- Thread starter
- #1
Brasky
Till We Can't Be Beat. WON'T. BE. BEAT.
- 48,515
- 1,291
- 173
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2010
- Location
- Lincoln
- Hoopla Cash
- $ 1,000.00
- Fav. Team #1
- Fav. Team #2
- Fav. Team #3
Running Game Wont Just Be Rex - Husker Football
"BRN's own Darren Carlson pointed out recently that Rex Burkhead's workload a year ago was second only to Lawrence Phillips all-time for a single season. Burkhead had 284 carries, just shy of the 286 by Phillips. The highly touted trio of Ameer Abdullah, Aaron Green, and Braylon Heard combined for a mere 91 carries. Look for that to change in 2012.
Abdullah, Green, and Heard were all true freshmen a year ago. So they came in with no experience in a collegiate game and limited practice time to learn a college offense. Neither of those things will be true in 2012. Anyone who's watched Nebraska in 2012 saw how important Burkhead was to the offense. Late in the season, there were signs that he was banged up from the workload. Look for the coaching staff to find more opportunities to get the underclassmen into games to give Rex a breather.
There will also be some new blood. Fullback Mike Marrow was recruited by Nick Saban to play at Alabama where he redshirted. He transferred to Eastern Michigan University and then followed his father to NU a year ago. He'll now have two years of eligibility and at 250 lbs. could contribute in short-yardage situations. If needed, the Huskers could also burn a redshirt on true freshman I-back Imani Cross.
The freshman campaigns by Abdullah, Green, and Heard shouldn't be seen as a ceiling for these players by any means. Recall that Scout.com rated Green a five-star player. Heard was a four-star recruit out of high school. Abdullah, while a three-star prospect, had offers from Alabama and USC, among others. A modest first year should hardly be seen as an indication that these can't be big-time players. Burkhead averaged fewer yards per carry as a freshman than Green or Heard. Look at him now. Roy Helu had fewer carries than Abdullah as a freshman and didn't score a touchdown. All three backs brought in last year managed to score. Abdullah also managed more carries and touchdowns than Cory Ross did as a freshman. There are other star backs from the past that produced less as freshman. Roger Craig had a mere 7 carries for 31 yards.
With added experience and practice time though, things can improve dramatically. Craig rushed for over 700 yards as a sophomore. Burkhead had over 900 and Helu had over 800. Ross had over 500. Those aren't modest increases, those are huge increases. And the production only went up from there as the players became upperclassmen. The fact is, we really haven't seen anything yet when it comes to the young trio. History says, we can still expect quite a lot."
"BRN's own Darren Carlson pointed out recently that Rex Burkhead's workload a year ago was second only to Lawrence Phillips all-time for a single season. Burkhead had 284 carries, just shy of the 286 by Phillips. The highly touted trio of Ameer Abdullah, Aaron Green, and Braylon Heard combined for a mere 91 carries. Look for that to change in 2012.
Abdullah, Green, and Heard were all true freshmen a year ago. So they came in with no experience in a collegiate game and limited practice time to learn a college offense. Neither of those things will be true in 2012. Anyone who's watched Nebraska in 2012 saw how important Burkhead was to the offense. Late in the season, there were signs that he was banged up from the workload. Look for the coaching staff to find more opportunities to get the underclassmen into games to give Rex a breather.
There will also be some new blood. Fullback Mike Marrow was recruited by Nick Saban to play at Alabama where he redshirted. He transferred to Eastern Michigan University and then followed his father to NU a year ago. He'll now have two years of eligibility and at 250 lbs. could contribute in short-yardage situations. If needed, the Huskers could also burn a redshirt on true freshman I-back Imani Cross.
The freshman campaigns by Abdullah, Green, and Heard shouldn't be seen as a ceiling for these players by any means. Recall that Scout.com rated Green a five-star player. Heard was a four-star recruit out of high school. Abdullah, while a three-star prospect, had offers from Alabama and USC, among others. A modest first year should hardly be seen as an indication that these can't be big-time players. Burkhead averaged fewer yards per carry as a freshman than Green or Heard. Look at him now. Roy Helu had fewer carries than Abdullah as a freshman and didn't score a touchdown. All three backs brought in last year managed to score. Abdullah also managed more carries and touchdowns than Cory Ross did as a freshman. There are other star backs from the past that produced less as freshman. Roger Craig had a mere 7 carries for 31 yards.
With added experience and practice time though, things can improve dramatically. Craig rushed for over 700 yards as a sophomore. Burkhead had over 900 and Helu had over 800. Ross had over 500. Those aren't modest increases, those are huge increases. And the production only went up from there as the players became upperclassmen. The fact is, we really haven't seen anything yet when it comes to the young trio. History says, we can still expect quite a lot."
