Were We Actually Any Better This Season?

Mavric

Mavric

Yoda
Staff member
I would have said yes - by at least some margin - until I read this. Now I'm not so sure, especially considering the lack of quality wins and the fashion of the losses.

48th: Nebraska’s current ranking in ESPN’s Football Power Index, a rating that uses analytics to measure a team’s overall strength based on season performance and performances of opponents. It’s far from perfect — Northwestern and Minnesota are ranked ahead of the Huskers — but I point it out because the Huskers were ranked 39th in ESPN’s final FPI last season. In Football Outsiders’ FEI, NU was 56th going into the bowl game after ending last season ranked 29th. In many aspects but record and turnover margin — which are, by far, the most important metrics — Nebraska was a more competitive team last season. Especially in big games.
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OWH

 
What is a "big" game when you go 5-7? Nebraska was in the hunt for the Division this year up until the Wisconsin game. TO margin and record are two significant metrics of a team, and they improved in both substantially.

 
I was at lunch with a KState fan today which is neither here nor there, however the comment was made that someone ought to just come up with a headstone for Nebraska football and have a memorial ceremony if this staff and AD are to remain. I am glad that youtube doesnt wear out so at least for the foreseeable future I will be able to look back and remember Husker football as it was in all it's glory.

 
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Last year most of us fans pretended that 6 wins was an amazing coaching job, that beating MSU and UCLA amounted to the "Little Engine" that could type of thing that Riley is/was known for. So, for a lot of us we pretended to like that underdog role...for a year.

Fast Forward a year and Riley did what we all really knew a coach at NU can do...(or a trained monkey or Bo) which was win 9 games. It looks better at first because 9 is better than 6 but most of us realize that last years 6 win mark was one of the worst coaching jobs ever.

So a lot of us fans went looking for "answers" here is what we came up with...

1. Toxic culture

2. The players never lifted

3. Riley needs his guys

Sadly the answer might be that we have a really nice average coach that won't really get us over a hump but probably won't ruin things either.

If you are SE and Kelly just became available, who is probably a top 15 or top 20 coach...I think you have to go and chat with him.

 
No. This team may have a better record, but NU was fortunate to win several games (Oregon, Purdue, Illinois). The 7-0 start to the season was "fools gold".

 
teachercd said:
Last year most of us fans pretended that 6 wins was an amazing coaching job, that beating MSU and UCLA amounted to the "Little Engine" that could type of thing that Riley is/was known for. So, for a lot of us we pretended to like that underdog role...for a year.

Fast Forward a year and Riley did what we all really knew a coach at NU can do...(or a trained monkey or Bo) which was win 9 games. It looks better at first because 9 is better than 6 but most of us realize that last years 6 win mark was one of the worst coaching jobs ever.

So a lot of us fans went looking for "answers" here is what we came up with...

1. Toxic culture

2. The players never lifted

3. Riley needs his guys

Sadly the answer might be that we have a really nice average coach that won't really get us over a hump but probably won't ruin things either.

If you are SE and Kelly just became available, who is probably a top 15 or top 20 coach...I think you have to go and chat with him.
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This. So much this. Excuses all day, but doesn't change the one fact and that Riley was a .504 coach coming to NU......... I will say again, he was hired as the anti-Bo. Nice guy, polite, no tirades, heal the fan base, media, former players etc... Winning is an extra.. He might get us to the next level, but not with the current staff and mentality.

9 wins with this schedule was pretty easy. Next year not so much. We have still shown an inability to win the "big" games and be competitive..... MSU last year was great, but as a die hard Husker fan was questionable. As others have pointed out against UCLA, they were a shell of theta that started the season......

We have a long, long way to go. Much further than I would've thought.

I really thought last years losses was on the staff and poor calls/bad luck. I never thought we would get boat raced by OSU and Iowa. Had UT receivers caught those passes, the score would have been very ugly indeed.

 
Mavric said:
I would have said yes - by at least some margin - until I read this. Now I'm not so sure, especially considering the lack of quality wins and the fashion of the losses.

48th: Nebraska’s current ranking in ESPN’s Football Power Index, a rating that uses analytics to measure a team’s overall strength based on season performance and performances of opponents. It’s far from perfect — Northwestern and Minnesota are ranked ahead of the Huskers — but I point it out because the Huskers were ranked 39th in ESPN’s final FPI last season. In Football Outsiders’ FEI, NU was 56th going into the bowl game after ending last season ranked 29th. In many aspects but record and turnover margin — which are, by far, the most important metrics — Nebraska was a more competitive team last season. Especially in big games.
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OWH
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Not according to the numbers. Once the final season ending metrics come out from FPI, Sagarin, F+, and S&P+, I think we'll see that NU was no better than last year.

And the defense is still bad.

 
Regardless of the W-L record on paper, to me it just looks and feels like it's an 8-5 football team/program out there. Both years. The only difference is which way the breaks go on Saturdays (for or against).

 
I find it difficult to determine if we really improved over last season. The typical measurables were all over the place. W-L record was better but we didn't beat any good teams. 9 wins is nothing to get excited about with this schedule. We were good in the fourth quarter and that signals a team that won't quit which is good but we also failed to start most games and absolutely did not show up at all for a few games and that is unacceptable always. Last season the team discord (chemistry problems) seemed to dissipate as the season wore on. This year it seemed those types of problems increased as we went. O line play did not improve. D line play, tackling and aggressiveness did not improve. We didn't seem to have any answers for our lack of depth anywhere and saw few if any signs of development of younger players. I think the biggest reason, maybe only reason, our record improved is because the coaches didn't totally screw the pooch with clock management issues like the did the previous year. That's an improvement I guess if you ignore the fact these guys have been coaching forever and that it should've never been a problem to start with.

Overall the feeling I got is that we haven't improved, may have regressed a bit, and I saw absolutely no signs that next year will be any better. The only hope seems to be that we'll have the type of qb Riley really wants and that the O line cannot possibly get any worse. IMO when we start playing a little tougher schedule, it isn't going to be pretty. No amount of Kool-Aid consumption is going to help this I fear. My best guess is that we will be going through another coaching (and AD) change after 2017 and before 2018 is over. This pass happy finesse offense and bend bend break defense just isn't going to get the job done in the B1G. I like Riley and really wish it would've worked but it's just the wrong style of play for Nebraska and the B1G.

 
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I don't think we were that much better talent wise. But that says more about last year than this year.

Last year we were starting a new staff after an emotional change. We then went and had some bad luck to lose a few games and the attitude went in the tank.

The difference this year is starting off the season with more knowledge in system and didn't have those unlucky losses.

 
Best 2 wins are Wyoming and minnesota. 1 national embarrassment, 1 blowout loss to rival, and a poor bowl performance to a struggling team. We are the same team if not worst

 
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