My 2 cents

[iruletheskool]

Burkhead = Dan Alexander

FB playing RB. Good in north/south, not so good in east/west.

NO. this is the biggest fail in the history of the SportsHoopla.



no offense to ye, R_A but Burkhead is a great all around RB.

 

[jedburks]

I think saying the OL is bad because Bo moved Baker to D is a crock. I know that's just an example...just say they didn't do a great job of recruiting OL and be done with it. I'm sure lesson learned for Bo...look at the last few recruiting classes.

Barney flaps his mouth every year about all the depth we're going to have and he ends up playing 6 guys. I'm tired of being a Barney apologist. I've stuck up for him so many times citing his prior job performances (Iowa State OL), endorsements by former Huskers and coaches, comments from players. On and on it goes.

Time to say put the fuck up or shut up. Really, Bo has proven his worth time and again but what has Barneys room done? Right now the Best thing about Barney is his TE son.

Ok apparently I didn't convey my point well enough. The Baker example was about the offensive recruiting as a whole and the people that switched from offense to defense. Not just OL guys. I can't recall all of the players that switched because I don't follow recruiting enough. Wasn't Prince recruited as a WR? Now of course that worked out more than well but again just talking in general about the depth of recruiting on the offensive side. Yes Bo has changed that and the offensive recruiting has gotten much better over the last 2 years but that is why we are so young on the offensive side of the ball.

 

[iruletheskool]

and also to everyone..


I know it may look like an 8-9 win season is possible, but this team really is better than that. Once/if the offense can start clicking, we have a chance to have a 'special' team this year.

Our defense isn't going to look that shitty again, and we are in a good position to make a run


I agree tho that Wisky is more or less the hinge game of the year

 

[iruletheskool]

Ok apparently I didn't convey my point well enough. The Baker example was about the offensive recruiting as a whole and the people that switched from offense to defense. Not just OL guys. I can't recall all of the players that switched because I don't follow recruiting enough. Wasn't Prince recruited as a WR? Now of course that worked out more than well but again just talking in general about the depth of recruiting on the offensive side. Yes Bo has changed that and the offensive recruiting has gotten much better over the last 2 years but that is why we are so young on the offensive side of the ball.

Prince was labeled an RB out of high school, but I think the clownahans moved him anyway..


I agree with you jed, and understand your points.. there's just been a lot of Baker bashing going on in Huskerland, and it's a bit ridiculous


Not that I'm accusing you of it, just the comment sounded similar at first

 

[sandhill_husker]

Ok apparently I didn't convey my point well enough. The Baker example was about the offensive recruiting as a whole and the people that switched from offense to defense. Not just OL guys. I can't recall all of the players that switched because I don't follow recruiting enough. Wasn't Prince recruited as a WR? Now of course that worked out more than well but again just talking in general about the depth of recruiting on the offensive side. Yes Bo has changed that and the offensive recruiting has gotten much better over the last 2 years but that is why we are so young on the offensive side of the ball.

We can agree on some things.

here is your quote: "Most people blame Barney. WRONG!!!"

I was talking about the offensive line in particular and Baker alone is not going to save that group. Name one other offensive lineman that switched to D. What I'm saying is I'm sick of people apologizing for Barney.Stop it already. It's bullshit. Time for Barney to take some ownership. I've heard enough of my bullshit excuses about this and everyone else's too.

 

[jedburks]

I am not saying Barney is blameless but most people put all or even the majority of blame on him. I think that is bullshit. I will go back to the Solich example I gave earlier. I don't remember who the DL coach was at the time but no one bashed him for the thin DL at that time. All of the hate was on Solich for the lack of recruiting. Bo may be on the right track but that doesn't mean he is doing everything perfect and is blameless on things. Barney was handstrung by the previous OC and was handstrung by the lack of focus on OL recruiting. Doesn't mean he is blameless but not nearly to the degree some like you put on him.

 

[sandhill_husker]

Barney was handstrung by the previous OC and was handstrung by the lack of focus on OL recruiting. Doesn't mean he is blameless but not nearly to the degree some like you put on him.

I'm not sure about being hamstrung by Wats. Wouldn't claim to have that amount of insider info.

Lack of recruiting? Yes.

I'm not heaping all the blame on Barney, I'm just tired of making excuses for him to detractors. Nothing wrong with your posts really, it's just irritating me to see the same old excuses.

Tell you what, I'm going to officially shut up on this right now till the end of the season. At that point, I'll look up some numbers from other BCS conference teams, and how experienced their line was, maybe do some roster checks, and see what the numbers say. Then, and only then, I'll cast some stones or shower praise as needed.

 

[Brasky]

NO. this is the biggest fail in the history of the SportsHoopla.



no offense to ye, R_A but Burkhead is a great all around RB.

He can go outside, he just doesn't break 'em b/c he's not very fast.

 

[jedburks]

I'm not sure about being hamstrung by Wats. Wouldn't claim to have that amount of insider info.

Lack of recruiting? Yes.

I'm not heaping all the blame on Barney, I'm just tired of making excuses for him to detractors. Nothing wrong with your posts really, it's just irritating me to see the same old excuses.

Tell you what, I'm going to officially shut up on this right now till the end of the season. At that point, I'll look up some numbers from other BCS conference teams, and how experienced their line was, maybe do some roster checks, and see what the numbers say. Then, and only then, I'll cast some stones or shower praise as needed.

I know you said you would wait but here is a quick snap shot of some OLs from the top teams. I looked at the 2 deep and the number of letters each guy has.


Nebraska: 10 (Marcel Jones and Caputo have 6 of those letters)
Oklahoma: 12 (4 returning starters)
Alabama: 14 (4 returning starters)
LSU: 16 (4 returning)
Florida St: 9 (3 returning and 3 seniors and 1 junior)
Stanford: 14 (2 returning)
Wisconsin: 17 (3 returning)
A&M: 14
Oklahoma St: 7 (3 seniors and 2 juniors)
South Carolina: 8 (3 returning and 3 seniors and 1 junior)
Virginia Tech: 13 (4 returning)
Oregon: 10 (3 returning and 2 seniors and 2 juniors)
Ohio St: 10 (3 returning)

Since Nebraska is only starting one returning starter I would say that Nebraska has the youngest and/or least experienced OL in that group.

 

[Brasky]

Go figure Wiscy 17

 

[Brasky]

The question is if the talent can make up for the youth a little bit.

 

[it'sHuskers4me]

Barney's forte thus far was as the O-Coordinator Iowa State were he beat Nebraska using Osborne's playbook against the Nebraska WCO. He has two assistants this years with worse results than last year. Things gotta get better. Is there more of the new playbook yet to be unleashed?

 

[iruletheskool]

Much more to see out of our O and D playbooks..

 

[wearegettingthere]

Ok, this is going to be really long and may be worth more than 2 cents and could also be worth less than 2 cents. Probably the ladder.

No one is jumping off bridges. No one all of a sudden thinks this team is going to go 2-10. The voices of concern are more than justified. They are not panic voices just concerned. The only thing we have to look at and go off of is the 2 games. The best analogy I heard all week was the one about the boxer who fights lesser competition and constantly gets hit with a jab but is still able to knock out the inferior opponent but everyone puts the guy down because they know when he fights a challenger and gets caught with the jabs he is going to go down. The offense is too big play happy. Of course you want the big plays and you don't want them to be in the open field and tell them to fall down or go out of bounds just to not have the big plays but you have to have something to fall back on when the big play is not there. I classify a "big play" as a play that goes for 20+ yards. Last year we had 63 plays of 20 yards or more. In the games that we struggled in the most (Texas, Oklahoma, A&M, Kansas, Iowa St, South Dakota St, and second Washington game) we had 18 big plays. That is 2.5 a game. BTW, we only had ONE big play against SDSU, a 1-AA team!!!! In the other 7 games we had 45 big plays. That is 6.4 a game. We had nothing to fall back on last year when either Taylor was hurt or we played a tough defense. So far this year Nebraska has 802 total yards on 124 plays. 476 yards have come from 12 big plays. On average we need 8 yards on all 3rd down playsyear. Now we are averaging 10.7 yards on 3rd down plays but how long will that last? We are averaging 2.7 yards on all 2nd down plays. In the UTC game we had 22 2nd down plays. After the first 11 of those plays we had a total of 2 yards on 2nd down plays. In the Fresno St game we had 16 2nd down plays. In the first 9 of those 2nd down plays this is the yardage gained on those plays. 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0. For those bad at math, that is ONE total yard. We have had 57 plays gaining 2 yards or less. What does anyone see that we can fall back on? Can it completely change as the young players and new OC grow? Of course it can. Does everyone have complete and total faith that will happen with Taylor at QB?

Previous to Taylor getting hurt in the Missouri game Taylor was 59.6% of our offense. After the injury, Taylor was 51-7% of the offense. In the 4 loses, Taylor was 39.8% of the offense. So far this season, Taylor is 79.3% of the offense. Who is there to lean on if Taylor gets injured or shut down by a defense? Remember Texas and that vaunted SDSU defense was all before he got hurt. Taylor has played in 14 games. He has 21 fumbles in 2 seasons. That is by far and away the most by one player in the country.

Alot of people are bitching and moaning about the OL. For good reason but I have not heard anyone blame the real person that should be to blame. OWH Dirk Chaetlain blamed Billy C. What a crock of shit!!!!! Most people blame Barney. WRONG!!! I blame the guy that deserves the blame. Mark "Bo" F Pelini!!!! Blasphemy right? What was Bo brought here to do? Fix the defense. What was the main priority in recruiting? Fix the defense. Baker Steinkuhler was a great OL prospect but moved because Bo wanted the defensive line to be stronger. How much say does Barney have over who gets recruited? The defense is fixed and now they are jacking up the recruiting on the offensive side and that is obvious with all the skill position speed that is brand new over the last 2 years. This weekend we will be starting 3 current or former walk-ons. You can't predict injuries but there is no reason to be that thin on the OL. In Solich's last year, people were blasting him for only having like 2 DL on scholarship and that the depth over there was horrendous. Why are people not blasting Bo for his lack of focus on the offense? Defense may win championships but you still have to move the ball on offense and score points. This is why I did not want Bo or any other coach that had not been a head coach before. He is a GREAT assistant caoch but is not a CEO.

As for the defense, this is why I saw 9-3 at best for the regular season. Fisher is a big body but is a bigger version of Corey McKeon. Can't tackle and too slow. Secondary lost WAY TOO MUCH and is too young. Has great talent but is probably a year away.

Again, this is not meant to be "jump off the bridge" stuff but it is definitely something to be concerned about as the season progresses. Possibly even this weekend. On a positive note. We only have 6 penalties for 58 yards through 2 games. Last year through 2 games we had 16 penalties for 198 yards.

Enjoyed your post. I see you have less than 1500 posts since Jan 2010 while several others have 15,000-20,000. It's clear that quality still beats quantity.
I put myself on record that if we are not perennial National Championship contenders soon or if we have another performance like we had against Washington in the Holiday Bowl, we need to seriously consider hiring a new HC. I will never forget that Bo saved us from oblivion, but we need to take it to the next level. It's not clear if Bo is capable of taking us to the next level.

 

[Red_Alert]

NO. this is the biggest fail in the history of the SportsHoopla.



no offense to ye, R_A but Burkhead is a great all around RB.

Division I Bowl Subdivision College Football

*** 2011 NCAA FBS Rushing Statistics ***
(Complete through Saturday, September 10th)



.................................R U S H I N G

Rank Player G Car Net TD Avg Ydspgm
1. Ray Graham, Pittsburgh 2 57 322 6 5.65 161.00
2. Ronnie Hillman, San Diego St. 2 45 306 4 6.80 153.00
3. Vick Ballard, Mississippi St. 2 31 301 4 9.71 150.50
3. Taylor Martinez, Nebraska 2 34 301 5 8.85 150.50
5. David Wilson, Virginia Tech 2 42 300 3 7.14 150.00
6. Bernard Pierce, Temple 2 38 297 6 7.82 148.50
7. Marcus Lattimore, South Carolina 2 50 288 4 5.76 144.00
8. Javonti Greene, Eastern Mich. 2 36 266 1 7.39 133.00
9. Cyrus Gray, Texas A&M 1 21 132 2 6.29 132.00
10. Anthon Samuel, Bowling Green 2 33 263 2 7.97 131.50
11. Dominique Whaley, Oklahoma 1 18 131 4 7.28 131.00
12. Lyle McCombs, Connecticut 2 51 259 4 5.08 129.50
13. Robbie Rouse, Fresno St. 2 53 255 1 4.81 127.50
14. Andre Ellington, Clemson 2 40 254 1 6.35 127.00
15. Joseph Randle, Oklahoma St. 2 37 250 4 6.76 125.00
15. Robert Turbin, Utah St. 2 40 250 4 6.25 125.00
17. Isaiah Pead, Cincinnati 2 21 242 3 11.52 121.00
17. Zach Line, SMU 2 42 242 3 5.76 121.00
19. Branden Oliver, Buffalo 2 50 240 4 4.80 120.00
19. Terrance Ganaway, Baylor 1 24 120 1 5.00 120.00
21. Cierre Wood, Notre Dame 2 46 238 2 5.17 119.00
21. Lamar Miller, Miami (FL) 1 18 119 1 6.61 119.00
23. Bobby Rainey, Western Ky. 2 49 236 2 4.82 118.00
23. Eric Stephens, Texas Tech 1 21 118 2 5.62 118.00
25. Chris Polk, Washington 2 45 232 1 5.16 116.00
26. Dominique Sherrer, Eastern Mich. 2 30 231 2 7.70 115.50
27. Lennon Creer, Louisiana Tech 2 49 230 4 4.69 115.00
28. Denard Robinson, Michigan 1 16 108 1 6.75 108.00
29. James Sims, Kansas 2 45 214 3 4.76 107.00
30. Johnathan Franklin, UCLA 2 32 209 2 6.53 104.50
31. Michael Dyer, Auburn 2 32 207 4 6.47 103.50
32. John White, Utah 2 39 206 2 5.28 103.00
33. Kriss Proctor, Navy 2 38 199 3 5.24 99.50
33. Tauren Poole, Tennessee 2 45 199 1 4.42 99.50
35. Chris Rainey, Florida 2 27 198 2 7.33 99.00
35. Mike Ball, Nevada 1 14 99 0 7.07 99.00
37. Trent Steelman, Army 2 38 194 4 5.11 97.00
38. Jasmin Hopkins, Northern Ill. 2 27 185 1 6.85 92.50
39. Davin Meggett, Maryland 1 21 92 0 4.38 92.00
40. John Hubert, Kansas St. 1 17 91 0 5.35 91.00
41. Montee Ball, Wisconsin 2 28 181 5 6.46 90.50
41. Marcus Coker, Iowa 2 46 181 2 3.93 90.50
43. Kain Colter, Northwestern 2 38 180 4 4.74 90.00
44. Isaiah Crowell, Georgia 2 31 178 1 5.74 89.00
45. Donte Harden, Ohio 2 28 175 0 6.25 87.50
46. Andre Williams, Boston College 2 34 173 2 5.09 86.50
47. Isi Sofele, California 2 44 172 2 3.91 86.00
47. Tevin Drake, Western Mich. 1 10 86 0 8.60 86.00
49. Curtis Underwood, North Carolina St. 2 26 170 1 6.54 85.00
49. Christine Michael, Texas A&M 1 14 85 2 6.07 85.00


:confused2:

 

[NE1tm2nv]

I'm sure Trevor Robinson's having a blast at Notre Dame.

The main reason Trevor went to Notre Dame was because of academics. His cousin has a trailer next to ours at the lake. He is set to graduate early, very smart individual.

But choosing ND over NU is

 

[Red_Alert]

The main reason Trevor went to Notre Dame was because of academics. His cousin has a trailer next to ours at the lake. He is set to graduate early, very smart individual.

But choosing ND over NU is

Weis recruited him hard. Even showed up to his high school a couple times.

 

[NE1tm2nv]

So what does RRPP stand for?

ROCKIN' ROLL PIZZA PARTY it's a meal made for football

 

[Red_Alert]

ROCKIN' ROLL PIZZA PARTY it's a meal made for football

 

[NE1tm2nv]

What bothers me most about NU is the way we play at HOME. Over the last 2 years I think we play better in away games than we do at home. I don't know why that is, but it is what it is.
We used to have home field advantage. I don't know if we have that anymore.