All Eyes on Lincoln

With less than 48 hours left to go until the kickoff that will be heard around Husker Nation, coaches and players are going through their final preparations for tomorrow night’s game between USC and Nebraska. The players have said all week that it’s just another game, but you know as well as I do that it is highly anticipated and circled on their schedules, probably more so for the Huskers.

The coaches on the other hand are understandably more aware of the impact the game has. This game is Bill Callahan’s and Nebraska’s chance to put the program back on the map in showing that they can play with anyone in the country. Is this team capable of that? I’m not exactly for sure after watching last week’s game at Wake Forest. I do expect the Huskers to give USC a good game though.

USC has a great quarterback in John David Booty and is in line to be the third quarterback in a row from the school to win a Heisman. They have a lot of big physical receivers and a core of running backs that goes five or six deep. Basically, USC will not be short on options for offense. The story will not be their talented offense. That right and privilege will be reserved for the defense.

The Trojans have arguably the best linebackers and front seven in the country, maybe just a hair behind LSU’s. Sam Keller has seen the USC defense before, but that was two years ago. Personnel has changed and the players that were around in 2005 when Keller played for Arizona State that are still at SC are faster, better and maximizing their abilities now that they are veterans.

The loss of defensive back Josh Pinkard will defiantly hurt the Trojan’s secondary which needs to cover the Husker receivers well enough to allow the seven or eight players that Carroll will send after Keller to get to him. Pressuring Keller will be the name of the game for USC’s defense. If Keller is allowed to hang back and check down through all of his progressions to find an open man, he could pick their secondary apart.

So, what does Nebraska need to do to even have a fighting chance against this seemingly uber-team? I’ve come to three conclusions, and the first being what Callahan needs to do with the running game. USC is too fast and too physical for them to try and stretch the field on them. If they decided to run the ball East-West all night, they’ll finish with 42 yards on the ground. What they need to do is run out of three or four receiver sets to spread the Trojan defense away from the ball and running Marlon Lucky and Quentin Castille between the tackles. Three, four and five yard gains is all you need to set up play action or a quick strike slant to keep the chains moving.

Second, the Husker passing attack will also need to stretch the secondary and spread the linebackers out as well. Less pressure on Keller means he’ll be making better reads and have more time to make better decisions. Brining the front seven in closer on play action and hitting a player like Maurice Purify in stride down field two or three times will be huge as well, that is if he can hang on to the ball. One thing that will help the Husker running game could be play action screens into the flats if they can get the linebackers to bite on it. All of that will depend on how well they take care of my number one point. If they can keep cycling through these types of plays and get the best games of the players’ lives, then Nebraska stands a chance to keep USC's defense on the field and off balance. Everyone talks about how extensive the playbook is that Callahan uses. Well, it's time to open up the playbook and turn it loose. The Huskers are going to have to find a way to be multi-dimensional and not rely too much on one style of play.

Finally, the third part comes in two parts itself. The Husker coaching staff is going to have to react and readjust during the action in the game. Callahan’s staff, if they have one glaring issue, is their inability to retool their gameplan depending on what the opposition is doing in their scheme. Nebraska had a chance to put Wake Forest on their back if they would have started playing defense like they did in the fourth quarter. The second part of the plan is something that is intangible. The crowd and the atmosphere is going to have to take over at some point for the team to pull through and win. I firmly believe that USC’s ability to audible around the defense and adjust out of the huddle will be greatly affected by the crowd noise. This is easily the biggest non-conference game in 15 to 20 years in Lincoln and it’s at night which always brings out the noise. Believe me, I’ve been there for big games under the lights and it’s deafening. That being said, if USC is for real and a true contender they’ll rise above that and the crowd won’t play much a factor and the outcome will rely solely on the action in game itself. Then again, USC doesn’t get treated to playing an away game in the Pac-10 like they will on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium either.

I think Nebraska gives USC a good game but comes out on the losing end due to the Trojan's athletic superiority, JD Booty, the defense and Carroll's gameplan. You get the idea. I think he'll have his team ready after the bye week contrary to what most experts are saying. This is something for all Husker fans to keep in mind Saturday night. USC is beatable, they are not an invincible team. Just last year this same team lost to UCLA and Oregon State, who lost to Cincinnati just last week.

I'm calling the game at 27-20 for now in USC's favor, and like last year, I'm just praying that it isn't a blowout of USC-Arkansas proportions. I still don't think the Huskers are "there yet," but this game will tell everyone how close they really are.