I can't really back it with stats (i haven't checked), but does anyone else feel the steinkuhler has been playing better than Crick so far this year?
Perhaps my expectations for Crick were a bit high, but he's definitely not the same player without Suh lining up next to him.
Going into the season we knew we would miss Dillard and be young at LB, despite the injuries, but it seems to me that the D line has been inconsistent, at best, at stopping the run. While i still feel our D is VERY good, it seems our true strength is the secondary. Its almost like we hope our opponent gets tired of the 3 to 4 yd runs or gets behind by too much that they are forced to pass. Vs SDSU, the game was close enough that SDSU really didn't need to give up their game plan and stuck with the short yardage runs. In the end, they obviously ran out of time and did pass, which they paid for.
As for the rest of the Big XII, K State and as much as I hate to admit it, Iowa St, look to be frustrating games unless our run defense gets shored up, or we jump out to a sizable lead. These teams seem to execute simple, more run based schemes, much like SDSU, but with more talent. As long as NU plays mistake free football, i have no doubts, but that's a big question mark with a RS Freshman at QB.
Hopefully we forget about SDSU game, get the run defense straightened out, get Martinez completing passes again, and all will be fine. I couldn't imagine many things worse than dropping one to K-state our last year in the Big XII. I guess time will tell. GBR.