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Tom Shatel: NU played it much too safe on big stage
BY TOM SHATEL
WORLD-HERALD COULMINST
LOS ANGELES - You wanted a measuring stick? You got it.
USC is still USC. And Nebraska is not quite Nebraska again, not the Nebraska that can go toe-to-toe with anyone on the national stage.
Nebraska? Better, but not yet ready for ABC prime time. Says who?
Says coach Bill Callahan's game plan.
If we learned anything from USC's 28-10 victory over the Huskers at the Los Angeles Coliseum on Saturday night, it may be that Nebraska's own coach doesn't think his third-year program is ready to run with the big dogs.
Worse, he wasn't willing to find out.
What else to deduce from Callahan's game plan?
The stage was set for something special Saturday. The venerable Coliseum, one of the most historic sports venues in the world, was a thing of beauty. The place was filled to the rim, with more than 25,000 Husker fans in red, watching two traditional powers dressed to thrill.
But you walk away from this one feeling let down, if only to wonder what might have been.
Callahan came out conservative. The Huskers ran and ran and ran some more. They ran as if the coaching staff, after a zillion and one hours of studying Trojan tape, felt they could pound the rock on USC's 11 immovable objects all night.
Another way to view it, after NU ran out the first-half clock to go in trailing 14-3, was that Callahan appeared to be playing not to lose badly.
Mr. West Coast offense hits the Left Coast with the East Coast offense?
It was the irony of ironies, from a coach who came from the National Football League with an offense that promised to be on the attack and "take what we want."
The ultimate irony, of course, is criticizing Callahan for running the ball too much. Remember 2004?
Two images come to mind from Callahan's first season at Nebraska. One, the brutal 70-10 loss at Texas Tech. Callahan kept ordering passes, and Texas Tech kept getting the ball back for layup touchdowns. We critics bemoaned the lack of smart strategy. Why not run the ball and get out of there?
Same thing a few weeks later at Iowa State. Callahan had quarterback Joe Dailey chucking the ball all over the field. We said he let a victory slip away by not pounding it on the Cyclones.
So why is this different?
Glad you asked. Several reasons.
This is the third year of the WCO in Lincoln. There is a senior quarterback who knows it back and forth, up and down. There are better pieces in place. Matt Herian is a big-play tight end who was hurt in October 2004. Maurice Purify is a big-time receiver who wasn't here then.
But Taylor threw 16 times and completed eight against USC. Herian caught one pass. Purify caught none.
Meanwhile, Nebraska has four good - but not great - running backs. NU's line, a good but not dominant run-blocking unit, was also without senior center Kurt Mann.
Maybe the Huskers can pound the rock on Louisiana Tech or Iowa State or Kansas State. But not USC. The Trojans' front seven has NFL speed. Nebraska has Big 12 North speed.
Maybe it wouldn't have mattered. Chances are, USC was going to win this game no matter what Callahan called. But it would have been nice to put the game in the hands of Taylor, Herian and Co. to see what would have happened.
For instance: On NU's lone scoring drive, a nine-play, 74-yard drive that cut the lead to 21-10 at the start of the fourth quarter, Taylor went 3 for 4 for 67 yards. The big play was a 36-yard pass to Herian.
It was too little, too late.
The Huskers executed a fake punt and knocked out a USC fullback. They were in the game early. But it felt at times like they were keeping USC in the game.
Afterward, Callahan said he was playing to win - on the ground. He defended his plan and stuck to his guns. The thinking from the coaching staff was that teams that had done well against USC - Fresno State and Texas - had pounded the rock right at them.
Well, Texas beat the Trojans because quarterback Vince Young is Superman. Fresno State was the first to push and scare USC last season, though the Bulldogs failed.
I suppose what we learned, then, is that Nebraska is no Fresno State.
Whoever is going to take down this Trojan horse had better have all cylinders going. You won't do it by just running or passing. You'd better mix things up, hope for turnovers or recruit a kid like Vince Young.
The Blackshirts did not get embarrassed. They played well at times, especially early. Corners Cortney Grixby and Andre Jones took some hard lessons, but there are few, if any, corners whom USC's Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith aren't going to school this year.
NU's biggest trouble was the matchup of its linebackers against USC's short routes to its backs and receivers, in the flat or to the side. That wasn't playing fair. The good news is, it counts as only one game. This season, as we stated before, will be defined by the Big 12 and whether the Huskers can make it to the Big 12 championship game.
The Huskers hit the Road to Kansas City healthy and intact. But they won't be bringing home any swagger.
Tom Shatel: NU played it much too safe on big stage
BY TOM SHATEL
WORLD-HERALD COULMINST
LOS ANGELES - You wanted a measuring stick? You got it.
USC is still USC. And Nebraska is not quite Nebraska again, not the Nebraska that can go toe-to-toe with anyone on the national stage.
Nebraska? Better, but not yet ready for ABC prime time. Says who?
Says coach Bill Callahan's game plan.
If we learned anything from USC's 28-10 victory over the Huskers at the Los Angeles Coliseum on Saturday night, it may be that Nebraska's own coach doesn't think his third-year program is ready to run with the big dogs.
Worse, he wasn't willing to find out.
What else to deduce from Callahan's game plan?
The stage was set for something special Saturday. The venerable Coliseum, one of the most historic sports venues in the world, was a thing of beauty. The place was filled to the rim, with more than 25,000 Husker fans in red, watching two traditional powers dressed to thrill.
But you walk away from this one feeling let down, if only to wonder what might have been.
Callahan came out conservative. The Huskers ran and ran and ran some more. They ran as if the coaching staff, after a zillion and one hours of studying Trojan tape, felt they could pound the rock on USC's 11 immovable objects all night.
Another way to view it, after NU ran out the first-half clock to go in trailing 14-3, was that Callahan appeared to be playing not to lose badly.
Mr. West Coast offense hits the Left Coast with the East Coast offense?
It was the irony of ironies, from a coach who came from the National Football League with an offense that promised to be on the attack and "take what we want."
The ultimate irony, of course, is criticizing Callahan for running the ball too much. Remember 2004?
Two images come to mind from Callahan's first season at Nebraska. One, the brutal 70-10 loss at Texas Tech. Callahan kept ordering passes, and Texas Tech kept getting the ball back for layup touchdowns. We critics bemoaned the lack of smart strategy. Why not run the ball and get out of there?
Same thing a few weeks later at Iowa State. Callahan had quarterback Joe Dailey chucking the ball all over the field. We said he let a victory slip away by not pounding it on the Cyclones.
So why is this different?
Glad you asked. Several reasons.
This is the third year of the WCO in Lincoln. There is a senior quarterback who knows it back and forth, up and down. There are better pieces in place. Matt Herian is a big-play tight end who was hurt in October 2004. Maurice Purify is a big-time receiver who wasn't here then.
But Taylor threw 16 times and completed eight against USC. Herian caught one pass. Purify caught none.
Meanwhile, Nebraska has four good - but not great - running backs. NU's line, a good but not dominant run-blocking unit, was also without senior center Kurt Mann.
Maybe the Huskers can pound the rock on Louisiana Tech or Iowa State or Kansas State. But not USC. The Trojans' front seven has NFL speed. Nebraska has Big 12 North speed.
Maybe it wouldn't have mattered. Chances are, USC was going to win this game no matter what Callahan called. But it would have been nice to put the game in the hands of Taylor, Herian and Co. to see what would have happened.
For instance: On NU's lone scoring drive, a nine-play, 74-yard drive that cut the lead to 21-10 at the start of the fourth quarter, Taylor went 3 for 4 for 67 yards. The big play was a 36-yard pass to Herian.
It was too little, too late.
The Huskers executed a fake punt and knocked out a USC fullback. They were in the game early. But it felt at times like they were keeping USC in the game.
Afterward, Callahan said he was playing to win - on the ground. He defended his plan and stuck to his guns. The thinking from the coaching staff was that teams that had done well against USC - Fresno State and Texas - had pounded the rock right at them.
Well, Texas beat the Trojans because quarterback Vince Young is Superman. Fresno State was the first to push and scare USC last season, though the Bulldogs failed.
I suppose what we learned, then, is that Nebraska is no Fresno State.
Whoever is going to take down this Trojan horse had better have all cylinders going. You won't do it by just running or passing. You'd better mix things up, hope for turnovers or recruit a kid like Vince Young.
The Blackshirts did not get embarrassed. They played well at times, especially early. Corners Cortney Grixby and Andre Jones took some hard lessons, but there are few, if any, corners whom USC's Dwayne Jarrett and Steve Smith aren't going to school this year.
NU's biggest trouble was the matchup of its linebackers against USC's short routes to its backs and receivers, in the flat or to the side. That wasn't playing fair. The good news is, it counts as only one game. This season, as we stated before, will be defined by the Big 12 and whether the Huskers can make it to the Big 12 championship game.
The Huskers hit the Road to Kansas City healthy and intact. But they won't be bringing home any swagger.
