Sorta Nevada Preview

This is not an in depth preview for tomorrow’s game, just to make you aware. Those will start next week, hopefully.

So, are you read for some football? I know I am. Tomorrow is the kickoff of the 2007 college football season for the Nebraska Cornhuskers against the Nevada Wolfpack. The opener, if won by the Huskers, will be their 23^rd straight. The team is taking the game very seriously, as they know that the Wolfpack is not your father’s opening game in Lincoln. Gone are the days of playing a I-AA team or even a I-A team that is on the bottom rung of the spectrum.

Nevada is a legitimate threat out of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) playing in two consecutive bowl games and taking the University of Miami Hurricanes to the wire in the MPC Computers bowl eventually losing 21-20.

The Wolfpack finished the season very respectably compared to their 0-2 record early last season. Their defense looked impressive at times limiting several teams to fewer than 10 points and earning shutouts against Utah State and Louisiana Tech. However, their D was a little more than lost against top tier WAC schools Hawaii and Boise State. Nevada will also be playing without suspended star linebacker Ezra Butler. They’ll also be working without their star center Dominic Green and former standout quarterback Jeff Rowe who was a firth-round draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals in April of this year.

Tomorrow will be the first start for another quarterback on the field, at least for his respective team. After reading a truckload of stories on senior Sam Keller this month, he’s probably about as tired as I am of hearing the “coming full circle” type questions and is ready to get on with the business of the season at hand. If Keller has done his homework and is as good as advertised, expect the Huskers to put up a lot of points tomorrow. I’m not talking about any scores in the sixties or seventies, that’s a little unrealistic for this team. I’m calling the game at 38-14 for a final score. Look for it to be around there, give or take a touchdown.

Earlier in the week, former Husker and Kansas City Chief great Will Shields visited the team on Thursday after practice. Shields enjoyed a successful 14 year career at the NFL level playing in 12 straight Pro-Bowls and was the recipient of the 1992 Outland Trophy while at Nebraska. Hopefully this made an impact on the team. He’s not a fiery type of speaker which fits well into Callahan’s method of coaching and what the players are used to. His speech is exactly what you would expect. His message was to prepare, study, do what’s right and be a great guy. A consummate professional, Shields was also the 2003 winner of the Walter Payton Man of the Year award, given to an NFL player that has gone above and beyond in the realm of charity and community work. Prior to 1999 it was simply called “NFL Man of the Year.”

The starting roster and depth chart for tomorrow's game were made up earlier in the week. I’m sure Callahan will be looking to answer a few question marks before taking the show on the road to Winston-Salem, North Carolina next weekend. The game tomorrow, while important, is more or less a way to measure if the team is in order. Saying that, I’m hoping that Callahan and his staff have the team prepared for the Wolf Pack and are not looking past them to their next two games against Wake Forest and Southern Cal.

All the questions that have been asked about the quarterback position, replacing Brandon Jackson, replacing the defensive line and questions regarding the secondary will not be answered tomorrow afternoon in Lincoln. However, it will show how far this team has come after spring and fall camps. Beyond all of that, there is nothing like watching your team take the field for the first time during a brand new season.

An Open Letter

Before we start, yes, I made this collage with my rudimentary art skills.

I’ve been perusing sports websites today reading up on the start of college football for this season. I’m astonished at the lack of press Nebraska is receiving. Not that I didn’t expect it, I just don’t like not reading about them as much as I used to. It’s cool to have your team talked about.

I’m frustrated when I watch and read polls regarding the elements of college football. When you don’t list Lincoln, Nebraska in the top 10 of college gameday environments, it’s like a slap in the face to the self-proclaimed “best fans in college football.” I’m biased, of course I’m biased. This is a fan blog about the Nebraska Cornhuskers, however if were I not a fan I would honestly have to say Nebraska is one of the best environments based on this. I’ve been to South Bend, Indiana to see a football game at Notre Dame. To me, there is virtually no difference in the pre-game fervor leading up to kickoff and the excitement during the game. Notre Dame will always make a top 10 or five list of best places to be on Saturday afternoons in the fall. It’s just how it is, they are America’s Team when it comes to college football. They say the Huskers haven’t done anything in the past decade or so. Talk about a team that hasn’t done anything in as much time or a longer amount of time. Notre Dame right now is the most overrated college football program in the country. I’ve been to Iowa City, Iowa. It’s not the same. Of course they love their team, however the winning tradition is not there. Sorry, it’s just not.

Just because a team has not played on the level they have in the past does not automatically diminish the merits of said past success. These fans are some of the most loyal in the country. This team does not represent just one state, it represents an entire region of the country. It’s fan base even reaches beyond the world of the upper Midwest. The lack of respect for the program sucks. I’m sorry, it just flat out does. Could the team do more to establish this? Have they had opportunities to put their own team back on the map? Of course they have. However, when I don’t see the Huskers even considered for even the most irrelevant of polls on ESPN or wherever, I don’t like it. When I see people picking Missouri to win the Big 12 North, or Kansas State as a sleeper? Come on, I don’t even want it to be a question. I’m not sure what Bill Callahan is waiting for, but the time to take this team and this program over the edge back into national prominence is now. I sat through the decline of the Osborne Huskers during Frank Slouch’s tenure (just a note, Osborne probably should still have been coaching and or should be still, he basically stepped down to hand the reigns to Solich so he wouldn’t leave and he basically just messed it up anyway), the lowest of the lows most people still alive have ever seen in 2004 and up until now with the rebuilding of a national contender. This will be Callahan’s fourth year at the helm. He has some of “his guys” in the program now, probably more than guys that aren’t. On the other hand, there aren’t a majority of players that were recruited out of high school and are cultivated in the system. The tide should be turning fairly soon though. How will this team fair this time around in 2007? Will it be another step forward, another step back or just a stagnant season where virtually no progress is made?

In my opinion Nebraska should be the Oklahoma and Texas of the North. It’s as simple as that. If this sounds like a sense of entitlement then I think you’re wrong. This is Nebraska, not Kansas State, Missouri or Kansas. We are Nebraska. We have won five national championships in the past 40 years. We are in the top five of all time winningest college football programs. We graduate more academic All-American’s than any other school in Division I-A. We’ve won a truckload of conference championships. We have had three Heisman winners. We’ve sold out our home stadium more than any other school in the country. We aren’t Kansas State, Kansas or Iowa State. We are Nebraska. All the players, the students, the fans, the residents are included and when you step on and question our capacity to create on of the best atmospheres and fan bases in all of college football you are not only insulting a school , you are insulting an entire region of the country. People give me all sorts of crap because when I refer to this team I say “we.” I say “we” not because I attended Nebraska or because I played there, because I didn’t really want to attend for my own personal reasons. That’s not the issue however. I say “we” because my parents were born there, my family is rooted deep into the state and I even had an uncle play there. I have that right because of these things, also because I care enough to spend my own free time maintaining a blog about this team for nothing. I live and die on every Saturday afternoon or night, with every signee and recruit that comes to play in Lincoln. That gives me the right to say “we.” This gives you the right to say “we.” Be proud, you’re a part of something special.

Timeout

Before I get started, let me get one thing out there. I’ve never really liked Michael Vick as a football player. I never really liked him even while I was watching him at Virginia Tech back in the late 90’s. I didn’t think a black quarterback that could run and make plays with his legs was that revolutionary. For those that read this blog, Tommie Frazier had already accomplished the same type of success that Vick was. Of course as the record shows, the NFL rightly decided to recruit Vick into their ranks and allowed his type of play to sweep the country and make fans around the world. This was all fine with me, despite the fact that I was never a big fan of Michael Vick the football player. He seemed selfish, however I was a fan of playing football a different way.

We all know now what he did or maybe didn’t do. He has made his admission of guilt and in my opinion that is all you really need to know. During the entire process from after the evidence was found on his property in Virginia on a drug raid, up until he chose to plead guilty to lesser crimes than he was charged with, I’ve maintained with my friends that it is important to let the system do it’s job. When we come out on the other end, then I’ll let my opinion be known. Well, now that Vick has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to run an interstate dog-fighting ring my opinion is this.

In black and white in regards to our justice system (no racial sort-of-pun intended) I believe that he should serve out his sentence that will be handed down on December 10^th. Following his time in or out of prison he should be given the same opportunity as any convicted felon in getting his old job back. That is what would happen in an equal, perfect world. Let’s look at reality for a second. Consider yourself and you in your job. Let’s say that you are at a bar with your wife/girlfriend or husband/boyfriend and you’ve had one too many drinks. Someone at the bar repeatedly harasses you and your spouse/partner for the duration of the night. When it’s time to go home, you’ve finally had enough and you beat the person that has been heckling your partner, who you love, to the point of paramedics needing to be called to the scene. You’re arrested and eventually charged with felony assault. Now whether this action warrants this type of punishment, I don’t know, but for the sake of the story just follow me on this one. I know that in my job if I’m even charged with a felony I will lose my job. Not convicted or pleading guilty mind you, just charged, I’m fired. Let’s say the worst happens and you’re convicted of felony assault and having no criminal record you’re sentenced to one year in prison and the rest of the five year sentence gets suspended as probation. Like I’ve said, I’m not sure if this is how it works, just go with it. Now it’s the day you get out of prison and you meet with your probation officer and you inquire about getting your old job back. Tell me, what do you believe are the chances of that actually happening?

Here’s my prediction. Michael Vick will serve his time and his suspension away from playing in the NFL with no further issue. Two or three years from now, you’ll see Vick back in an NFL uniform. He won’t have the same positive exposure as before. He won’t get an endorsement deal, but he’ll be back in the NFL and playing again. People that say he should be banned for life, I’m not so sure I agree. It’s not up to us what should be done with Vick. We don’t run the NFL and if you don’t want to see him play ever again, I guess that’s just too bad. Don’t watch the games he plays in, or don’t watch the game that allows him to play. How deep do your convictions really go? That’s a good question for holier than thou individuals. Color me indifferent in regard to my personal opinion when it comes to Vick being allowed back into the NFL. Some team will take a chance on him, believe me. If NFL commissioner Roger Goodell does not ban Vick for life, he will be back. Talent supercedes almost everything in professional sports. Look at Leonard Little, look at Warren Moon and yes, even look at Lawrence Phillips. Look at every NFL or college football player that has been charged with anything. They’ve been given chance after chance, opportunity after opportunity. So, will this type of crime be where we stand up as a society of NFL fans or just sports fans and say enough is enough? Someone needs to learn a lesson and someone needs to be made an example of? I doubt it. Despite the fact that there have been many, many arrests this past offseason with NFL players and crime. I’ve even come up with a clever nickname for the NFL, the Numerous Felons League. Pretty stupid, huh? Anyway, I think the majority of people are too lazy and weak to make any kind of stand to boycott professional sports. Issues like this will just keep churning along.

I just finished listening to Vick’s statement and it went just like I expected. He said he doesn’t speak well, so we should forgive him for that. He apologized to commissioner Goodell, Atlanta Falcon’s owner Arthur Blank, Falcon’s coach Bobby Patrino (who’s probably secretly happy his team will tank and he’ll be able to draft Louisville Cardinal’s senior quarterback Brian Brohm) his Falcon’s teammates, and of course, finally, the children. Letting down the kids is probably the worst thing you can do, right? Well he left someone else out. He left out the overwhelming majority of people that are indifferent to all the people he apologized to. Do I care about the trials and tribulations of a millionaire like Blank? The answer is an emphatic no. Unless there is a silent majority that just does not care, Vick is leaving out the most important of NFL constituents, and that is the fan that pays his salary. People like you and I.

Michael Vick himself and the charges against him are only the tip of the iceberg. Do you think that when the dust has settled on this case and after he has been sentenced a few weeks before Christmas this year that it will be over? I’m inclined to say no. Why? Because of the issue of race. From day one the cry was small and concentrated. Now the swell of shrieks of racism will bubble over into not only sports media, but mainstream media as well. It already has, but it will increase and be discussed for a great deal of time. Will this be a watershed moment in examining race relations in our country? Will race relations regarding a sports figure serve as a metaphor for society? You’d think that the answer would be yes, considering the almost perfect storm of situations colliding in the middle. You have the face (not my opinion) of the NFL from the past few years, you have our most popular sport in our country and you have a subject that is near and dear to many American’s hearts. The easy answer is race, however the subject I’m referring to is the issue of your family pet and animal cruelty. If this were Peyton Manning that had been running a dog-fighting ring, would there be this much public outcry? Could you imagine a good old boy with his slow southern draw Peyton Manning in the center of a scandal like this? If you’re thinking that Peyton Manning couldn’t be in the middle of something like this because of who he is, then you’re probably a little racist. Look, Manning is a southern, white guy who comes from a good family with NFL pedigree, given every opportunity in life and because he his who he is, it would be harder to stomach for white America. It’s easy to pin this sort of thing on a black guy because most white people probably expect it. You may not say it, but you probably think it.

I am already tired of the countless representatives from the black community playing the race card. I’m equally tired of most white people that have spread the word of his guilt since this story broke almost as quickly. This issue is a magnified look into how we as American’s feel about race. Overall, white and black people don’t seem to trust each other, at least not on this issue. I know making this generalization might get me into a little bit of trouble, however if I were wrong why would this situation be breaking down like it is? And why will it continue to play itself out as such? Will we as a society surprise future historians and prove this to be our shinning moment in the sun in finally understanding each other as white and black societies? Doubtful.

White people, or white commentators I’ve listened to on this subject, are much more subversive in regards to how they add up the evidence and allegations that lead to Vick’s guilt. They talk about his mom being a single mom, how his brother has been in trouble with the law since you knew who he was and how he was raised in a community from the “wrong side of the tracks.” They talk about the culture shock of going from a nobody and someone everyone wanted to be and how hard that is on a poor black kid from Virginia. They talk about how hard it is for a black kid to cut ties with people from “the hood” from his past that he should leave behind, because poor black kids turn into poor black adults that are desperate and commit crimes like this. That’s how they break you down, the listener, into believing that Vick is guilty. Of course he’s guilty because he couldn’t help it, that's what they want you to believe. It makes you feel he’s guilty and allows you to feel sorry for him like he’s a criminal and a victim all at the same time. This is wrong and how a lot of white people want you to feel about black people. Did I mention that it's wrong?

Let me say this quick, I am not defending Vick and his actions that he has now plead guilty to. I don’t defend what he did or didn’t do, what he may have done and what he probably did. I think Vick’s aberrant actions and behavior are grotesque. I think cruelty to animals is right up there with cruelty to children. They are both innocent and helpless to a certain degree, and for adults to take advantage of this shows the lowest of the low of human spirit and capacity to be evil. Now that my late disclaimer has been stated for the record, let’s move on.

The individuals who have been nationally representing the black community on this subject, at least in the publications I have read or watched, have been a little more forthright in their mistrust of mostly white America jumping to their inevitable conclusion of “guilty.” “It’s OJ all over again, and this time we lost.” This was a quote from a sports talk show host that was on ESPN a couple of weeks ago. This has stuck with me for quite some time. Are we still harboring feelings from the OJ case that was wrapped up over a decade ago? Just a side note, I remember the OJ case was so big that when the jury came back with the verdict, they announced it over the intercom at our high school. I’m not kidding. I was watching ESPN this morning and a guy who’s name and credentials I did not happen to catch said that the reason white American is so quick to cut down a young black athlete is because we, as whites, have a hard time stomaching a young black man being rich and successful. Here is where I don’t open a can of worms regarding racial double standards. I will ask this, only because I believe it is worth asking. Who exactly was the first group of people to lob the race bomb into the mix?

I don’t have any problems with young black kids signing multi-million dollar deals to play sports. If I did, I wouldn’t watch them. I think that any professional athlete who squanders their opportunity by hanging around people that don’t have their best interests in mind should have examined their situation a little closer. We all have this problem though, there are always those couple of kids we probably shouldn’t be friends with because of the choices they make. The only difference between you and Vick is that Vick has much more to lose. When you are blessed with the talent to play on a level where you are paid a king’s ransom it is a privilege, not a right. That thought allows many fans to feel justified in persecuting athletes in the court of public opinion.

Vick’s story is yet to be completely played out, and I will always ultimately believe that he is admitting to something less than what he is truly guilty of. That is my opinion and it is based on this. Any person that will tell you they are innocent and vehemently claim their innocence and proclaim they will have their day in court and the evidence will show that they are innocent and then turn around and plead guilty to the charges they once denied, are guilty. I’m sure when Vick and his attorneys sat in either their office or in a separate room in a courthouse and were presented with the evidence that the federal prosecutors had put together, Vick and his lawyers quickly changed their tune. A man innocent of these charges would not do something like this. He would want to fight to clear his name. To this point, Vick has done nothing to clear his name. He’s taking the easier way out and not fighting the good fight to hear the words “we the jury find the defendant not guilty.” He’d rather take his plea and run and turn state’s witness and give up more information on his cohorts. That’s why I think he’s guilty of all he was charged with. There was a dog-fighting ring on your property and you didn’t know about it? Please. Oh, well, I knew about it but I didn’t gamble on it at all. Get real. Well, I may have covered all the losses for people that bet on the dogs that fought and died, but I never killed the dogs myself. Hogwash. When you’re a nobody and you get charged with prison time, you’ll flip almost immediately, just like Vick’s friends did. They sold him out and said he killed those dogs with his bare hands, and I believe them. Not because I jump to conclusions, not because I’m jealous of Vick and his money and fame, and certainly not because I’m racist. It’s because when people are backed into corners they become the most honest of honest. It is forced attrition, and it is hard to deny or refute.

I believe in forgiveness. I believe in redemption. I believe in second chances. I believe in these ideals and principles but only if they are honest and heartfelt. If Vick is truly sorry for what he did, he deserves a second chance. If his intentions are contrived in any way, shape or form then those falsehoods will show through and Vick will likely wind up in more trouble. What he did or did not do on that compound to those dogs he will have to live with. If he chooses to live with no remorse, than the God he has claimed to turn his life over to today will have something to say when his time in this time is over.

Big 12 North Preview - Nebraska Cornhuskers

Last season, the Nebraska Cornhuskers accomplished something that seemed distant and unimaginable in 2004. Winning the Big 12 North title last season is a stepping stone to where the faithful fans in Lincoln and around the country knew there team would get to again. Even after enduring their first losing season in over 35 years and missing a bowl game for the first time in just as long, winning a division title is merely a roadside stop two years after the fact on the highway to regaining national prominence.

In 2007 the Huskers will face loftier expectations with more question marks overall. They will be solid on both sides of the ball with experienced starters returning at key positions. When stacked against the expectation of returning to the national spotlight however, it’s difficult to judge solid players and hold them up against an objectionable light when most fans will have the expectation to have said players perform at the level of an All-American. That’s just not the talent level that the Huskers are playing with, at least for now. There are still players leftover from the Solich era at Nebraska and simply do not fit into the Bill Callahan way of running an offense. A speedy receiver like Terrence Nunn is not the type of receiver you’d like to see running slant routes across the middle of the field. He has enough issues holding on to the ball in the open field, let alone when he has a 6’1” 225 pound strong safety in his face coming at him full speed.

Despite these types of issues with mismatched players and transitioning those players with the recruits that Callahan’s staff have brought in the past few off seasons, the Huskers stand a good chance of doing better than they did last year. Am I crazy, you ask? How could they possibly do better after losing their entire defensive line and after they lost leading rusher Brandon Jackson and Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year Zac Taylor? Well, I’ll try to explain as best I can. Keep in mind, that while I’m taking the optimistic approach to the Husker’s 2007 campaign, this season could just as easily disintegrate into a Nebraska fan's worst nightmare as well.

The notion that the Huskers could do better than last year starts at the top with newly christened starting quarterback Sam Keller. He has all the tools to do great things in what will be his only season starting and playing for the Huskers. Depending on how he digested the playbook last season playing with the scout team and during spring and fall camps will map out how much success Keller will enjoy. Let’s face it, Taylor was never meant to be an all time great quarterback in the grand scheme of things. He knew it too. When the media were making all sorts of noise about passing records that were falling left and right after only less than two years throwing the pigskin, Taylor remarked that Nebraska doesn’t have a history of balanced offensive play calling, and that when they get a quarterback into the fold with some potential, his records would be quickly swept away. I find this statement to be accurately prophetic and spot on. Taylor was brought in as a junior college transfer to alleviate the nightmare that was 2004 starter Joe Daily.

Now, all this being said, I do not believe that Keller is the end all be all of answers to the questions that will be asked of the Huskers going into this season. He’s another Taylor type quick fix to create a winning environment in Lincoln to lure the true players that will put Nebraska back on the national map. Keller had a solid tenure at Arizona State until he suffered an injury that sent him down the depth chart. He wasn’t the greatest quarterback, but he’s the best pro-style quarterback that has ever stepped foot in Memorial Stadium in a Husker uniform. What I like about Keller the most beyond his abilities is his desire to step onto a big stage and do great things. Taylor, despite his amazing efficiency, seemed like a deer in the headlights in most of his big game performances. He also lacked that killer instinct that Keller has. Taylor didn't go out and make plays in win games, he only took what the defense gave him. This could be a good thing or a bad thing depending how you look at it. Either way, you'll need to strap yourselves in with Keller because it's going to be a passing game the likes of you've never seen before at Nebraska. Nebraska also has some depth at the position. Junior Joe Ganz gave Keller healthy competition and looked solid when I saw him in person at the Spring Game in April. Ganz is another Taylor clone and may not see a whole lot of playing time unless Keller has a major meltdown at some point in the season.

The biggest loss on offense will not be felt at the quarterback position, but rather at the legendary I-back slot. Of course, Nebraska hasn’t had a legendary I-back since Ahman Green at the end of the Tom Osborne era. Losing Brandon Jackson to the NFL is a major blow and the offense will miss his 5.3 average yards per carry in the backfield. Even though Jackson is gone, there are plenty of players waiting for their chance to step up and become effective players in the offense. To start off at the top, junior Marlon Lucky is experienced and proven, and as long as he can stay healthy he should receive the lion share of carries this year. Lucky’s best asset will be his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield and create plays in the open field. He’s the most balanced option the Huskers have at the moment as well. Senior Kenny Wilson will create a change of pace with his speed, and junior Cody Glenn is back that is almost impossible to tackle and is the Husker’s short yardage specialist. Incoming freshmen Marcus Mendoza, Quentin Castille and Roy Helu will more than likely be shuffled in at some point this season as well. Losing Dane Todd leaves the Huskers with few options at fullback, a once integral part of the offense. In Callahan’s iteration of the West Coast Offense, the role is slightly diminished than say Bill Walsh’s version. The Husker will look to converted junior I-back Thomas Lawson, senior Matt Senske and junior tight end J.B. Phillips.

The receiving core returns basically in tact from the previous season. Senior receiver and part-time miscreant Maurice Purify will serve a one game suspension in the season opener against Nevada but will be allowed to come back for the remainder of the season. Senior Terrence Nunn (who has caused me to utter many a profanity, good and bad) will also return for what will be his final year at Nebraska. Good or bad, take that one as you will. The pair led the Huskers in receptions last season with 34 for Purify and 42 for Nunn. Purify was arguably the most electrifying of the two, averaging nearly 18.5 yards per catch. Senior Franz Hardy should not be overlooked either in the yards per catch department. He is a home run hitter who averaged 22.6 yards per reception. Being the strength and deepest position on offense look for juniors Nate Swift and Todd Peterson to make a big impact on the field. Some names you might not be familiar with are redshirt sophomore Menelik Hold, sophomore Chris Brooks and redshirt freshmen Will Henry who is an imposing threat at 6’5” all of whom will see time on the field during meaningful playing situations.

The tight ends will be run in the same fashion as the running backs in committee style. The frontrunner at the moment is the aforementioned J.B. Phillips who caught 13 passes last year and was a solid blocker. Senior Josh Mueller, junior Hunter Teafatiller and redshirt freshman Mike McNeil will all compete for playing time. Tight end is a position the Huskers would like to improve upon beings that in the West Coast Offense a premier end opens up a new dimension to the attack. For now, the Huskers will have to play the hand they are dealt with the personnel at the position.

The middle of the offensive line will be rock solid this year. Center Brett Byford emerged last season as a potential All Big 12 Honoree after Kevin Mann was sidelined with mononucleosis. Junior Matt Slauson will make the move from tackle to guard this season in hopes to improve the blocking schemes for the running game and misdirection that is needed in this thinking mans offense. Junior Lyndon Murtha who stands tall at 6’7” and a lean 305 pounds will take over for Slauson at the right tackle position. Guarding Keller’s blind side will be senior Carl Nicks who started two games in 2006. The left guard will be taken over by junior Andy Christiansen where he started six games in place of Greg Austin after being sidelined with a season ending injury. Sophomore Jacob Hickman will challenge Christiansen for the left guard slot.

A new year and a new look are what’s in store for the Huskers on their defensive line. No position on defense will be a bigger challenge to fill then at defensive end. NFL bound Adam Carriker and Jay Moore who combined for 13 sacks and 33 tackles for loss make a huge impact with their departure. Their understudies will take over for them when the season starts on September 1^st. Barry Turner and Zach Potter are the expected starters, however Potter who has mostly played special teams his entire career, may open the season watching from the sidelines. The reason is because there are plenty of capable potential players to wrestle the position away. While Turner may turn out to be one of the best ends in the Big 12, the other side may be filled by converted linebacker Clayton Sievers and Pierre Allen who committed himself to the position by gaining 30 pounds in the off season. Other potential candidates will be senior Andy Poulosky and sophomore David Henry who moved over to the defensive side of the ball last season.

That’s not the only part of the line that needs replacing. Both defensive tackles from 2006 are also gone and replacing them will be sophomore Ndamukong Suh and Ty Steinkuhler. Suh is clearly the better of the two and his potential and massive frame at 6’4” 305 pounds are getting the coaching staff whipped up into a frenzy. The Huskers also hope to show some depth in the defensive interior with senior Brandon Johnson and junior college transfer Shukree Barfield. Others who may see limited to mop up time will be redshirt freshman Seth Johnson and sophomore Craig Roark.

The Huskers will jump into the season with one of the best (if not the best) linebacker core in the entire Big 12 Conference. Senior Bo Ruud is a first-team-all-conference pick and last season put up quality numbers that placed him above and beyond. He also has a nose for game-changing plays with three forced fumbles, two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. Ruud is making the switch to the strong side, where he’ll be able to show his coverage skills against most team’s tight ends. Replacing Ruud on the weak side will be senior Steve Octavian and possibly senior Lance Brandenburgh. Brandenburgh has plenty of experience in the Nebraska defensive system and has logged time at each linebacking position. Sophomore Phillip Dillard’s brilliant potential was cut short with a knee injury early last year but hopes to make up for it this season. Senior Corey McKeon will anchor down the mid-field with is rock-solid sensibility for the spot and will add to his 30 tackles for loss in his career for the Blackshirts. Rounding out the squad and providing some amazing depth will be sophomore Nick Covey, junior Tyler Wortman and redshirt freshman Kyle Moore.

The Huskers are also deep when it comes to their secondary. It was exposed on more than a few occasions last season, however this year should prove to be a little easier to swallow considering the amount of time this group has played together. They will bring back three full-time starters along with 2005 standout Zackary Bowman who was lost last fall with a season ending knee injury. With his return it will provide some needed competition for seniors Cortney Grixby and Andre Jones. Grixby, while undersized, has amazing leaping ability that provides a lot of frustration to opposing receivers along with his considerable speed. Jones, a junior college transfer last season, immediately made an impact and held the starting role for the entire season. He lead all defensive backs with 74 tackles in 2006. Defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove brought in another JUCO prospect for the 2007 campaign in Armando Murillo, who is NBA star Gilbert Arenas’ cousin, was a first-team All-American and a highly sought after recruiting prize. Sophomore Corey Young is slated to back up the cornerbacks, but may move over the safety position before fall camp is complete.

Senior Tierre Green has had the free safety spot on lockdown since he moved over from I-back three seasons ago when Callahan came to Lincoln. Green spent his time last season on the strong side, racking up 65 tackles and made great coverage plays most of the season. Sophomore Rickey Thenarse will most likely start in the strong safety position and will receive competition from Young if he moves over to safety. Senior Bryan Wilson will serve as the defense’s nickel specialist and will also sub in during dime situations as well. JUCO transfer Larry Asante will, in my opinion, play right away and contribute at safety in week one.

Despite all of the numerous positives preceding this conclusion, this will not be the year that Nebraska steps back out onto the national stage as a BCS contender. They'll require one or two more seasons establishing Callahan’s recruits who have played in the system from day one before that line is crossed. For the offense to be fully operational you’ll need to have players at quarterback and wide receiver who have been in the system for at least two years minimum. At the moment, Nebraska needs to measure themselves against teams like Big 12 South powers Texas and Oklahoma. At the moment they are still one or two steps behind, however the Huskers have closed the gap relatively quick. Despite the score last season the Huskers hung with USC on the road and should have defeated Texas had Terrence Nunn not fumbled the ball late in the game (I’m still upset about that one, I’ll say it again). They most likely could have beaten Auburn had they not gotten desperate in the second half, but chalk that up to inexperience. Winning the 2005 Alamo Bowl against Michigan is one of the only highlights in Callahan’s tenure and in order to secure his job and legacy in the eyes of Husker Nation he’ll need to repeat similar feats on bigger stages every year. Not to worry though, their time is coming shortly. With the tradition, facilities and recruiting ability in Callahan's staff don't expect the Huskers to remain stuck in a rut for too long.

2006 Overall record: 9-5
2006 Conference record: 6-2
Offensive returning starters: 6
Defensive returning starters: 5

Offense: B+
Defense: A-
Special Teams: B
Overall: B+

2007 Prediction: 10-2(7-1 Big 12)
2007 Big 12 North Ranking: 1st

Big 12 North Preview - Missouri Tigers

So here we go with Nebraska’s big competition for the Big 12 North title this year. Of all the years that Mizzou has had a shot and earning their first division title in conference history, this is their best shot. The Tigers are the sexy pick in the North to take the title and face either Texas or Oklahoma for the Big 12 championship in San Antonio, Texas in December and a shot and playing in the Fiesta Bowl. Could Missouri conceivably go the distance and make their first BCS bowl game in school history? I’ll take you through the reasons why they could, and ultimately the reasons why they won’t.

First things first, coaching. Head coach Gary Pinkel will be coaching for his seventh season in Columbia, Missouri. During that time he has coached the team to a 37-and-35 record mainly on the back of former quarterback Brad Smith and now junior quarterback Chase Daniel. Missouri is a team of black and white. When they eliminate their mistakes they can hang with almost any team in the country, and I really mean that. When they paint themselves into a corner with horrible mistakes, they couldn’t even defeat conference cellar-dweller Iowa State last season. One problem that I think contributes to this, is coach Pinkel himself. Last seasons loss to the Cyclones pointed out something very telling. He would not admit defeat because of a bad call by the officials in Ames, Iowa. Rather than chalking up the loss to a learning experience and coaching his team to put teams away they are clearly better than early in the game, he paraded around to the media and his team that their record was 8-and-3 rather than 7-and-4 after the loss. This to me shows an inability as a head coach to own a mistake and turn it into an opportunity. This is something that separates solid coaches from great coaches and a trait of a team that is not as well coached as it could be.

Quarterback Chase Daniel was the biggest question mark on offense going into last season with super-quarterback Brad Smith heading into the NFL Draft. Daniel stepped in and took the reigns and the Tiger offense kept on rolling. Daniel not only seems to have the raw ability and know how of the game, he also seems to encompass the “it” factor that it takes to be a successful quarterback on the national level and gain some attention outside the conference. Daniel now owns three important single-season records after the 2006 season with 28 touchdown passes, 3,527 passing yards and 3,906 total yards from scrimmage all passing Smith in his first season at the helm of Dave Christiansen’s offense. Junior Chase Patton is the clear number two on the team after leading some inspired play in spring camp and in the Tiger’s spring game. Redshirt freshmen Dominick Grooms is another dual-threat QB who will compete with peer JP Tillman who is more of a pocket passer, something the Tiger offense is not accustomed to.

Here come the mistakes. One of the big problems that plagued the Tigers last fall was their inability to hold on to the ball. Their fast start and record setting pace was negated in the thick of conference play by 26 turnovers and 15 fumbles. That being said, leading Big 12 rusher senior Tony Temple returns to the fold for one more season in the backfield. Temple rushed for over 1,000 yards and crossed the goal line seven times, including a brilliant Sun Bowl performance with 194 yards and two scores. As if having the leading rusher in the conference wasn’t enough, the Tigers come to the table with plenty of depth should the sometimes butterfinger-ish and fragile Temple be sidelined. Junior Jimmy Jackson will reprise his role as the backup to Temple, however he will receive a lot of pressure from senior Marcus Woods who has shown he is a legitimate threat in the backfield during camps this past spring and fall. Junior Earl Goldsmith who missed a lot of time last season due to broken hand will more than likely see more playing time should he remain healthy.

To round out this potentially juggernaut offense, the receiving core will feature a lot of returning talent that should prove explosive. Daniel will have plenty of options out of the spread and none more important than senior Will Franklin and junior Tommy Saunders. Franklin and Saunders amassed 1,100 yards and eight touchdowns in 2006. Of course the combined performance of these two returning receivers will impact the Tigers offense, however the big story may be the young talent that made waves last year. Sophomores Danario Alexander and Jared Perry will compete for the third slot as they are cashing in on successful appearances last season and improving by leaps and bounds in spring and fall ball. Of course, in the offense the team runs and never huddling and shuffling in and out personnel you’re going to need more than just a few solid guys to catch all those passes. Redshirt freshman Jeremy Maclin was going to be one of the players to fill that void as one of Mizzou’s top 2006 recruits. However he missed the season due to an ACL injury that same summer. Maclin will be another speedster off the line running a 4.4 40 yard dash. Senior Greg Bracey, Jason Ray and juniors Lucas Null, Adam Casey and sophomores Blake May, Chris Gares and redshirt freshmen Forrest Shock will all see playing time. Phew, that is a ton of receivers to list and talk about. All fast, most have good hands and all will be fresh when rotated in and out of the game as dangerous threats in the take no prisoner’s offense the Tigers run.

Just when you thought I was done with guys that will catch the ball, Missouri comes at you with the best tight end tandem in the country. No pair is more productive. Hard to believe? Well, believe this. They combined for 111 receptions, 1149 yards and 14 touchdowns last year. These two are big, strong and can catch like the best receivers on the team. You’re going to have to come in with a good defense that is ready and conditioned to battle this team with all of their options on offense.

The one weakness is going to be the five that protect the man that will make the Mizzou attack go. Right tackle Joel Clinger is now a free agent signee with the New York Giants and Mike Cook was lost to graduation. Reserves David Lazaroff and Louis Pintola also exited Faurot Field after the 2006 campaign. The line will be anchored by Rimington Award candidate senior center Adam Spieker who will more than likely be planning to play on Sundays at this time next year. Senior tackle Tyler Luellen has been bitten by the injury bug in his three years on campus, however he has been healthy since spring drills and hopes to play the entire season playing Daniels’ blind side. The other player on the line who has great expectations is sophomore and right guard Kurtis Gregory who can move and tips the scales at over 300 pounds. There are some holes on the line, but with the veteran leadership and experience that the second tier linemen have they should be able to come together before the season starts.

Ok, so here is the big issue with the Tigers and will be the biggest question mark coming out of fall camp. The defense is mostly young, untested and has a history of bending and breaking. Starting defensive bookends will be juniors Stryker Sulak and Tommy Chavis. Both have some playing time but nothing substantial that will leave offensive line coaches quaking in their boots. Chavis played in all 13 games however was fairly unimpressive coming out of the ’06 season with 16 tackles. At nose tackle senior Lorenzo Williams will try to stop the run and plug up gaps with his 6’1” 295 pound frame. He finished last season with 53 tackles and six sacks.

Maybe one of the biggest blows to the Mizzou defense was behind the line in the linebacker core. Junior Brock Christopher will move from outside back to the interior linebacking position and led the Tigers in tackles from the strong side with 87. Weak side will see sophomore Sean Witherspoon taking over for departed first-team All-Big12 Marcus Bacon. With some solid experienced help, the defensive coaching staff is primed to unveil a pair of true freshmen linebackers. Michael Keck was a Parade All-American and a top prospect in the state of Missouri. Luke Lambert, also hailing from the same state, was a top-10 pick out of Missouri and racked up 148 tackles his senior season at Harrisonville leading them to their third state title in four years. Beyond the mentioned players, there isn’t much left to write home about. The Tigers are desperate to fill in holes and are even moving players from different positions where they are deep to play defense.

It doesn’t get much better for the Tigers when you view the depleted secondary. Half the starters are gone and the players that will step up have little to no playing experience. The bright spot is the two returning defensive backs. Senior Darnell Terrell started 13 games and earned an honorable mention on the Big 12 All-Conference team. Sophomore Hardy Ricks finished up the year with 40 tackles in eight starts. He’s more of a safety type of back and loves to tackle and hit receivers in the mouth off the line. At free safety junior William Moore will now start presumably for the entire season. He filled in last season and posted 51 tackles and most notably returned an interception for a touchdown down in Lubbock, Texas against Texas Tech. There is a bit of a battle at the strong safety slot and the top candidate comes with a funny nickname. Cornelius “Pig” Brown is transferring in from Reedley (Ca) Community College. Brown was injury prone in his tenure at Reedley, so if he goes down this position will likely have a bullseye on it from opposing offensive coordinators.

Yes, this is the year that the Tigers have their best shot to unseat the Huskers off the top of the North. Missouri has to answer some questions first. Can they maintain the momentum they started with last year? Can they get off to the same start to begin with? They get Nebraska themselves on a sliver platter this season. The Huskers travel down to Columbia, a setting they haven’t won in since 2001 and the Tigers get a bye week to prepare for Callahan and company. However, if the Huskers somehow manage to beat the Trojans in mid-September it should provide the Huskers with enough confidence and momentum to carry the Missouri-Nebraska bell out of town. Missouri has a history of faltering in the midst of conference play and that is the next task that Pinkel and his staff are charged with. No doubt, the October 6^th showdown will be circled by many a college football analyst, media member and coach. Where does this leave Missouri if they can’t win the North? Only time will tell. However I think Pinkel’s job will be safe through at least 2008, provided he at least meets expectations and brings a Big 12 North title or better to Columbia.

2006 Overall record: 8-5
2006 Conference record: 4-4
Offensive returning starters: 8
Defensive returning starters: 5

Offense: A-
Defense: C
Special Teams: B-
Overall: B

2007 Prediction: 8-4(5-3 Big 12)
2007 Big 12 North Ranking: 2nd

Next Preview: Nebraska Cornhuskers

Huskers Focus on Running Game

If you have been following the progression of practices this fall camp, you would know that the Huskers are on practice number 12, they are in full pads in Memorial Stadium and are practicing two-a-days with a 55 play scrimmage yesterday Friday, August 17. You may also know that during said scrimmage the new look running back line-up with some familiar faces was the focus. Freshman Quentin Castille, Marcus Mendoza and Roy Helu, sophomore Major Culbert and junior Marlon Lucky were all under the microscope during Friday practice.

Refining the backfield is huge, considering what the Huskers lost in leading rusher Brandon Jackson when he opted for the NFL Draft early this year. Learning the strengths and weaknesses of unproven commodities leading up to the start of the season is something that is a bit of a no brainer when playing the likes of ACC Champion Wake Forest on the road and pre-season number one USC at home in the comfy confines of Memorial Stadium in Weeks two and three. The passing game saw limited activity yesterday with the obvious focus on the I-backs. With the timing and rhythm that goes into Callahan’s offense you should expect to hear more about that facet of the offensive gameplay closer to the end of this month.

Being in full pads and out in the hot Nebraska sun the past two weeks should help condition the team to play harder and faster late into games this season, something the Huskers struggled with last season. The 2006 team was not a team of finishers with one exception being the game in College Station, Texas against the Aggies of Texas A&M. Losses, near losses and comebacks at the hands of Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma State and Auburn in the Cotton Bowl showed that something was missing in the team’s ability to close out a game and turn an advantage into a victory. I haven’t heard much on this out of fall camp and I hope that it is something that has been addressed at least on a coaching staff and training level to combat this problem. A team that ended 9-and-5 last season could have easily been 11-and-3. With a schedule that is much more ominous, loads of unproven talent and a reconstructed front seven on defense the Huskers need to shed this stigma if they want to build upon the progress they’ve made since 2004 when Callahan took over and not take a step backwards.

Fall Camp In Full Swing

The Huskers started fall camp this past Monday and already incoming freshman receiver Niles Paul is impressing. It’s no secret that the Huskers are now getting receivers that fit well within the West Coast scheme coach Bill Callahan brought with him in 2004. While Paul will be unlikely to start any games his freshman year, he may see playing time in certain packages. Learning all the routes, patterns and conversions in the offensive playbook is a lot for a first year player to understand. This is why senior receiver Maurice Purify, clearly the most gifted athletically, doesn’t see as much playing time as he should because of all the little eccentricities of Callahan’s offense. Paul may also be called upon to spend a little time on the punt return team, something of a question mark for the ’06 Husker squad.

There is a lot of big talk coming out of camp regarding a few other incoming freshmen. Running back Quentin Castille is being labeled as an absolute freak by running backs coach Randy Jordan. Freshman wide receiver Curenski Gilleylen has also caught the eye of receivers coach Ted Gillmore and may see some healthy playing time along with Paul this season. Castille has been the big talk of the incoming freshman class of recruits but Roy Helu is also making some noise of his own and doesn’t look like he’ll be making the switch from running back to defense anytime soon.

The big recruiting news is that Nebraska has finally landed one of the best pro-style quarterbacks in the country. Blaine Gabbert is the number 14 player overall in the Rivals.com Top 100 as a five star blue chip recruit and has made the ESPN 150 class for 2008. He is the number 2 pro-style quarterback overall in the country on Rivals as well. I’m sure the Rivals crew will keep their watchful eye on him in his senior season this fall to see where exactly he’ll actually pan out after his solid junior year at Parkway West High School in Ballwin, Missouri. Nebraska had already bagged another five star recruit in 6’6” 290 pound offensive lineman and hometown boy Baker Stienkuhler out of Lincoln Southwest in Lincoln, Nebraska. Of course, both are only solid verbal commits and nothing is set in stone until February. At this point, the Husker coaching staff are working on not only the best recruiting class in the program’s history, but one of the best in the country. Hopefully these are the type of players that will finally push Nebraska over the top in the next couple of seasons.

All this talk of recruiting doesn’t undercut the importance of this season and the next. The Huskers have a lot to prove this year and need to live up to the attention they are getting. Losing out to Missouri for the Big 12 North title this year will be an obvious step backwards. As I’ve said, they’ll have to do one of a few things this year to keep climbing the college football mountain. That is either beat USC at home or Texas on the road and beat Missouri in Columbia. Also on the docket of musts is winning at home against Texas A&M who is getting a bit of pub this pre-season and Oklahoma State who will bring a potent offense to Lincoln, but little defense. The trip down to Lawrence, Kansas to play the Jayhawks should not be overlooked either. With only 22 days left until the kickoff of the 2007 season it should be an interesting one at the least and a chance to move up the latter at best.