steinkuhler was a five star offensive linemen. But, this "talent" is nowhere near where it should be. There are guys on the line who, for all intents and purposes, are veterans. Yet these veterans are allowing teams to average 6.1 YPC. By this point these guys should be significantly better than what they are showing off.
The other important thing I'd like to bring up is the offensive line. They played a helluva game in the first half. Nebula's point about depth is something to consider, but so is this - Nebraska ran 67 players yesterday, that's 12 fewer than what they ran against USM (79). What led to our line getting worked in the second half is probably a combination of depth, heat, and getting demoralized. It's easier to perform when you're doing well than when you're continually being punched in the jaw. I still think this team has basic focus and resilience issues. By the end of the game our line looked rough, our receivers dropped plenty of passes, and Martinez was overthrowing targets.
In summation, Nebraska's two largest problems right now are in the trenches, especially defensively. We can get away with what we have the o-line right now, but we can't get away with what we've got going on defensively.
