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Nebraska Cornhuskers (corn)

Yes, the strength of the Huskers will, once again, be our defense. The Blackshirts feature legit first-team All-Americans at all three levels: DT Jared Crick, LB Lavonte David & CB Alfonzo Dennard. Our D Line in particular is not only talented, but (not joking) legit three deep.

We are relatively untried at LB, with our other two LBs having missed significant time last year; Compton missed about half the season with a foot injury and Fisher missed all of 2010 with a broken leg. Neither is expected to be a weak link, though, and we should have at the worst a serviceable LB corps.

The secondary will reload after losing five starters last year. Dennard is a legit lockdown corner, and Ciante Evans is the heir apparent to Prince Amukamara on the other side. I'm hearing all kinds of names to fill in at Safety, but we've been bringing in talented guys the past three years. There will be good, if not great, players out there. After watching Bo's defenses post Pass Efficiency rankings in the top three each of the last two years while playing in the pass-happy Big XII, I have zero worries about our secondary in the more run-friendly Big Ten.


On offense it's anyone's guess. We've fired our old Offensive Coordinator and promoted our RB Coach to OC. We also canned our WR coach and brought in a guy with a very odd resume, Rich Fisher. Allegedly we're going to run a hurry-up offense with similarities to Oregon's the past few years, but who knows if that's true.

We are for certain going to return to a run-focused offense. We have speed to burn all over the field. Of course, since we're in the Big Ten we can't possibly have "SEC speed," but we'll be fast. Martinez is a blur, all three of our incoming Freshman RBs are quite quick, we have fast WRs in Kinnie, Bell, Jean-Baptiste and Enunwa, and we even have a TE, Kyler Reed, that you had better put a DB on because he will run past any LB you've got, and that is not an exaggeration.

However, all that sunshine-pumping won't mean a thing if our O Line isn't solid, and this has been without question the worst unit on the field in the Pelini Era. We've been recruiting hosses for the line in the past couple of years, so we'll see if they pan out. If they do, we should have a competitive offense (fingers crossed). If they devolve into the same mess we've had the past three years, our DEF had better return some INTs for scores or we're going to be mired in single-digit scoring yet again.
 
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BB73;1969836; said:
Regardless of which division is stronger, Nebraska plays everybody except Illinois, Indiana, and Purdue this year. The B1G didn't do them any favors in the area of scheduling as a welcoming gift.

If anything... THAT is why they won't win their division. I really have a feeling the winner of the Iowa v Northwestern game will win that division. Both of those teams can lose to Nebraska and still win the division as I can see Nebraska losing at least 2 games in the conference.

But on the flip side... they probably have the best talent in that division, and that is why Nebraska is favored.
 
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Tell me about Iowa's defense. Is it a fearsome unit or are they just good? I can't get a logical answer out of Iowa Fan - they just tell me they're better than Nebraska and they'll kick our ass the next 20 years straight. :roll2:
 
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Piney;1969834; said:
That last sentence is the reason Nebraska is being picked to win their division. Their defense is not even close to being a scUM level defense. It is a TOP level defense. That alone should win them alot of games in the Big Ten, as long as their offense can get to 20+ points they should win most of their games.




Weaker of the two conferences? That can be up for debate as the only pushover is Minnesota. While there isn't another elite team, they have all the 2nd tier teams that should have good seasons this year, Michigan St, Northwestern & Iowa. While our division has Wisconsin, besides them and Ohio St, who else do you fear? Throw in the perception that Ohio State might struggle, the Leaders division is viewed by some as a one team division, where really we are a two team division.

I don't really fear them, but I would take State Penn and Illinois over Iowa and Northwestern.
 
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A more run friendly Big Ten? That's a common misconception as most Big Ten teams are spread variation teams with just Wisconsin being a mostly run oriented team. But having a good defense and special teams will win you a lot of games.
 
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knapplc;1969850; said:
Tell me about Iowa's defense. Is it a fearsome unit or are they just good? I can't get a logical answer out of Iowa Fan - they just tell me they're better than Nebraska and they'll kick our ass the next 20 years straight. :roll2:

Its very consistent, and quite good. They aren't going to be suffocating one game, then implode the next. Generally, I'd put them in the top 3 of the Big-10 for best defenses in the past decade (OSU being #1 and Wiscy being #2).

Here is their points allowed record as per ESPN for the past few years (Nebraska's is in parenthesis):

2010 - 221 (243)
2009 - 200 (146)
2008 - 169 (371)
2007 - 225 (455)
2006 - 269 (256)
2005 - 240 (252)
2004 - 211 (298)
2003 - 210 (188)
2002 - 256 (335)
 
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A look at the Huskers. Tony Gerdeman predicts them at 9-3, including a win over tOSU.

Ozone

...

Best Case
An 11-1 record in the regular season. Let's face it, the first thing the Big Ten did after it got off the phone with Nebraska following their invite was to devise a schedule that would make it impossible for the Cornhuskers to win a conference championship in their first attempt. Nebraska absolutely has enough talent to win each of their games, but tough matchups have a way of taking their toll on a team. Road games at Wisconsin, Penn State and Michigan, and home games against Ohio State, Michigan State and Iowa are all winnable, but it would be asking a lot for the Huskers to actually win each of those games.


Worst Case
A losing conference record. Those same games mentioned above could all be losses on the wrong type of day, and we're not even talking about a trip up to Minnesota or home to Northwestern. If we're really going to get down into the tanned-in dirt, then in the worst of worst case scenarios, any of the conference games could be losses. That's what happens when Purdue and Indiana aren't on your schedule. Welcome to the Big Ten.


Five Questions Looking For Answers
1. Can quarterback Taylor Martinez stay healthy and avoid prolonged periods of ineffectiveness.

2. Can running back Rex Burkhead hold off the freshmen tailbacks?

3. Will the offensive line come together in time?

4. Can this defense really be as good as people think it will be?

5. With zero experienced kickers or punters, how do the Huskers keep that from costing them a game?

Cont'd ...
 
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I've actually been able to watch practice three times in the last two days. Hit both the AM and PM two-a-days yesterday and a bit of this afternoon's practice.

Some things looked good, some looked bad. I don't think people are going to be tremendously surprised by what they see come game time. We are the Nebraska you think we are. Stout Defense, some skill on offense, some things that need to be worked on.

We'll see what happens come September. Nothing I saw makes me think we can't compete this year. Where that "ability to compete" takes us depends on heart as much as skill.

Two weeks until game time. Can't freakin' wait.
 
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Nebraska's Pelini 'hungrier' for conference title
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -- Nebraska is going into its first season in the Big Ten with a championship-or-bust mentality.

It's more desperation than bravado driving the 10th-ranked Cornhuskers, who haven't won a conference title since 1999 despite frequent statements from coach Bo Pelini that Nebraska is defined by championships.

So would anything less than a Rose Bowl trip be acceptable?

"I don't ever look at it being a success if you don't win a championship," Pelini said Monday. "That's our goal from the beginning. Is that to say you can have a good year and not win a conference championship? That depends on who you talk to. In this program, we're about winning championships. If we don't, and if you talk to the guys in the locker room, they wouldn't feel it's a success."

cont...
 
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MaxBuck;1977150; said:
Hmpf. If all it took were being hungry, Charlie Weis would not have lost a game at Notre Dame.

If conference titles were made to look and smell more like cheeseburgers, I think that would have done the trick. Alas, conference titles smell like blood, sweat, and tears. Not exactly what Charlie was looking for on the menu.
 
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Well, the game is over, and it made me more concerned than confident. Yes, the team scored 40 points. The Defense looked fine, very physical, playing fast.

The problem is still the offense. What the hell do we have to do to get a decent one?

Lots of sloppy play. A few big runs that turned into TDs. Martinez is NOT going to make it through a season running the option. Period.

We've got Fresno State next week. After watching that game, my concern turned into sheer terror - as Fresno is known as a school that can pull the upset (or give you a good scare).

I know it's the first game...but what I saw today is not going to convince me that we'll make it to a Big 10 championship game running that offense.

Hope to God that it was super vanilla today.
 
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