Nebraska vs Missouri Post Game Overreaction - A Leap Of Faith Edition!

by Jon Johnston on Oct 9, 2009 2:03 AM CDT in Nebraska Husker Football

It should have been obvious early on that this Nebraska - Missouri game was going to be a wild one. If the buckets of rain coming down on Faurot Field didn't convince you, the power going out before game time should have helped. For a while it was unclear whether or not the game would actually be played, but then the power came back on, restoring faith in the proper order of things. Not all was right, though as a brand new scoreboard and the play clocks went unused.

For three quarters, a fired up Missouri team held the Huskers to zero points. If you were sane, you gave up and went to bed. There was little reason to believe that the Huskers could come back. Other than the defense holding Missouri to 12 points, nothing went right.

Punting was a nightmare. On Alex Henery's first punt, he fielded a bad snap, barely getting it off while getting blasted by linebacker Sean Weatherspoon and giving Missouri good field position. Henery had to handle another bad snap on the second punt and on the third punt he had no choice but to throw it out of the back of the end zone, giving the Tigers a safety while saving a touchdown. Punt returns were more of the same. One punt hit a Nebraska player, resulting in a turnover. Niles Paul and Rex Burkhead both had problems fielding the ball.

The offense was non-existent. Quarterback Zac Lee couldn't find his receivers, at one point going 6-for-18. When he did, they had a helluva time holding on to a slick ball. The ground game wasn't any better as Roy Helu was held in check, gaining only 15 yards in the first half.

Things didn't get any better after the start of the second half. On the second play, Zac Lee mishandled a bad snap which Missouri recovered and ultimately converted into a field goal to stretch their lead to 12-0.

With 4:01 left in the third quarter, Nebraska had 578 yards punting and 252 total offensive yards.

If you were crazy, you stuck around, probably more for the sake of being a faithful fan than anything else. Perhaps that faith aided the Husker offense. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Lee found Niles Paul for a 56-yard touchdown, cutting the lead to 12-7. Before that play, Lee had gone 11-for-29, for a paltry 81 yards. Paul and fellow starter Menelik Holt had played so poorly they were benched for a whle in favor of Antonio Bell and Brandon Kinnie.

On Missouri's next possession, Ndamukong Suh lept up and snagged Blaine Gabbert's first interception of the season. Two players later, Lee again found Paul, who made a leaping grab while covered by two defenders, for an 11-yard touchdown, putting the Huskers ahead for good.

Gabbert threw his second interception on the next possession, with Dejon Gomes returning it inside the Missouri 10-yard line. Two plays later, Lee hit Mike McNeill all alone in the end zone. In a 3:22 span, Nebraska had scored three touchdowns. Lee would finish 14-for-33 for 158 yards and three touchdowns, making those of us who wondered if were time for Cody Green to take over the offense feel a little bit foolish.

A late drive and touchdown run by Roy Helu would result in the final score of 27-12.

The play of the defensive line was incredible. Suh was a monster, consistently blowing up counters and trap plays, pressuring the quarterback and running down backs past the line of scrimmage. If it wasn't him, it was Jared Crick picking up a sack, or Barry Turner and Pierre Allen putting pressure on Gabbert.

I can't remember the last time I felt such a swing in emotion. From family-waking profanity to family-waking shouts of glee, as the Huskers won a game in Columbia for the first time since 2001 and broke a road losing streak to Top 25 teams dating back to 1997.

For three quarters, it looked like heart break. In the final quarter, faith was restored, thanks to a quarterback most wanted replaced and a defense playing with the passion that Husker fans were looking for.

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waking up the kids

My boys had went to bed with about 7 minutes left in the third…..When NU scored for the first time I was screaming and yelling and jumping up and down….that awoke my oldest who returned to the living room just as Suh intercepted the pass and I was yelling again. This awoke the youngest who decided he had better see what was up. They watched the rest of the game and my poor attempt at dancing a jig after every big Husker play. Of course this morning they are a little crabby but…OH HELL IT IS WORTH IT!!!!!!!

by taflorom on Oct 9, 2009 7:37 AM CDT reply actions

Gritty QB comeback led by the defense, on the road, in poor weather has got put some confidence back in me. What can we do if we play like that all four quarters in good weather? If we are down by a TD or two in other games I’m still not going to give up hope because it’s damn sure possible we can do it.

by davereid on Oct 9, 2009 8:17 AM CDT reply actions

3 things

Woke up my roomate after all yelling and screaming… All of us that where saying put in Green should say I’m sorry… Blackshirts should be hell need to be awarded today

by huskermic on Oct 9, 2009 8:36 AM CDT via mobile reply actions

Defense

This game was won by defense. Finally, we are starting to look like a solid defensive team that can always give our offense the chance to win.

And I’ll be damned if it isn’t about time ESPN and other sports “experts” start getting Suh’s name right. They better start practicing..because if he plays like this all year he will be racking up awards. 1 forced fumble, 1 int (should have been 2), disrupting plays, smacked Gabbert around all night, and most importantly…he was seen chewing on Zac Lee’s ass when the team needed a leader to step up and do that.

And get off Zac Lee everytime something goes wrong. I’ll say it again…if we’d have put Green in late, who knows how the game would’ve turned out. Green is NOT ready to play unless we can afford points.

Now, it’s time to stay focused and take care of business in Lincoln. No time for a letdown against Tech.

GO BIG RED!

by Brian Speers on Oct 9, 2009 8:43 AM CDT reply actions

i don't think

it would have been a bad thing for Green to come in and run a series. I have no doubt that he’s not ready to run the entire offense, but at that point, it might have given time for Lee to settle down or get coached up for a bit. It’s not like Mizzou’s offense was on the field long enough between series for Lee to digest much about what was happening.

Everything worked out, though, and Lee made some plays. Good for him. Good for me. :)

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by Jon Johnston on Oct 9, 2009 11:38 AM CDT up reply actions

Or

it may have entirely ruined his confidence and sent him in a downward spiral for the rest of the season. I hate when fans 2nd guess the coaches for who they play…..they practice with them every day and know their strengths and weaknesses and knowledge of what is going on better then we ever will. We get a bunch of hype by recruiters and get to see them in mop up against a deflated 4 string and think they would do the same against the 1st string……I trust Bo to make the right decisions on personel. They may not always be right but I would guess they are alot more then most fans.

by taflorom on Oct 9, 2009 4:29 PM CDT up reply actions

I must disagree

Did anyone else see the dismal performance Lee put up in the first 3 quarters of play? There were a few dropped passes, but most attempts were either well behind or much to high for any possibility of catching the ball. After watching Lee throw in the first half, I continued to scream – RUN THE BALL and was amazed they tried to throw at all in the second half.

Green is the QB of the future and should be getting action now. This is 2 road games in which Lee was pathetic. (The only two games against a decent D as well)

Don’t get me wrong, I am giddy with excitement after last nights win, and maybe Lee grew up a lot in the 4th quarter (he did look relaxed, did he not?) but if he continues to struggle on the road, I don’t see the Huskers scoring massive points in the 4th quarter to win happening very often.

by VarangianGuard on Oct 9, 2009 9:02 AM CDT reply actions

Missou looked like they were biting on the run pretty hard...

so I don’t blame Watson too much on the play calling. And honestly, its a smart game plan against us. Make Lee win the game.

by meatybob on Oct 9, 2009 9:14 AM CDT up reply actions

Its very clear...

That the class of this offense is the offensive line. Zac Lee had absolutely all day, and while he didn’t exactly take advantage of that for the first 3 quarters, but when he came around in the 4th, the o-line gave Lee time and put the game away with that last drive with great run blocking. I’m glad for Cotton, for he was widely criticized for the o-line play last year, and now this unit is clearly the strength and the leaders of this offense. Well, except for the center and the long snapper, but blocking, very good.

And yes, I admit, I wanted Green in the 2nd half. And lets be frank, in the first 45 minutes, Lee again really struggled with making accurate throws even without pressure. He is kinda weird, he really doesn’t make mistakes (he did throw into double coverage for the 2nd td, but thats ok) and he is a good decision maker, but he really struggled throwing something as simple as a good 5 yd dump pass, rain or no rain. Usually, its the other way around with quarterbacks in college. Hopefully after that 5 min stretch in the 4th, something clicked and Lee has finally settled down and will continue making accurate throws down the field.

Again, O-line, good job!

PS. Gabbert is a beast and will be great in the future. I do not wish to see him again anytime soon.

by meatybob on Oct 9, 2009 9:12 AM CDT reply actions