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Husker's Taylor eager for redemption
Senior quarterback hopeful for big closing performance vs. Auburn
By Terry Douglass
terry.douglass@theindependent.com
LINCOLN -- One week ago, Zac Taylor was riding an emotional high.
The Nebraska senior quarterback had been selected as the Big 12's offensive player of the year by both the media and league's coaches. Taylor's team was set to make its first appearance in the conference title game against the Oklahoma with a BCS bid and a trip to the Fiesta Bowl on the line.
But last Saturday night in Kansas City, Taylor's storybook season took a disappointing detour. Playing against his hometown Sooners, the Norman, Okla., native finished well below his season completion rate of 62.2 percent, going 23-of-50 passing for 282 yards and a touchdown with a season-high three interceptions.
More important to Taylor was the biggest stat of them all: Oklahoma 21, Nebraska 7.
Indeed, it was a real heartbreaker for Taylor and the Huskers. Especially the way the game transpired with a Nebraska's offense committing a first-play turnover that was converted into a TD and then getting shut out in the second half, despite excellent starting field position.
"Defensively, we stopped them when we needed to," Taylor said. "They gave us plenty of opportunities on the 50-yard line to go in and put some points on the board and they called my number to throw the ball and that's what you want as a quarterback.
"When you walk away with seven points in a game like that, it's very disappointing and very frustrating."
For Taylor, reviewing the video of the Big 12 title game was almost torture. He said he saw several passes where he missed open receivers and that doesn't even include the three interceptions after he had thrown just four picks in his 12 previous games.
No play haunted Taylor more than a fourth-quarter interception in the Oklahoma end zone. He appeared to have a receiver open for a score that could've cut Nebraska's deficit to 21-14, but said he threw off his back foot and put too much loft on the ball and Sooner Nic Harris made a diving interception to halt the march.
"It was a throw I should've made for a touchdown that would've kept us in the game," Taylor said. "It's tough to watch that and watch stupid throws like that you really want back, but there's nothing I can do to change it and I've just got to move on.
"As soon as you release it, you're thinking to yourself, 'Why did I just do that?' You're frustrated any time you throw an interception and you let your team down in a crucial situation like that, but I've just got to deal with that and move on."
While Taylor is quick to fault himself, it's difficult not to give credit to Oklahoma's defense. The Sooners sacked Taylor three times and were credited with four quarterback hurries and nine pass breakups.
Nebraska tight end J.B. Phillips said Oklahoma's pass coverage was stellar. He noted that on several plays, Taylor was forced to go to his fourth or even fifth receiving options.
"Some of his mistakes or some of the things that went bad, they're kind of focused on or shown more," Phillips said of Taylor. "But behind the scenes, when you know what reads he has, you can see what a good quarterback he is.
"He hit check downs and he hit fifth reads all game long. They had great coverage and our first or second guys were covered most of the time."
Taylor said the play of Oklahoma's defense was no surprise.
"They've always been great at disguising coverages and not showing their blitzes -- we knew that all along," Taylor said. "They just played well. They were well prepared. We were prepared, but they just executed better than we did."
Then there were the conditions. With temperatures in the mid-20s at kickoff and dropping throughout the game, throwing the ball accurately couldn't have been easy.
However, Taylor was quick to point out that Oklahoma quarterback Paul Thompson didn't have much problem with the weather. Thompson was 19-of-34 passing for 265 yards and two TDs with one interception.
"It's tougher (in the cold), but I still should've made the throws that I missed," Taylor said. "Obviously, you want to play in great weather, but that's no excuse for just short-arming balls and things like that.
"I could've still made the throws I've made all season long, but for whatever reason, I just didn't do it."
Taylor now sounds like a player who is bent on redemption when No. 22-ranked Nebraska (9-4) faces No. 10 Auburn (10-2) in the Cotton Bowl. On Jan. 1 in Dallas, Taylor hopes to put memories of the Big 12 championship game behind him with a big day -- and a win.
"You don't want to finish on a performance like that," said Taylor, who has set several NU single-season marks this year, completing 219 of 365 pass attempts for 3,071 yards and 25 TDs with seven interceptions. "We're just fortunate that we put ourselves in a position to play another great team. It's a chance to redeem ourselves.
"We need to make up for what we put on the field last Saturday and playing against Auburn is a great way to do that."
Husker's Taylor eager for redemption
Senior quarterback hopeful for big closing performance vs. Auburn
By Terry Douglass
terry.douglass@theindependent.com
LINCOLN -- One week ago, Zac Taylor was riding an emotional high.
The Nebraska senior quarterback had been selected as the Big 12's offensive player of the year by both the media and league's coaches. Taylor's team was set to make its first appearance in the conference title game against the Oklahoma with a BCS bid and a trip to the Fiesta Bowl on the line.
But last Saturday night in Kansas City, Taylor's storybook season took a disappointing detour. Playing against his hometown Sooners, the Norman, Okla., native finished well below his season completion rate of 62.2 percent, going 23-of-50 passing for 282 yards and a touchdown with a season-high three interceptions.
More important to Taylor was the biggest stat of them all: Oklahoma 21, Nebraska 7.
Indeed, it was a real heartbreaker for Taylor and the Huskers. Especially the way the game transpired with a Nebraska's offense committing a first-play turnover that was converted into a TD and then getting shut out in the second half, despite excellent starting field position.
"Defensively, we stopped them when we needed to," Taylor said. "They gave us plenty of opportunities on the 50-yard line to go in and put some points on the board and they called my number to throw the ball and that's what you want as a quarterback.
"When you walk away with seven points in a game like that, it's very disappointing and very frustrating."
For Taylor, reviewing the video of the Big 12 title game was almost torture. He said he saw several passes where he missed open receivers and that doesn't even include the three interceptions after he had thrown just four picks in his 12 previous games.
No play haunted Taylor more than a fourth-quarter interception in the Oklahoma end zone. He appeared to have a receiver open for a score that could've cut Nebraska's deficit to 21-14, but said he threw off his back foot and put too much loft on the ball and Sooner Nic Harris made a diving interception to halt the march.
"It was a throw I should've made for a touchdown that would've kept us in the game," Taylor said. "It's tough to watch that and watch stupid throws like that you really want back, but there's nothing I can do to change it and I've just got to move on.
"As soon as you release it, you're thinking to yourself, 'Why did I just do that?' You're frustrated any time you throw an interception and you let your team down in a crucial situation like that, but I've just got to deal with that and move on."
While Taylor is quick to fault himself, it's difficult not to give credit to Oklahoma's defense. The Sooners sacked Taylor three times and were credited with four quarterback hurries and nine pass breakups.
Nebraska tight end J.B. Phillips said Oklahoma's pass coverage was stellar. He noted that on several plays, Taylor was forced to go to his fourth or even fifth receiving options.
"Some of his mistakes or some of the things that went bad, they're kind of focused on or shown more," Phillips said of Taylor. "But behind the scenes, when you know what reads he has, you can see what a good quarterback he is.
"He hit check downs and he hit fifth reads all game long. They had great coverage and our first or second guys were covered most of the time."
Taylor said the play of Oklahoma's defense was no surprise.
"They've always been great at disguising coverages and not showing their blitzes -- we knew that all along," Taylor said. "They just played well. They were well prepared. We were prepared, but they just executed better than we did."
Then there were the conditions. With temperatures in the mid-20s at kickoff and dropping throughout the game, throwing the ball accurately couldn't have been easy.
However, Taylor was quick to point out that Oklahoma quarterback Paul Thompson didn't have much problem with the weather. Thompson was 19-of-34 passing for 265 yards and two TDs with one interception.
"It's tougher (in the cold), but I still should've made the throws that I missed," Taylor said. "Obviously, you want to play in great weather, but that's no excuse for just short-arming balls and things like that.
"I could've still made the throws I've made all season long, but for whatever reason, I just didn't do it."
Taylor now sounds like a player who is bent on redemption when No. 22-ranked Nebraska (9-4) faces No. 10 Auburn (10-2) in the Cotton Bowl. On Jan. 1 in Dallas, Taylor hopes to put memories of the Big 12 championship game behind him with a big day -- and a win.
"You don't want to finish on a performance like that," said Taylor, who has set several NU single-season marks this year, completing 219 of 365 pass attempts for 3,071 yards and 25 TDs with seven interceptions. "We're just fortunate that we put ourselves in a position to play another great team. It's a chance to redeem ourselves.
"We need to make up for what we put on the field last Saturday and playing against Auburn is a great way to do that."
