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Sign up for our email list to be notified when we update the HF Blog. November 28th, 2009
Colorado game reaction and looking ahead
Nebraska did what they needed to do to get a win in Boulder. Beyond that, there's plenty of room for improvement in what Bo Pelini called possibly the worst effort of the season.
Other than special teams play, led by Niles Paul's punt return for a touchdown and Alex Henery's continued punting prowess, NU didn't dominate the game like we expected. Colorado was able to move the ball against our defense to the tune of 403 yards. The Huskers struggled offensively at times again, racking up only 217 total yards and going 3 for 10 in third down conversions.
Rex Burkhead led the Huskers in rushing with 100 yards on 18 carries. Roy Helu didn't see much action in the second half but finished with 58 yards on 14 carries.
Defensively, the Blackshirts allowed too many big plays to the Buffaloes, including a 56-yard touchdown pass to end the game. Granted that score only mattered if you had money on the game. Earlier, the Buffs gouged the Huskers for a 58-yard pass completion. This is worrisome for Husker fans heading into the Texas game whose offense lives for the big play. Could it be that NU was looking forward just a bit even though Pelini wouldn't allow anyone to discuss Texas this past week? Let's hope so. Otherwise it could be a long day for the Big Red at Jerry World.
Watching Texas and Texas A&M proved that the Longhorns do have some holes defensively. What the game also showed is that offensively the Longhorns have the firepower to outscore any opponent.
Jessie Palmer of ESPN (former Florida quarterback and The Bachelor) thinks NU has a "pretty good" chance at knocking off Texas in the Big 12 Championship. Palmer bases this on the Husker defense being second best in the Big 12, behind Texas. He points to the Blackshirts keeping Oklahoma out of the end zone, a feat which hadn't happened for over 10 years. For Palmer to be right, NU must find a way to contain the big play threat of Jordan Shipley. The Husker defense can't forget about Colt McCoy either. He's a good runner when flushed out of the pocket, even though his rushing numbers are way down from last season. NU has struggled at times this season with mobile quarterbacks (see Tyrod Taylor, Steven Sheffield, and Todd Reesing) so they must do a better job of getting pressure on the QB but not letting him escape for 20-yard scampers.
Offensively, the Huskers must find a way to effectively run the ball against the Texas defense. If we can't run the ball, it will be a long night for the Husker Faithful. Going back to the Texas-Texas A&M game, the Aggies successfully moved the ball against the Longhorns with a combination of skilled passing and an effective run game. Their quarterback is more mobile than Zac Lee (similar to Cody Green in that respect) and showed more precision than either Lee or Green has this year.
What NU wants in the Big 12 Championship is a low scoring game. That means the Blackshirts largely containing the Longhorn offense and a good ground game for NU that keeps the Texas offense off the field as much as possible. Season-to-date we've seem glimpses of what this team can accomplish. Maybe this will be the game where the Huskers put it all together. Weirder things have happened in the Big 12 Championship game.
Check back the week following the big game for game photos from Husker Faithful.
Comments (1)
Posted by Ryan Blase
On the Buffaloes final touchdown I have a slightly different take on the play. It may have only mattered to some people if they had money on the game, but to me it matters a ton. It matters for many reasons. First, it seems to me that it sends a message that the eleven players on the field at that time did not care about the final 2 seconds of the football game. It also sends a message that those eleven players do not pride themselves in being one of the best defenses in the country in the category of points allowed. Take a little pride and make sure Colorado does not score even if the TD seems meaningless. It should mean a heckuva lot more to the players who are out there who want to send a message of, \We are going to keep you out of the end zone regardless of the point differential or the time remaining in the game.\Second, it sends a message that our players have not learned to play with mental toughness and a determined focus on every play. This same type of play cost Nebraska a \W\ against Virginia Tech. It was the same lack of mental focus, and void of safety help, that allowed Colorado to score on the final play. This is why Bo was pissed at that final play. It is inexcusable and should never happen. It should matter big time, to the players, if someone scores on the final play of the game whether you are up by 50 or up by 5. I, for one, was extremely disappointed on the effort on the final play. Heck, if we are going to have that porous of a defense on the final play of a game we may as well tell our eleven guys to not even go out on the field and let Colorado have an uncontested shot at the end zone.Mental focus, to me, has been the killer all season for this team. Mental focus is what has caused the 9-3 record rather than an 11-1 season mark. The lack of mental focus in the final minute at Virginia Tech and the entire game offensively, when it comes to basic fundamentals such as securing the football, against Iowa State kept this team from being two wins better. Also, the Kansas, Kansas State, and Colorado games showed lapses in mental focus. Against Kansas, Nebraska had a 10-0 lead and was in complete control of the game. Then, Nebraska went soft and allowed Kansas to march 80 yards down field and score a TD and then get the ball back and tie the score up before half. Similarly, against Colorado last Friday, Nebraska had a 14-0 lead on Colorado and was just provided great field position on an interception by Dejon Gomes. At the point, I believe Colorado had only a few first downs. Instead of ending the game by breaking the will of the Buffaloes with a TD drive, Nebraska stalled and missed a FG. Then, Nebraska allowed Colorado to march right downfield and score to make it 14-7. This was a ten to fourteen point swing that instead of ending the game allowed Colorado to get right back in. Finally, against Kansas State, Nebraska opened up a 17-3 lead in the first two minutes of the third quarter. Time and time again, the Blackshirts would turn away the Wildcats only for the offense to go three and out. It is pitiful sometimes how this team lacks the mental focus and killer instinct it takes to put teams away. Rather, they let teams hang around.If this lack of mental focus happens for only a few series against Texas the game is over. If we have the type of mental breakdowns we had over the course of the season fumbles in red zone, killer false start and holding penalties, 3 and out possessions all over the place, and lapses in simple defensive assignments - such as safety help on deep routes Texas will not squander the opportunities as other opponents have this season. It will take 100 percent mental focus and toughness on every play, along with a few mistakes by Texas, to be in a position to win it in the fourth quarter Just my two cents.
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