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Holgorsen N

Started this thread when I heard the news, but did not share my thoughts. My observations after a few days.

Matt Rhule's confidence has been shaken. That presser after the coaching changes raised some eyebrows. He is normally the most confident man in the room. He was anything but when he announced the changes. It appears he's grasping at straws.

With that being said, I like the hire. I am not going to complain all season about Satterfield's play calling and then complain when changes are made. It's an odd maneuver with only 3 games remaining, but finishing the season with 6 straight losses and another missed bowl opportunity would have been terrible for this program, and quite possible if Satt remained in place. It would have been nice to see the changes made during the first bye week after the offensive jug or knot put up 14 points against Rutgers, but better late than never.

Back to Holgorsen. The knock on him everywhere he went was recruiting. As far as his coaching prowess and play calling on the offensive side of the ball, the consensus opinion is that he got more with less. If he can throw in a few wrinkles this season to get that 6th win and a bowl invite, I'll be happy. The offense has become extremely predictable and stale under Satterfield. If DH can better showcase DR's talent, I'm all N...for now.
 
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Possible outcomes -
Our offense looks much better under DH. Wins the next 3 games and a bowl game. Holgorsen gets a lot of credit and a head coach gig for next year. Both DH and MS are gone.
Our offense looks slightly better. Wins one or two of the next 3 games. DH is OC here next year. MS is gone.
Our offense does not improve. Both DH and MS are gone.
with more attention from MS maybe the TE guys improve?
 
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Husker99 said:
Bottom line, I do not buy the notion that we can't run the ball because the rules have changed. We can run the ball, we just have a string of coaches who choose not to.
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Choose not to? Good running teams can consistently pick up 4-5 yards on first down and occassionally break it for a big gainer.

How many times have we started a new set of downs with a running play that...(cue drumroll)... got stuffed for a two yard loss? We haven't run worth squat this season--yet the problem is we haven't run enough??!? Sorry Husker99, I don't buy it.
 
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DrFumblerooski said:
Choose not to? Good running teams can consistently pick up 4-5 yards on first down and occassionally break it for a big gainer.

How many times have we started a new set of downs with a running play that...(cue drumroll)... got stuffed for a two yard loss? We haven't run worth squat this season--yet the problem is we haven't run enough??!? Sorry Husker99, I don't buy it.
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Straight up. We have no threat to break a long one in the backfield (I believe DR has the longest run from scrimmage this year) and more often than not running plays are somewhere between -2 to +2 yards per carry, with the occasional 8-yard burst that drives the home crowd mild. Our lack of a respectable running game has made freshman DR's job much more difficult this year.
 
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Part of our run game problem is Left Tackle. Gunnar may, and I hope will, become an excellent tackle. He's young and ain't there yet. Defenses generally play our left side straight up and we still are unable to move the opposing line. ..or stop the pass rush. Generally OL players really start to develop their Junior or Senior year. We really miss Corcoran and Prohaska.
Our tight ends aren't good blockers. I thought Boerkircher may have been our best at it but he seems to be relegated down the depth chart. I love Fidone's athleticism and speed, but he has yet to show me he can initiate contact.
We don't have a difference maker at RB. When was the last time you saw one of our RBs break a tackle, juke away from another and breakaway for 20 plus yards? I'm not expecting Barry Sanders (he could turn nothing into TDs like no one else) but there's no Ameer, Rex, or Roy on the roster.
 
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Jimbosc said:
Few thoughts. I thought Rhule should relieve Satterfield of play calling before the USC game. Didn't call for him to be fired - and I figured Rhule could decide how best to call plays himself or with the existing offensive coaches. Rhule did what I thought he should do - but he added the extra step of bringing in a very experienced offensive coach to run the offense. While it isn't what I expected I don't see how you can be too critical of it.
Of course if it blows up in our face the next 3 games.....well that's on Rhule.

Pretty clear the plan is to have DH be the OC next season. Bringing him now has the benefit of injecting him into the recruiting process ahead of impending dates in December for early signing and the portal opening.

This move is actually timed well - assuming the execution is good. Offensive needs to show a pulse in the next 3 games and we need to have a good recruiting cycle especially for the offense. If DH is gonzo after the season along with MS and we are scrambling to find an OC.....and recruiting suffers.....well Rhule probably took a big gamble that is going to cost him his job.
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Good post. The only thing I might add from my point of view is that while Matt would like to anoint Dana as OC it isn't a done deal. This might just be a trial period for Dana. If, God forbid, it turns in a cluster, Dana might be a hard sell. I personally don't expect that, but it might be good to remember that no multiyear contract has been written up yet.
 
I think that at least part of our run game woes is the result of our passing attack. And I personally believe that part of our anemic passing is due to its slow developing style. Get some timing down and I think defenses will have to back up some leaving more running lanes open. I was really hoping Thomas would get Dylan releasing the ball quicker. It isn't happening imo.
 
There are definitely a lot of unknowns, the one thing that was for certain was that change needed to be made. Hopefully a contract for 2025 (or beyond) has not been offered to DH yet and Rhule has told him he has the remainder of our games to "audition" for the job going forward. Would not go over well if he is locked in for the foreseeable future and we flounder these last few games.
 
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ATX_Husker said:
There are definitely a lot of unknowns, the one thing that was for certain was that change needed to be made. Hopefully a contract for 2025 (or beyond) has not been offered to DH yet and Rhule has told him he has the remainder of our games to "audition" for the job going forward. Would not go over well if he is locked in for the foreseeable future and we flounder these last few games.
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DH will have his pick of OC jobs
 
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DrFumblerooski said:
Agree, ATX. Opposing coaches were likely doing it behind-the-scenes, but when opposing players note in their post-game pressers that Nebraska's O "did want we expected," it shouts our predictability to the world.
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Ongoing problem in Lincoln. Post-game pressers with opposing players "we know exactly what they were going to do"... meanwhile in Lincoln, "They came out in a 4 man front and half our playbook was gone."

Two words
COACHING
 
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Hunchback Johnny said:
Straight up. We have no threat to break a long one in the backfield (I believe DR has the longest run from scrimmage this year) and more often than not running plays are somewhere between -2 to +2 yards per carry, with the occasional 8-yard burst that drives the home crowd mild. Our lack of a respectable running game has made freshman DR's job much more difficult this year.
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Not only do we not have anyone that is a threat to break a long one we also don't have anyone who can make someone miss at the line of scrimmage. We didn't have stellar offensive lines when Ameer and Rex were toting the ball but they repeatedly made guys miss and made the line look better than it was. A dude at RB is an essential pick up for the portal season.
 
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Removed Spleen of Jordan said:
Not only do we not have anyone that is a threat to break a long one we also don't have anyone who can make someone miss at the line of scrimmage. We didn't have stellar offensive lines when Ameer and Rex were toting the ball but they repeatedly made guys miss and made the line look better than it was. A dude at RB is an essential pick up for the portal season.
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People seem really excited about the RB we have in this class

2025 4* RB Jamarion Parker
 
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ATX_Husker said:
There are definitely a lot of unknowns, the one thing that was for certain was that change needed to be made. Hopefully a contract for 2025 (or beyond) has not been offered to DH yet and Rhule has told him he has the remainder of our games to "audition" for the job going forward. Would not go over well if he is locked in for the foreseeable future and we flounder these last few games.
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Not sure 3 games at the end of the season is a fair amount of time to judge but regardless MS will not be back call plays next year. We will definitely have a new play caller.
 
SUHnami said:
Not sure 3 games at the end of the season is a fair amount of time to judge but regardless MS will not be back call plays next year. We will definitely have a new play caller.
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Fair point.......4 weeks is a pretty short audition period. It would be very nice to add several weeks and one more game post season.

I also think we need to keep in mind the auditions are most likely multifaceted. Dana isn't the only one being evaluated. In fact, he may be doing some evaluations himself. The staff will most likely look different next year, but the rest of this season, and hopefully post season, will give us a snapshot of what Matt is thinking.
 
DrFumblerooski said:
Choose not to? Good running teams can consistently pick up 4-5 yards on first down and occassionally break it for a big gainer.

How many times have we started a new set of downs with a running play that...(cue drumroll)... got stuffed for a two yard loss? We haven't run worth squat this season--yet the problem is we haven't run enough??!? Sorry Husker99, I don't buy it.
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To your point, I don't think Donovan Riola really knows how to teach run blocking.

And you're right, Nebraska struggles with run blocking because their technique is often poor. Often when Nebraska tries to run block they're in the shotgun and the OL is in a 2 point stance (which is far more suitable for pass blocking).

Start running more out of the I, get OL in a 3 point stance, and then rep over and over again proper technique and hand placement. You'd see a 100% improvement in our run game.
 
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