Sunday Morning Thoughts -- Post Maryland

[Doc Fumble]

SECOND HALF SHUT-OUT. While it was frustrating and worrisome to see the Blackshirts give up 23 points in the first half, they pitched a shut-out in the second. Coach Aurich's second half adjustments totally shutdown Maryland’s Offense in the second half.

FOURTH QUARTER DOMINANCE. One of the things I noticed this season is that all of the top college teams have SUCKED at times to one degree or another. This was our ‘suck’ game. But to have an ‘off’ day and still kick it into gear when needed in the fourth quarter (20-0) is the mark of a good team. FWIW, fourth quarter domination used to be the tried-and-true trademark of Nebraska football back-in-the 70s, 80s, and 90s.

THE OPENING ‘NOT REALLY' BLOCKED PUNT. Tell me, how in the hell was the penalty for running into the punter not overturned? Somebody please explain that to me. Am I supposed to believe there was no evidence that Charles got a piece of the punted ball—that traveled 23 yards??!?!? Good Grief!!!

GILMER. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a receiver as good as Gilmer. This was his second straight conference game with over 100 yards of receptions. Off the top of my head, I think I’d have to go back eight years to Stanley Morgan.

ANT. Yesterday was Colandrea’s first off game and yet he was STILL the difference maker with the way he managed the offense and made big plays with his legs. While his passing wasn’t as sharp as normal, it got better as the game wore on.

THE HURDLE. I’ve been blessed to see some incredible runs by Husker QBs over the years. Spectacular ones by Crouch, Frazier, Taylor Martinez, and Armstrong come immediately to mind. While yesterday's hurdle by AC10 might not be an all-time great, it sure was fun to see. AC10 might not have T-Magic's lightening speed but he makes up for it in moxie.

FLAG CITY. If somebody would’ve told me we’d set an all-time Husker record against Maryland, I would NOT have predicted it would be with 17 flags. While we definitely need to get more disciplined, I agree with Rhule—a bunch of them were total BULLSH*T. I guess it’s not impossible but rarely will you ever see a defense called for holding…on a QB run…on the opposite side of the field.

GAME MANAGEMENT. Yes, Gang, I’m going to rag on Rhule. WHY WHY WHY are we going for it on fourth down at mid-field??? I’m not against taking some calculated risks, but way too often Rhule has a testosterone rush and does some really stupid stuff. The smart play would’ve been to have Archie make a coffin kick inside the Maryland ten. And when we did risk a midfield turnover by going for it on fourth down, what the hell are we doing making a long roll-out pass that had no back-up options? And why are we making a final first half drive WITHOUT any timeouts left???

THIS IS NOT YOUR GRANDFATHER’S CFB. I wasn’t in BHF’s Shout box but I can imagine some of the grousing yesterday, especially in the first half. We all need to keep in mind that this is not the Old Days. Maryland is not an opponent like Kansas of yesteryear. Back in our Big Eight days, we were pretty much guaranteed four out of seven conference wins before the season started. Who the cupcakes were depended on that particular year, but those days of automatic, ‘chalk ‘em up’ conference wins are history. The B1G (and the SEC too) are like the NFL now—on any given Saturday you can get your butt beat if you’re not at your best. If you don’t believe me, ask Penn State. Or Michigan. Or Illinois.

NEXT UP: INDIANA. We’ve been living in national obscurity all year – Spring, Summer, Fall Camp, and our first five games. This coming week the national spotlight is going to shine on us as we play the defending national champs in their first real road test. Will we be up the challenge? We’ll see. But I’ll tell you one thing: I really like this team’s moxie! GO BIG RED!

What are your morning-after thoughts?

 

[Husker99]

Here is my .02 in no particular order:

* The Penalties. My gawd, so many penalties. Ironically, it sure looked like two different Maryland defenders at two different times hit Colandrea after he was out of bounds but there was no flag for either. I said in the chat that I think the only penalty we didn't get called for was for sideline interference.

* Play-Action Passes. The Nebraska offense needs to, especially on 1st down, use play-action more. The offense also needs to start throwing the ball downfield (8-15 yard range) to get the defense to back off. Right now, we're still throwing short passes and opposing defenses are basically crowding the line of scrimmage. The start throwing and it will help to open the running lanes.

* Short Of The Stick. Quite a few times in yesterday's game our receivers ran pass routes short of the 1st down marker and after they caught the ball were tackled before they could get the first down. I don't know if they're running the correct short routes based on the play call or if it is a lack of awareness, but we have to get better at running routes that go beyond the 1st down marker.

* Jamal Rule. No offense to Mozee, or Nelson, but Rule is our best RB and the offense is suffering without him. Now late in the game the RBs were more effective running the ball because Maryland was tired. But still, as Nebraska continues through B1G play, we have to get better production from the RBs, regardless of which of them is back there. Calling plays where we'r throwing the ball farther than 4 yards down the field would help to open those running lanes.

* The Option. The offense ran a couple speed options, no doubt to just put it on film to give Indiana one more thing to prepare for next Saturday.

* Rhule's Post Game Presser. I am a firm believer that, no matter how warranted, you never publicly criticize the zebras because they have a real tendency to "close ranks" and make it even more difficult for you in the remaining games. It kind of felt like Rhule was mad about the "Memorial Stadium being quiet" comments from Maryland HC Locksley and his comment about "shutting them up" was about as close to trash talk as I have ever heard him get. And, I don't know if it is a television trick, but in pretty much all our home games this year, far too often Memorial Stadium does seem unnervingly quiet, especially for a venue that holds 86,000+ fans.

* Facemask Calls. Why is it a penalty when a defender puts their hand on, or grabs, an offensive player's facemask but not a penalty when an offensive player puts his hand on a defensive player's facemask?

* Second Half Shutout. I have to say, Rob Aurich has made me a believer. Maryland came into this game with, what I can only imagine, were several new wrinkles and while that allowed the Terps to move the ball and score points, especially in the 1st Q, really from the 2nd Q on the Nebraska defense got better and better as the game went on, culminating in shutting out the Maryland offense in the 2nd half.

* Prior To The Season. Before the season started, I was chalking up the Indiana game as a guaranteed loss. Now, I actually think Nebraska has a 50/50 shot to win. The Hoosiers look like they have a tough run defense so it'll probably be tough sledding on the ground and they are very good when they get their rushing attack going. I'll say this: If Nebraska continues playing excellent run defense, not only do I think we'll beat Indiana, we could likely win going away like we did vs the Terps. Now, I don't want to get too cocky because there is definitely a possibility Nebraska loses to Indiana, but this game is not the slam dunk L it appeared to be prior to the season. Man, if Nebraaska can be 6-0 heading to Eugene, I think we, as Husker nation, will lose our minds.

* Colandrea Running. Someone needs to tell Colandrea to cut down on his running because if he keeps running like that... Well I'm not gonna say it because I don't want to jinx us, but yeah, less running is better for his health.

* Pick 6. Dwayne McDougle's pick six was one of the most beautiful plays I've seen in quite some time. He literally dropped into a zone anticipating where the Maryland QB was going to throw the ball and sure enough, right to him. That pick was great, but taking it to the endzone was *chef's kiss*.

* Learning. Here is something I have been noticing thus far with Nebraska's defense: Under Rob Aurich, they actually learn and adjust. What I mean is, if an opposing offense gashes the Blackshirts defense with a play, the next time the offense tries to run the play again, the defense shuts it down. This is such a welcome change from the Smilin' and Prodigal Son years when opposing offenses would burn out defense with the same damn play over, and over, and over, and over. For example, Wisconsin with the Jet Sweep, Iowa with the Outside Zone. It feels so damn good to see opponents try to go back to the same well multiple times and get nothing.

That's it, off the top of my head. On to Indiana.

 

[Uenth]

Chat was not as toxic as you might have expected it would be. No one questioned Rhule's paternity or anything like that. Even when we were down in the first quarter, I knew NU was going to win. I also felt like we weren't going to "like" how we won but we were going to win. I did amend that to not liking the first quarter play but otherwise it was a fun game go watch. I was surprised by how relatively mild the negative comments were in chat. Though the first quarter play was pretty troublesome and something that we can't do against most of our upcoming opponents and still expect to win the game.

It really was a fun game after we went ahead in the final seconds of the first quarter. fourth quarter, especially was fun. Adding all those points when the game was won was like the good ole days of Nebraska Football.

Yes, this team is still a work in progress but I liked what I saw, mostly, yesterday afternoon.

GO BIG RED!!!

 

[Doc Fumble]

I don't know if it is a television trick, but in pretty much all our home games this year, far too often Memorial Stadium does seem unnervingly quiet, especially for a venue that holds 86,000+ fans.

Yeah, I was disappointed in the crowd. That was definitely not one of our "A" games. Regarding Locksley's comment about Memorial Stadium--HuskerVision played them in the fourth quarter before a GET LOUD graphic. I thought that was pretty funny.

I have to say, Rob Aurich has made me a believer.

Me too!!!

Dwayne McDougle's pick six was one of the most beautiful plays I've seen in quite some time.

It was The Play of the Game. We were still behind, but the game was never in doubt after that.

Chat was not as toxic as you might have expected it would be.

I think everybody senses now that this season is different.

It really was a fun game after we went ahead in the final seconds of the first quarter. fourth quarter, especially was fun. Adding all those points when the game was won was like the good ole days of Nebraska Football.

Yep, as we heard in Rhule's presser: Fourth quarters are especially important to him. Like the "good ole days" that's when Nebraska always used to pound the rock down the other team's throat.

Speaking of the old days, did all of you catch our second touchdown formation? We were in the "I," baby!


Colandrea under center, Bonner at fullback, and Nelson at I-back. And FWIW, Nelson scored untouched.

 

[Pavlov's Dog]

Things were pretty loose (lose? heheh) in the Shoutbox as we quoted Seinfeld episodes about 50 times. Despite some early qualms about blowing the game, the defense forced some field goals in the Red Zone to keep it manageable early. Then we called on Uenth to help us out and she asked for a turnover and we immediately got one. Then she asked for some scoring drives and we got those too. That lull in the 3rd quarter? She disappeared for a little while and someone thought she was emptying the dishwasher. Anyway, she came back and we finished strong.
I think Maryland has some players (They are in the B1G), and they threw a few things at us early we weren't ready for and Aurich adjusted. Caleb Benning had that one play where he played heroball instead of solid D and it cost us. He'll learn. This game would have been much different with Dylan Raiola. This was AC's worst game for us and he still was the reason we won.
Sometimes when Rhule walks around he reminds me of a school cafeteria lunch lady and I try not to laugh.

 

[Righteous Red]

Great points Doc. Some of my takes:

* Championship teams have discipline. You can complain about poor calls, but disciplined teams don’t have false starts, offsides, illegal blocks, penalties away from the actual play,
personnel fouls, taunts, etc. Refs generally do their job, just don’t give them the opportunity to do their jobs. Our saving grace yesterday was that Maryland had a dozen penalties.

* Love the attitude of not folding and letting game get away, keep developing that winning mindset.

* Love our TD pass to TE. Many teams discount TE on short quick passes to a wide open TE. I don’t know why we don’t do it more often. That was good to see.

* Still discouraged that half of our rushing yds came from our RB’s and the other half from
AC.

* We tend to be stagnant offensively in the third QTR.

* I like how our D got their $h1T together in the 2nd half, that was the real story line for the game.

* Surprised by some teams in B1G that are surprising: Northwestern, in their only loss, they gave Indiana all they want, they stomped Colorado, likewise Penn St rushing for over 400 yds, also surprised by Penn St for being so overrated, surprised by Minnesota having wins over Michigan and Washington, and surprised by Michigan and Washington not playing up to expectations, I imagine that those Michigan fans have buyers remorse with their new coach.

All in all it was a win yesterday that should give us confidence going forward.

 

[Doc Fumble]

Despite some early qualms about blowing the game, the defense forced some field goals in the Red Zone to keep it manageable early. Then we called on Uenth to help us out and she asked for a turnover and we immediately got one. Then she asked for some scoring drives and we got those too. That lull in the 3rd quarter? She disappeared for a little while and someone thought she was emptying the dishwasher. Anyway, she came back and we finished strong.

Clearly, the BHF Shoutbox still has things to fix. As Righteous Red said, Championship teams have discipline.

Surprised by some teams in B1G that are surprising...

Before the season, which Scaredy Cats among us would've rather seen Northwestern and UCLA on our schedule replacing Illinois and Washington? Just goes to show, you never know.

 

[Uenth]

Things were pretty loose (lose? heheh) in the Shoutbox as we quoted Seinfeld episodes about 50 times. Despite some early qualms about blowing the game, the defense forced some field goals in the Red Zone to keep it manageable early. Then we called on Uenth to help us out and she asked for a turnover and we immediately got one. Then she asked for some scoring drives and we got those too. That lull in the 3rd quarter? She disappeared for a little while and someone thought she was emptying the dishwasher. Anyway, she came back and we finished strong.
I think Maryland has some players (They are in the B1G), and they threw a few things at us early we weren't ready for and Aurich adjusted. Caleb Benning had that one play where he played heroball instead of solid D and it cost us. He'll learn. This game would have been much different with Dylan Raiola. This was AC's worst game for us and he still was the reason we won.
Sometimes when Rhule walks around he reminds me of a school cafeteria lunch lady and I try not to laugh.

Ya know PD, you're putting a lot of pressure on me to bring home the "W's" week after week after week. Mighty big shoes to fill, but I'll try my hardest not to disappoint. Bring on Indiana - it's about to get real for the rest of the season. Every game will probably be a struggle at some point and all wins will pretty hard fought, at least that's how I call it.
Oh yeah, and thanks for the reminder that I misspelled lose in Chat yesterday. Used to be one of hub's pet peeves, when posting back on HuskerPedia back in the day. About 30 minutes after posting that, I misspelled losing in Chat and H99 popped me on it, in a joking fashion. Just amused her endlessly that I effed that one up. It was funny to me as I had gone back and forth on the spelling because neither one looked right at that moment in time. Why I try not to be the spelling cop. It just never ends well.

 

[Uenth]

Clearly, the BHF Shoutbox still has things to fix. As Righteous Red said, Championship teams have discipline.
Before the season, which Scaredy Cats among us would've rather seen Northwestern and UCLA on our schedule replacing Illinois and Washington? Just goes to show, you never know.

Et tu brutus, er I mean Fumble?

 

[Doc Fumble]

Et tu brutus, er I mean Fumble?

I'm not a Shoutbox Captain. Sure sounded to me like YOU were a third quarter no-show. We need four quarters consistency, Uenth. We have faith in you--you can do it!!!

 

[Uenth]

I'm not a Shoutbox Captain. Sure sounded to me like YOU were a third quarter no-show. We need four quarters consistency, Uenth. We have faith in you--you can do it!!!

10 lousy minutes I was gone. 10 lousy minutes and NO ONE ELSE could step up to the plate, Okay fine, put more pressure on me. That's just fine, Fumble. I have broad enough shoulders I guess. LO freakin' L!

 

[redfred]

I'll start with penalties......Yes, we need to clean up some things. Some things are straight forward (false start, illegal formation etc) but some things are subjective and for a coach staff to fix these things the officiating needs to be consistent and clear. To have some things called by some crews and not others is a moving target that makes it hard to correct or change.

The other thing that concerns me is that the reviewing crew is a part of the officiating crew on the field (please correct me if I'm wrong). If I'm correct, I think it would be much more unbiased to have a separate reviewing crew held to their own accountability of calls on the field that they review.

This Jim Wharrie crew (yes, the same crew that found the extra second on the secret clock in the Michigan game) seems to have its own set of standards on more subjective calls. I have said for some time the BIG needs to get hold of the officiating. Yes, I know there are multiple crews (10 if memory serves) and oversight of this many crews is a major undertaking. But if the BIG wants to be taken seriously this is a major need in this conference.

I said that I would start with penalties, but I guess I'll end with penalties as well. I've run out of time for now.

 

[redfred]

View attachment 9945


THE OPENING ‘NOT REALLY' BLOCKED PUNT. Tell me, how in the hell was the penalty for running into the punter not overturned? Somebody please explain that to me. Am I supposed to believe there was no evidence that Charles got a piece of the punted ball—that traveled 23 yards??!?!? Good Grief!!!



What are your morning-after thoughts?

I agree 100%. All this talk about trajectory. The trajectory changed the moment it came off of his foot and the ball was touched. The evidence.....it went a measly 24 yards.

 

[Doc Fumble]

I agree 100%. All this talk about trajectory. The trajectory changed the moment it came off of his foot and the ball was touched. The evidence.....it went a measly 24 yards.

THANK YOU, redfred!!!

I didn't hear what the TV announcers had to say, but goodness gracious, it was COMMON SENSE.

How the hell did the punt only travel 24 yards if it WASN'T partially blocked??!!? It was one of THE STUPIDEST initial calls -- and an EVEN STUPIDER REVIEW -- in officiating history.

I have no doubt this call is what initially set Coach Rhule off yesterday. Not only what it painfully obvious the refs got it wrong, having it upheld dramatically changed the first half's Mojo.

 

[Uenth]

THANK YOU, redfred!!!

I didn't hear what the TV announcers had to say, but goodness gracious, it was COMMON SENSE.

How the hell did the punt only travel 24 yards if it WASN'T partially blocked??!!? It was one of THE STUPIDEST initial calls -- and an EVEN STUPIDER REVIEW -- in officiating history.

I have no doubt this call is what initially set Coach Rhule off yesterday. Not only what it painfully obvious the refs got it wrong, having it upheld dramatically changed the first half's Mojo.

Yup. It is a testament to the team and staff that they were able to "shake it off" and come back to win the game, pretty damn decisively.

 

[Jimbosc]

I watched that first punt replay closely. The ball did not change trajectory as it came off his foot and past the Nebraska's players hands. That doesn't mean he didn't get a piece - just that slo mo didn't clearly show it. The flight of the ball seemed to indicated it was partially blocked but it wasn't called on the field as a block (so we got the penalty) and the replay didn't clearly show the ball being touched by Nebraska. I get the frustration on the call - but honestly I thought replay got it right given what the slo mo showed.

Rule did try to warm up and decided not to go - so I think he's close and could be available for Indiana. Which would be huge if we have him anywhere close to 100%

 

[valiantsailor]

View attachment 9945

SECOND HALF SHUT-OUT. While it was frustrating and worrisome to see the Blackshirts give up 23 points in the first half, they pitched a shut-out in the second. Coach Aurich's second half adjustments totally shutdown Maryland’s Offense in the second half.

FOURTH QUARTER DOMINANCE. One of the things I noticed this season is that all of the top college teams have SUCKED at times to one degree or another. This was our ‘suck’ game. But to have an ‘off’ day and still kick it into gear when needed in the fourth quarter (20-0) is the mark of a good team. FWIW, fourth quarter domination used to be the tried-and-true trademark of Nebraska football back-in-the 70s, 80s, and 90s.

THE OPENING ‘NOT REALLY' BLOCKED PUNT. Tell me, how in the hell was the penalty for running into the punter not overturned? Somebody please explain that to me. Am I supposed to believe there was no evidence that Charles got a piece of the punted ball—that traveled 23 yards??!?!? Good Grief!!!

GILMER. It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a receiver as good as Gilmer. This was his second straight conference game with over 100 yards of receptions. Off the top of my head, I think I’d have to go back eight years to Stanley Morgan.

ANT. Yesterday was Colandrea’s first off game and yet he was STILL the difference maker with the way he managed the offense and made big plays with his legs. While his passing wasn’t as sharp as normal, it got better as the game wore on.

THE HURDLE. I’ve been blessed to see some incredible runs by Husker QBs over the years. Spectacular ones by Crouch, Frazier, Taylor Martinez, and Armstrong come immediately to mind. While yesterday's hurdle by AC10 might not be an all-time great, it sure was fun to see. AC10 might not have T-Magic's lightening speed but he makes up for it in moxie.

FLAG CITY. If somebody would’ve told me we’d set an all-time Husker record against Maryland, I would NOT have predicted it would be with 17 flags. While we definitely need to get more disciplined, I agree with Rhule—a bunch of them were total BULLSH*T. I guess it’s not impossible but rarely will you ever see a defense called for holding…on a QB run…on the opposite side of the field.

GAME MANAGEMENT. Yes, Gang, I’m going to rag on Rhule. WHY WHY WHY are we going for it on fourth down at mid-field??? I’m not against taking some calculated risks, but way too often Rhule has a testosterone rush and does some really stupid stuff. The smart play would’ve been to have Archie make a coffin kick inside the Maryland ten. And when we did risk a midfield turnover by going for it on fourth down, what the hell are we doing making a long roll-out pass that had no back-up options? And why are we making a final first half drive WITHOUT any timeouts left???

THIS IS NOT YOUR GRANDFATHER’S CFB. I wasn’t in BHF’s Shout box but I can imagine some of the grousing yesterday, especially in the first half. We all need to keep in mind that this is not the Old Days. Maryland is not an opponent like Kansas of yesteryear. Back in our Big Eight days, we were pretty much guaranteed four out of seven conference wins before the season started. Who the cupcakes were depended on that particular year, but those days of automatic, ‘chalk ‘em up’ conference wins are history. The B1G (and the SEC too) are like the NFL now—on any given Saturday you can get your butt beat if you’re not at your best. If you don’t believe me, ask Penn State. Or Michigan. Or Illinois.

NEXT UP: INDIANA. We’ve been living in national obscurity all year – Spring, Summer, Fall Camp, and our first five games. This coming week the national spotlight is going to shine on us as we play the defending national champs in their first real road test. Will we be up the challenge? We’ll see. But I’ll tell you one thing: I really like this team’s moxie! GO BIG RED!

What are your morning-after thoughts?

Oh man, Rhule is not helpful on the sidelines...He should be in the booth and keep his mouth closed. Going for it??? Golly, I wouldnt even question it, make them go at least 80 yds and not give them a gift at the 50. Everytime hes been involved, he screws the pooch

 

[KansasRed]

My short take: we came out flat and got punched in the mouth. The positive of that is that some of our past teams would have folded at that point; this one didn't. A kinda ugly win (first half anyway) but a good win nonetheless. Gooo Biiig Reeeed!

 

[MadRat]

This Jim Wharrie crew (yes, the same crew that found the extra second on the secret clock in the Michigan game) seems to have its own set of standards on more subjective calls. I have said for some time the BIG needs to get hold of the officiating. Yes, I know there are multiple crews (10 if memory serves) and oversight of this many crews is a major undertaking. But if the BIG wants to be taken seriously this is a major need in this conference.

They were looking at a defensive hold angle and in plain view the Maryland OT drags our DE down to the ground by his facemask. The reason is simple because the head coach from Maryland says ignorant crap under his breath to them. Their head coach is such a class-less act it drags the B1G quality down. There were fewer plays without holds when Maryland had the ball, than clean plays. Constant late hits and pushes. Just plain low class behavior. But its so blatant they let it go or Locksley calls them biased. So much fatigue that I wouldn't want to feed his ego. His homogenous group of players does not make me wonder whom has the real bias, because there is plenty of players of all backgrounds to recruit. Why are they even in the B1G? The guy is an abomination to the brand.

 

[Pavlov's Dog]

Speaking of announcers... The one said our streak of sellouts was about 330 or so. When informed the actual number he said that's like 50 more.
You come to announce a game at Memorial Stadium you should know about the streak. Do your homework.
As for the game, they added nothing with their broadcast. 1 out of 10 rating.