Shatel nails it...

[nwualum]

So we were supposed to have smashmouth practices with only a few healthy offensive and defensive lineman? Yeah, that would be real smart. Once we get depth on the lines and a good quarterback, those issues will take care of themselves. Remember reporters are supposed to be controversial so people post the articles online and generate publicity. That's why this article was written.

 

[SWIowahawks]

Michigan and Michigan St both run pro style offenses. Their QBs have traditionally been throwers and not runners. Their running backs run their QBs throw. It is also cold and occasionally windy and snowy. Wisconsin QBs are traditionally not runners, Penn St also traditionally has throwing QBs. .

You have to be able to run the ball to be successful in the Big Ten on that I agree but you don't have to line up in a 22 formation and run off tackle to be successful. Ohio St has shown you can zone block and be physical on the OLine.

Your last sentence is the issue. OSU and Michigan will be able to run whatever offense they want because they have top 5 talent every single year. But even with having top 5 talent every year, they still struggle at times. OSU hasn't been to the conference title in what, three years? They struggled with NW for God sake.

I'm sorry fellas but Nebraska isn't going to recruit like those two. Rankings wise, they will probably always recruit better than Iowa as long as Ferentz is there, but not sniffing top 5. The rankings are stacked against us North teams.

This doesn't mean that Nebraska can't be successful, but they aren't going to be overly successful running the offenses they have since joining the Big Ten. Smash mouth football is the great equalizer to less talent. That and solid defense.

Are a bunch of kids from California going to come in and give Nebraska the physicality that is needed?

 

[GammaxuvirHusker]

Their, which is the key word I used, QB hasn't played a snap. Read young grasshopper, read.

Interesting. Whose been in charge of the team the past two years? If they're so good at developing QBs, why did Tommy's completion % go down this year? Why were none of "their" QBs able to beat out a 51% passer?

 

[GBR_Atlanta]

Interesting. Whose been in charge of the team the past two years? If they're so good at developing QBs, why did Tommy's completion % go down this year? Why were none of "their" QBs able to beat out a 51% passer?

By "their" do you mean POB? He was the only Riley QB on campus. I don't think the 2 star Bush, and the walk on from Kearney were going to beat out TA.

 

[GBRhuskers]

Are a bunch of kids from California going to come in and give Nebraska the physicality that is needed?

We're not after California guys up front. Skill players from that area but not guys up front on either side of the ball.

OL consisted of Nevada, Nebraska, Nebraska, Illinois and Nebraska/Canada. We lose one starter, replaced by a Nebraskan or an Iowan or a Missourian. Nobody on 2017 OL depth chart is from California.

DL consisted of Nebraska, Florida, Nebraska and Missouri. We lose the Nebraska, unknown replacement. We also lose the Floridan, replaced by Missouri. Nobody on 2017 DL depth chart is from California.

Educate yourself, just a little, to carry on.

 

[GBRhuskers]

Interesting. Whose been in charge of the team the past two years? If they're so good at developing QBs, why did Tommy's completion % go down this year? Why were none of "their" QBs able to beat out a 51% passer?

If you weren't fishing, I'd educate you. Damn that Langsdorf for telling Tommy to throw it 40+ yards down field!

 

[HBK4life]

Interesting. Whose been in charge of the team the past two years? If they're so good at developing QBs, why did Tommy's completion % go down this year? Why were none of "their" QBs able to beat out a 51% passer?

 

[SWIowahawks]

We're not after California guys up front. Skill players from that area but not guys up front on either side of the ball.

OL consisted of Nevada, Nebraska, Nebraska, Illinois and Nebraska/Canada. We lose one starter, replaced by a Nebraskan or an Iowan or a Missourian. Nobody on 2017 OL depth chart is from California.

DL consisted of Nebraska, Florida, Nebraska and Missouri. We lose the Nebraska, unknown replacement. We also lose the Floridan, replaced by Missouri. Nobody on 2017 DL depth chart is from California.

Educate yourself, just a little, to carry on.

I scantily looked over it yesterday and didn't see much Midwest beef. Not that it's the end all be all. Just something I noticed.

 

[GammaxuvirHusker]

If you weren't fishing, I'd educate you. Damn that Langsdorf for telling Tommy to throw it 40+ yards down field!

Funny that the QB gurus didn't teach Tommy how to read a field or go through his progressions? You'd think that would be something a real QB coach would teach?

 

[GBRhuskers]

I scantily looked over it yesterday and didn't see much Midwest beef. Not that it's the end all be all. Just something I noticed.

LT Nevada [best we have currently playing]
LG Nebraska
C Nebraska [senior walk-on]
RG Illinois
RT Nebraska [sophomore walk-on]

DE Nebraska [senior walk-on, unknown replacement]
DT Florida [Missourian will replace]
DT Nebraska/Missouri
DE Missouri [converted TE]

2017, we lose our Nebraska center [thankfully] and that's it. He'll be replaced by another Nebraskan or Iowan or Missourian. RT could very easily be Farniok, unless they keep Conrad [Nebraska sophomore] there and groom Matt for LT. RG will remain the same unless Iowa or Illinois guys can unseat him.

It's about as midwest as you can get.

 

[GBRhuskers]

Funny that the QB gurus didn't teach Tommy how to read a field or go through his progressions? You'd think that would be something a real QB coach would teach?

Correct, they didn't teach him anything. Tommy has been well known to accept coaching, instruction and criticism.

There's a reason he was voted capt.....Oh, wait.

 

[GammaxuvirHusker]

Correct, they didn't teach him anything. Tommy has been well known to accept coaching, instruction and criticism.

There's a reason he was voted capt.....Oh, wait.

And yet after two years he was still the best? Hmm?

 

[jeans15]

So every year it comes down to who runs the ball the best late in the year.....some of you guys are idiots when it comes to talking football..that's just the truth...or you let your agenda make you look stupid.

No one is saying never throw the ball...but when you play good defenses and can't run...you get embarrassed on national TV....Late in the year in College or NFL running the ball is important, always has been.

 

[GBRhuskers]

And yet after two years he was still the best? Hmm?

Ryker Fyfe!

Zack "spaghetti" Darlington!

AJ "benched at JUCO" Bush!

Darn coach, you had Johnny "horse" Stanton! Even Barney Cotton wanted him at UNLV. From starter to injury to never seeing the field again. Now THAT'S a QB!

They should've held on to Kevin Dillman. Nothing says QB like going to North Texas and getting moved to defensive end!

 

[bigboxes]

Correct, they didn't teach him anything. Tommy has been well known to accept coaching, instruction and criticism.

There's a reason he was voted capt.....Oh, wait.

You do realize you're arguing with a troll? I'm not saying that you are not coming out on top. However, you are wasting a lot of valuable time when you could be doing something more productive. Like scratching your butt.

 

[GBRhuskers]

You do realize you're arguing with a troll?

If you think that's "arguing", I'm not interested in changing your opinion.

 

[bigboxes]

If you think that's "arguing", I'm not interested in changing your opinion.

Discussing? Not meant to be critical.

 

[GBRhuskers]

Discussing? Not meant to be critical.

Mocking him and having fun, that's all.

 

[SWIowahawks]

LT Nevada [best we have currently playing]
LG Nebraska
C Nebraska [senior walk-on]
RG Illinois
RT Nebraska [sophomore walk-on]

DE Nebraska [senior walk-on, unknown replacement]
DT Florida [Missourian will replace]
DT Nebraska/Missouri
DE Missouri [converted TE]

2017, we lose our Nebraska center [thankfully] and that's it. He'll be replaced by another Nebraskan or Iowan or Missourian. RT could very easily be Farniok, unless they keep Conrad [Nebraska sophomore] there and groom Matt for LT. RG will remain the same unless Iowa or Illinois guys can unseat him.

It's about as midwest as you can get.

I was more looking at the 2017 recruiting class. Looks like some good beef in the 2016 class. If I remember correctly, two guys that Iowa was heavy after as well.

 

[GBRhuskers]

I was more looking at the 2017 recruiting class. Looks like some good beef in the 2016 class. If I remember correctly, two guys that Iowa was heavy after as well.

Ah, I see. Bando is from Lincoln. Family still lives in Lincoln, he went to play at IMG in Florida 2 years ago. That's it up front, outside of Oklahoma on the DL.

 

[Tuco Salamanca]

So every year it comes down to who runs the ball the best late in the year.....some of you guys are idiots when it comes to talking football..that's just the truth...or you let your agenda make you look stupid.

No one is saying never throw the ball...but when you play good defenses and can't run...you get embarrassed on national TV....Late in the year in College or NFL running the ball is important, always has been.

you are the one who said

You are not going to be able throw the ball around in 25 degree weather with winds at 15 to 10....we need to run an offense that is heavy on the run....period.

To which I responded that running the ball was important but most every other team in the league runs a pro style offense, where the QBs throw and the RBs run.

 

[Snickerdoodle70]

However, you are wasting a lot of valuable time when you could be doing something more productive. Like scratching your butt.

Way ahead of ya.

 

[bigboxes]

Mocking him and having fun, that's all.

As long as you are having fun.

 

[c2o]

I think this might be the very first time Shatel has ever been accused of nailing it.

 

[GammaxuvirHusker]

Ryker Fyfe!

Zack "spaghetti" Darlington!

AJ "benched at JUCO" Bush!

Darn coach, you had Johnny "horse" Stanton! Even Barney Cotton wanted him at UNLV. From starter to injury to never seeing the field again. Now THAT'S a QB!

They should've held on to Kevin Dillman. Nothing says QB like going to North Texas and getting moved to defensive end!

Too bad no one told our coaches that they were allowed to recruit a serviceable QB their first two years here. That would have been nice.

 

[bigboxes]

Too bad no one told our coaches that they were allowed to recruit a serviceable QB their first two years here. That would have been nice.

First year, hired in December, signed class in February. Too late to recruit "that" QB. Second year, signed POB and transfer Lee. Is that good enough for you? They'll be good to go in year 3.

 

[GBRhuskers]

Too bad no one told our coaches that they were allowed to recruit a serviceable QB their first two years here. That would have been nice.

I know, damn them!

I can't wait to watch O'Brien play safety and Lee at tight end.

 

[HBK4life]

I know, damn them!

I can't wait to watch O'Brien play safety and Lee at tight end.

 

[Sooner_or_Later]

Got to agree with many on this thread. Practicing physical and playing physical are mutually exclusive. To quote Barry - "It's not about the Xs and Os but about the Jimmys and Joes". Recruit top talent and coach/develop it.

 

[HBK4life]

I know, damn them!

I can't wait to watch O'Brien play safety and Lee at tight end.

And Gebbia as our new punter?? They need to take a page out of Bo's recruiting QB playbook. That guy was such a guru.

 

[barney44]

I think this might be the very first time Shatel has ever been accused of nailing it.

He doesn't just nail it for Nebraska or the B1G, he nails it for most of college football these days, at least anyone not named Alabama and even they can be on shaky ground at times but they certainly do play the best at a more consistent level. It's not common to just pile up conference championships these days and with scholarship limits I think the number of truly dominant teams has been lowered to a couple while the number of decent teams has been increased by quite a bit.

That certainly doesn't mean that Nebraska cant be the big man in the west, I think that's pretty realistic but the days of expecting the division or conference every season are gone. Hell, to be honest the west was ours to lose this year and we blew it. Play better ball and making the B1G championship wasn't some tall task, we just had some problems that wasn't going to allow for it.

 

[GammaxuvirHusker]

First year, hired in December, signed class in February. Too late to recruit "that" QB. Second year, signed POB and transfer Lee. Is that good enough for you? They'll be good to go in year 3.

Good enough for me? We'll see. I hope they're that good.

 

[HBK4life]

Good enough for me? We'll see. I hope they're that good.

We only hope they can live up to the high standard of stellar QB's your boy brought in over 7 years!!!

 

[dckchusker]

Here in lies the problem. We are counting on/hoping a PAC 12 coach that was getting pressure for not performing in his previous job will somehow change his coaching philosophy after a lifetime of coaching at 63 years old. Good luck with that...

Have to disagree. Riley and Langs eventually adapted their offense to take advantage of TA's strengths and minimize his weaknesses. TA ran more and threw far fewer interceptions this year, which is probably the main reason we jumped from from 5-7 to 9-3. Riley fired Hank Hughes after underperforming as a recruiter. He just fired a longtime friend and assistant who underperformed this year. Riley is not mailing it in and has made decisive changes when necessary. Whether this translates into more wins, we'll have to wait and see.

 

[huskerfan1414]

The run game was better this year and they had more designed runs for tom when he was healthy, which was good to see. I give them credit for that, but outside of that our run game development has been sub par.
The problem for me is not as simple as run the ball.
Its having it as your identity. It seems we currently use the run game because we feel like we have to. We need to have an identity in which we rely on the run game because we want to. We choose to. We want to physically beat our opponent into submission. Our inside run game is pathetic. So many of our run plays take too long to develop.
Watching the mich osu game, or iowa against us, or alabama, wisconsin or stanford is a thing of beauty. Its smashmouth, pin and pull, scoop, double up to the lbs, counter football. Its not all basic I stuff, though. The way OSU uses their offensive sets to isolate certain defenders and read off them is fun to watch...i rewound a play in the first half of their game probably 7 times. He read the frickin weakside MLB, not the end, and ran for 25 yards because of how their set isolated him then they used an influence block and he bit. If he didnt bite they could have handed it off and they had a good log on the edge from the pulling guard. Its things like that and what we saw against iowa that show a comittment to wanting to run the ball more than anything else. Then throw it 25 times a game with effective play action to our talented recievers. We did better on run to pass ratio but it needs to improve more, but only if we practice accordingly, which is to prepare for smashmouth football. Improve the defense to at least stop the run, hell we have a good secondary.
Wisconsin and stanford have given us the blueprint, hell iowa has too.
You can say we need more talent, but if you think talent is what lost us the game to IOWA by 30 points, you are delusional, plain and simple. It was a good old fashioned reminder of how football is meant to be played.

 

[bigboxes]

The run game was better this year and they had more designed runs for tom when he was healthy, which was good to see. I give them credit for that, but outside of that our run game development has been sub par.
The problem for me is not as simple as run the ball.
Its having it as your identity. It seems we currently use the run game because we feel like we have to. We need to have an identity in which we rely on the run game because we want to. We choose to. We want to physically beat our opponent into submission. Our inside run game is pathetic. So many of our run plays take too long to develop.
Watching the mich osu game, or iowa against us, or alabama, wisconsin or stanford is a thing of beauty. Its smashmouth, pin and pull, scoop, double up to the lbs, counter football. Its not all basic I stuff, though. The way OSU uses their offensive sets to isolate certain defenders and read off them is fun to watch...i rewound a play in the first half of their game probably 7 times. He read the frickin WLB, not the end, and ran for 25 yards because of how their set isolated him then they used an influence block and he bit. If he didnt bite they could have handed it off and they had a good log on the edge from the pulling guard. Its things like that and what we saw against iowa that show a comittment to wanting to run the ball more than anything else. Then throw it 25 times a game with effective play action to our talented recievers. We did better on run to pass ratio but it needs to improve more, but only if we practice accordingly, which is to prepare for smashmouth football. Improve the defense to at least stop the run, hell we have a good secondary.
Wisconsin and stanford have given us the blueprint, hell iowa has too.
You can say we need more talent, but if you think talent is what lost us the game to IOWA by 30 points, you are delusional, plain and simple. It was a good old fashioned reminder of how football is meant to be played.

O-line. Can't do much inside when your weakest link is your o-line. That will change in the coming years as we repair our depth and increase competition. If things have not improved greatly on the O-line in the next couple of years then I believe that will have more bearing on HCMR tenure than any star QB he brings to Lincoln. Our return to dominance starts and ends with our OL and DL.

 

[huskerfan1414]

Here is a case study of what im afraid we are looking at.
USC recruiting rankings since 2006: 1, 2, 8, 4, 1, 4, 8, 13, 10, 1, 12.
Stanford in that same time frame: 57, 52, 50, 20, 27, 22, 5, 63, 14, 18, 19
Since 2006 , USC has only won 1 conference title, in 2008. Stanford has won in 2012, 2013, and 2015. Never with andrew luck at qb.
Usc would have played in the 2011 game but couldnt due to sanctins, but stanford beat them in the regular season that year.
I bring this up because i think most would agree that USC runs an offense more similar to the one riley and langsdorf favor. Stanford runs an offense more like alabama, iowa, michigan, and wisconsin. Usc has recruiting rankings to die for. We would take any one of those years. Stanford has very average rankings. I expect we will recruit at levels much better than stanford, but its silly to think we will recruit at USC levels. And look what thats got them?
Look what Stanford has done. Ditto for Wisconsin, so similar in so many ways. We are their and iowas little brother right now, and its because they want to play tough football and we want to finesse around them.
Take on that physical mindset and philosophy, couple it with solid recruiting which we know this staff is capable of, play physical run stopping defense, and smashmouth your way to victory over less talented teams like iowa and wisconsin. Guarantee we will play for conference titles and ,ake the occasional playoff appearance. At the very least we wont lose by 30 to iowa and 59 to anyone, which used to be unacceptable.
If we take the USC path, especially without USC recruiting, we are going to get usc results. Underachieve.

 

[huskerfan1414]

O-line. Can't do much inside when your weakest link is your o-line. That will change in the coming years as we repair our depth and increase competition. If things have not improved greatly on the O-line in the next couple of years then I believe that will have more bearing on HCMR tenure than any star QB he brings to Lincoln. Our return to dominance starts and ends with our OL and DL.

I agree, and i understand that plays a factor. But not a thirty point against iowa factor. One team came to bump heads, another came to waltz.

 

[GammaxuvirHusker]

Here is a case study of what im afraid we are looking at.
USC recruiting rankings since 2006: 1, 2, 8, 4, 1, 4, 8, 13, 10, 1, 12.
Stanford in that same time frame: 57, 52, 50, 20, 27, 22, 5, 63, 14, 18, 19
Since 2006 , USC has only won 1 conference title, in 2008. Stanford has won in 2012, 2013, and 2015. Never with andrew luck at qb.
Usc would have played in the 2011 game but couldnt due to sanctins, but stanford beat them in the regular season that year.
I bring this up because i think most would agree that USC runs an offense more similar to the one riley and langsdorf favor. Stanford runs an offense more like alabama, iowa, michigan, and wisconsin. Usc has recruiting rankings to die for. We would take any one of those years. Stanford has very average rankings. I expect we will recruit at levels much better than stanford, but its silly to think we will recruit at USC levels. And look what thats got them?
Look what Stanford has done. Ditto for Wisconsin, so similar in so many ways. We are their and iowas little brother right now, and its because they want to play tough football and we want to finesse around them.
Take on that physical mindset and philosophy, couple it with solid recruiting which we know this staff is capable of, play physical run stopping defense, and smashmouth your way to victory over less talented teams like iowa and wisconsin. Guarantee we will play for conference titles and ,ake the occasional playoff appearance. At the very least we wont lose by 30 to iowa and 59 to anyone, which used to be unacceptable.
If we take the USC path, especially without USC recruiting, we are going to get usc results. Underachieve.

Barry wanted to turn Wisconsin into the Nebraska of the north. He succeeded, on a certain level. Crazy how we've lost our way.

 

[Bruce1981]

Interesting. Whose been in charge of the team the past two years? If they're so good at developing QBs, why did Tommy's completion % go down this year? Why were none of "their" QBs able to beat out a 51% passer?

Funny that the QB gurus didn't teach Tommy how to read a field or go through his progressions? You'd think that would be something a real QB coach would teach?