This is going to be a long post. I've been a long time lurker here and only posted once before. I'm an outside observer who has long had an interest in Husker football as I've made a number of friends from UNL over the years and have even known a few former players. I've always respected NU as a classic blue blood and I consider both Osborne and Devaney to be among the best of all time. I personally root for USC but I've really taken a keen interest in NU since Frost took over (though I have followed the team--intermittently--for over a decade now). Here's a few observations I've had after watching the Riley debacle and the progress so far in Frost's rebuild
The Good:
You have an extremely young team with a young coaching staff in their first stint in P5. Frost is going through some learning phases as well and it will take him and his staff time to adjust to the P5 game. I think the media overhyped this team and it had a detriment on Husker fans expectations. You will improve and will get to bowl eligibility but expecting a B1G title appearance was, honestly, a far-fetched prediction for this season. Going forward, you have a lot to be excited about and regardless of how you feel about Frost after last Saturday, he is not above personal growth and personal reflection--which is honestly quite rare amongst head coaches these days. I would temper expectations going forward. You're still a season or two away from causing any real noise, but once Frost gets things moving (and I am very confident that he will) you will be back on top and competing for the B1G year in and year out. Will there ever be another NU dynasty like you saw in the 90's? Probably not. But competing for the West yearly is well within your reach with a shot at the B1G title and a potential playoff spot every couple years or so being a realistic goal.
Look at the bright side, at least you're not Tennessee or FSU.
The Good:
- Frost understands the importance a dynamic QB plays in today's CFB landscape. And well he should, considering that he is one of the people responsible for elevating QB play in tempo-spread systems. You will always get, at the bare minimum, above average QB recruiting and play while he is at the helm.
- Frost and his staff are good recruiters, as is evidence from their last two classes. I know that the 2020 class is lagging right now, but I'm confident he'll have NU in the top 20 again before signing day.
- Frost is recruiting a lot of speed to the program, which bodes well for any program going forward.
- Nebraska's brand is still strong--despite almost 20 years of near irrelevancy. Being from the west coast, I still run into Husker fans all over the place. Walking into sports bars, you are almost guaranteed to have a husker game on--regardless of opponent--so long as they are playing. Most people that I've encountered--even those that aren't Husker fans--want to see NU at least good again. Call it boomer nostalgia or whatever you want, but people would rather see Nebraska as the best in the West than Northwestern, Iowa or even Wisconsin. These brands just don't hold the same weight that NU does in the CFB landscape.
- Frost can outscheme most any other coach--provided he has the players to do it (more on that below). I can't speak for what happened on Saturday as it was the most poorly coached game I've seen from Frost yet, but I suspect he doesn't have much confidence in his younger players and OL at this point. Yet that still doesn't take away the fact that he is a brilliant offensive mind. Every coach has off days, same as players. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Saturday play-calling was an anomaly as I've never known Frost to be a bad signal-caller.
- You are a young team with a lot of developing talent. This may not be the breakout year you were hoping for, but the future is very bright with this roster and this coaching staff.
- Your OL is young and inexperienced. It probably won't get better right away but it should start clicking prior to aOSU. The truth hurts, but it needs to be said--you guys aren't going to see significant improvement until you solidify your OL as a force to be reckoned with. Given what I've seen so far, and taking in considerations such as depth and the mental and physical component, I'd venture to guess you are still at least a season or two away from consistently solid line play. You have some absolute monsters coming in and coming up, but they aren't ready to contribute just yet.
- I don't know what's going on with Martinez, but I fear he may be in for a 'sophomore slump'. He clearly doesn't trust anyone outside of Spielman and maybe Robinson. At this point, I think it's much more of a mental issue rather than a physical one. He clearly has the talent to put up great stats-as is evidence from last season and even the first half of the CU game. I honestly think this is a case where he may begin to be overcoached. Frost and Verdu need to let him relax a little more and do his own thing. He plays much better when he plays loose. At this point it seems like he's overthinking every read and option and isn't allowing his natural instincts to make decisions. Of course, improved OL play would help settle him down in the pocket.
- Mills isn't the answer to a brusing back you guys were hoping for. At least not yet. Washington isn't a vertical runner. He works much better on the perimeter and in space where he can use his quickness and agility to make defenders miss. If Mills doesn't start developing better vision, I don't see much of an interior running game for NU this season--and that bodes very badly going into B1G play.
- You have no receiving threat outside of Spielman. Maybe this is more a case of Martinez needing to throw to other receivers more to boost their confidence, but I don't see any consistent threat from the receiving core outside of Spielman. What happened to Warner? He was never a big play threat like Morgan or Spielman, but he always runs solid routes and has reliable hands. At the very least, he should give Martinez another reliable target he should feel comfortable throwing to if open.
- I hate to sound like a downer, but the Huskers still don't know how to win. I don't know what it is--the lingering effects of the Riley attitude and era, perhaps--but this team just does not know how to put teams away. I honestly feel bad for you guys. You have officially taken away the crown of 'Clemsoning' from Clemson. I can't think of any other team who has had as many heartbreaking losses in the last 5 season as the Huskers. What's even more painful is it's typically a self-inflicted loss-either the result of stupid penalties or an inability to make stops when you need too. I fear this type of mentality isn't going to go away until you get a marquee win. Last Saturday was a great opportunity to get one of those types of wins (maybe not a 'marquee' win, but it would have done a lot for the mentality of the team to take down a hated rival on the road after what happened last season). If the OL is clicking by the time aOSU rolls into town, you may be able to create some momentum by pulling off an upset (though I don't think that's going to happen, if i'm being honest).
- You are way too young right now to be considered a legitimate threat for the B1G. While I did point out that this is a good point going forward, it is honestly a detriment as far as this season is concerned. Yes, the young players will develop--and that bodes well for the future--but this season is going to come with some growing pains.
You have an extremely young team with a young coaching staff in their first stint in P5. Frost is going through some learning phases as well and it will take him and his staff time to adjust to the P5 game. I think the media overhyped this team and it had a detriment on Husker fans expectations. You will improve and will get to bowl eligibility but expecting a B1G title appearance was, honestly, a far-fetched prediction for this season. Going forward, you have a lot to be excited about and regardless of how you feel about Frost after last Saturday, he is not above personal growth and personal reflection--which is honestly quite rare amongst head coaches these days. I would temper expectations going forward. You're still a season or two away from causing any real noise, but once Frost gets things moving (and I am very confident that he will) you will be back on top and competing for the B1G year in and year out. Will there ever be another NU dynasty like you saw in the 90's? Probably not. But competing for the West yearly is well within your reach with a shot at the B1G title and a potential playoff spot every couple years or so being a realistic goal.
Look at the bright side, at least you're not Tennessee or FSU.