Where I Come From: Expectations for the 2010 Season
by Jon Johnston on Jul 12, 2010 11:58 AM CDT
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How much faith do you put in the last game of the 2009 season? How much better can the offense be in 2010? How many games will Nebraska win, and where will we end up?
Husker Mike:
As the preseason predictions started to come in, I started to wonder just what the heck these college football pundits were smoking as the Huskers started to show up in top ten ratings. Phil Steele really grabbed my attention by putting Dear 'Ol Nebraska U at #5. So finally I went and started to look at this season a little closer. And suddenly I started to see what the prognosticators are looking at.
Western Kentucky? 20 game losing streak. Idaho? Well, they jumped up and improved from 2 wins to 8 last year...but they're still a WAC team. Washington? Lost 7 games last year. South Dakota State? Last time they played a game in Nebraska, they lost 34-17 to UNO in 2003.
The Missouri game is in Lincoln. Kansas has a new football coach. Colorado doesn't have a new football coach. Neither does Texas A&M. Oklahoma State has a new quarterback and a new offensive coordinator. Texas doesn't have Colt McCoy...and this game is in Lincoln. (And we remember what happened the last time Nebraska faced Texas...)
Do you see a game that Nebraska can't win? Nope. Do you even see a game that Nebraska won't be favored to win? Not sure I even see that.
Suddenly, those high rankings start making sense. If you put your faith in how Nebraska finished last season, starting with the Oklahoma game, you see a team that could go 12-0 in the regular season schedule. It's been a while since Husker fans have been able to say that.
But I also remember what happened against Texas Tech and Iowa State. Just because Nebraska LOOKS like they'll be favored to win those games, there's no assurance they WILL win those games. If the injury bugs smites the Big Red, all bets are off.
I think there's an excellent shot that this Husker squad wins the North and heads back to Jerry World...and if I had to guess, they'll probably face up against Oklahoma. If Oklahoma is as good as I think they'll be again this season, I think Nebraska stands an excellent chance of playing in Glendale. Probably on New Years Day in the Fiesta Bowl...but if all the cards fall correctly, maybe it's a week later.
And ohhhhhhh, won't THAT be fun!
Jon Johnston
As a guy who's been a consultant for over 20 years, and done my share of project management, I know that one of the secrets to success is to set expectations low and deliver high. That philosophy translates to the rest of my life and it's why I typically try to stay a somewhat cynical about Nebraska football until the season actually begins.
Having said that, it's hard not to get excited about what's coming. Like Mike said, if you look at the schedule, there isn't an opponent that Nebraska can't beat.
There are some dangerous opponents. Washington will be a tougher game than most expect. Texas will have the best defense the Huskers face all season - it will be difficult scoring against them and that's why they'll continue to be a contender as they rebuild their offense in 2010. Missouri's offense should be pretty good, and it's a good thing Nebraska gets them in Lincoln. Texas A&M's offense should be pretty good, and that game will be dangerous. If the Huskers are undefeated at that point, it'll require some excellent coaching by Bo Pelini to keep their minds even and focused on each game rather than believing whatever press they'll be getting at that point.
The offense must be better if we're going to have a great season. I'll believe the defense is better than last season when I see it - not before, so we will need to score points to win some of our games, particularly Washington, Texas, and Texas A&M.
I would be amazed if Nebraska doesn't win the Big 12 North. I don't think it's an absolute certainty, but the Huskers are the most complete team and the schedule is relatively easy. That puts us into the last Big 12 Championship game, probably against Oklahoma. Winning that will be a toss up.
Win it, and Nebraska should make the national title game. Lose it, and I'm still willing to bet the Huskers will be in a BCS bowl.
So - bottom line - what's my expectations for 2010? Big 12 North champs, Big 12 champs, and BCS bowl game.
I guess I didn't set them very low, did I?
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Beat Texas, win Big 12 title
Everything else would be gravy!
So I tried the Barbasol and Rotel dip and I was very dissapointed!
Agree across the board
Hey, we’re Nebraska, we’re supposed to have high expectations, that’s half the fun!
Twitter: awolfson0
My Husker fandom really began in 1998
Age 9. Great timing, I know. Anyway, our little dark age is all that I really know as a Husker fan, so I’m probably a bit more cynical than most.
Anyway, after this season, I think we’ll know how good Pelini is at keeping players motivated and focused. I see a large number of games that could spell trouble. I should preface this by saying that Nebraska should be head and shoulders better than everyone else on our schedule with the exception of Bevo.
Tossup:
@Texas A&M: I view this as our most dangerous game. Jerrod Johnson and that A&M offense in College Station. They hung 39 (should’ve been more) on UT last year. Anyone think our offense can score that many if the Blackshirts struggle?
Games that lean Nebraska:
@ Washington: We’re the better team, but crazy things can happen in a wild stadium with a potent offense on the other side (how many top 10 teams have lost in Lubbock?).
vs. Texas: They’ll be every bit as good as us, but somehow, I don’t see them coming into Lincoln, off of the Red River Rivalry, into our biggest game of the season, and beating us. Nebraska has a HUGE intangible edge in this one. Of course it is quite obvious they’ve sold their souls to the devil in exchange for ripping the Huskers hearts out time and again, so you never know.
Likely Nebraska wins:
K-State/Okie State: Same story for both, considerably inferior teams playing at home against the Huskers and could very well benefit from playing Nebraska immediately before and after its biggest game of the (regular) season.
Missouri: Solid team, but in Lincoln. Additionally, if there’s one thing the Pelinis have learned in the past 2 years, its how to kill the spread. Mizzou’s over-reliance on Gabbert throwing downgrades them from lean to likely.
Colorado: Probably the worst team in the conference in Lincoln, but I don’t care. It’s fricking Colorado and if they ever manage to play a whole season like they play the Huskers, they’d easily have a 9 or 10 win season. Nebraska should still role, but I never count CU as a shoo-in win.
Solid Husker wins:
ISU, Idaho, Kansas.
Guarantees:
WKU, SDSU
I would say the Big 12 title game is a tossup, as is the bowl game.
Between all of that, I’m thinking Nebraska loses 2 regular season games, and then splits the Big 12 title and the bowl game for a final record of 11-3.
If we do that, I’d be a tad disappointed, however even under Pelini, this team has shown the ability to not only play with anyone, but also lose to almost anyone. Should be a fun season though. Can’t wait.
"My hardest job is to convince the people of Nebraska that 10-1 is not a losing season." - Tom Osborne
I agree with you on A&M
Veteran, mobile QB. Maybe best tandem of RBs in the conference. They will be able to move the ball on us and score well into the twenties. The offense needs to be hitting on all cylinders that game.
GO BIG RED!
I’d be happy with a 1-13 season, as long as the one win comes on 10/16/10. A date I have circled, stared, highlighted, and basically burned a whole in on my calendar since December.
I’m not sold that the D will be better then last year, there are some pretty big Suhoes to fill. I am convinced the O will be a lot better. Although, I don’t think it could get much worse…. If we can, say, limit it to just 7 turnovers vs ISU, we should be able to win that game.
Seriously, I’m loving this season. We have the team and schedule to go undefeated. Our offense WILL be better, and a Defense will at least be comparable to last season. Excluding the TT game, we were within 1-2 points, and with any form of offense we would have won all those nail biters. Just having Henery should be enough to pull through those games. (I’m all for letting him kick a few from the 50…why not?)
I don’t see a single game we would not be the favorite. I haven’t felt this way in int the pre season in years.
GO BIG RED!
In Bo we Trust!
Is it October yet?
The offense must improve.
We don’t need the No.1 scoring defense in the country to win a championship, but it needs to be good. It will be. Even if it’s a top 20 defense we can win a championship, though with our coaches, it should be better than that.
The offense needs to be able to consistently move the ball to win a championship. Right now, I don’t feel like this offense will be that much better than last year. Arizona was a fluke and anyone that watched that game knew that the ‘Cats didn’t show up to play at all. One newspaper man was quoted as saying something like, “Well, the Nebraska band couldn’t make the trip due to the weather and so a high school band was brought in to take their place. Arizona returned the favor by bringing a high school football team to the game.” The offense can’t be just a bit better than last year to win a championship. It has to be a a lot better. Leaps and bounds better. If it’s not, Texas will walk out of our stadium with a win and Oklahoma will take another conference title from us at the end of the season.
The O-Line may be the key.
Word is the line was horribly wounded last year, and the lack of quality depth really hurt toward the end of the regular season. If that’s indeed the case, and the rumored improvement in terms of depth and quality bears fruit, this could be an exciting year for our boys in red. Lee and Green are both serviceable if they have time to make proper reads and don’t have to carry the team on their backs, but I also foresee a fair amount of wildHusker craziness with any combination of Helu, Martinez and Burkhead in varying roles.
Defensively, I’m not terribly worried about anything except linebacker. There’s no way we replace Suh, but lots of other contributors are back and I don’t see much of a dropoff in our future. Offense will be the key this year – a serviceable offense, matched with our defense and an underrated special teams unit, could easily put us in the Big 12 Championship game with one loss, perhaps even undefeated. I’m VERY nervous about the hype for the Texas game, though – if we lose that one convincingly, it could lead to losses down the road.
"...when the devil says to you: do not drink, answer him: I will drink, and right freely, just because you tell me not to."
— Martin Luther
Excellent points by Mike and Jon
The thing is, we all got to used to the weekly ass kickins handed out by NU, not that that’s a bad thing, but I want every win to be 73-10!!! Or better. Love the Huskers no matter the score, as long as it’s a “W”, and even when they lose! That being said, all the hype surrounding NU is a welcomed after the, dare I say it, the Callahan years, sorry. This year is very promising, as long as the offense can produce!!!! Something,Anything, would put this team in great position to be all that they can be!!!
Matthew 11:28-30
Homer Simpson: "Mmmmm,Beeeeer!!"
Dean Wermer: "Fat,drunk,and stupid is no way to go through life!"
Complacency is the enemy of progress!
Schedule and prediction!
Here’s a look at how I think we’ll do:
W. Kentucky…………………………. W
Idaho…………………………………… W
@ Washington…………………….. W
SDSU………………………………….. W
@ KSU………………………………… W
Texas…………………………………… Toss Up game
@ OSU………………………………… W
Mizzou………………………………….. Toss Up game
@ ISU………………………………….. BIG W
KU……………………………………….. W
@ aTm…………………………………. Toss Up game
Colorado……………………………… Toss Up game (but we are favored)
My guess is we’ll go 3-1 in those toss up games and as long as the loss isn’t to a north school we’ll win the North.
The key to this season is for Bo to get the team rolling on all cylinders at the beginning of the season. In Bo’s time as head coach in the first half of the season the Huskers are 7-6 (2008: 3-3, 2009: 4-3) but in the second half of the season are 12-2 (2008: 6-1, 2009: 6-1).
Bo’s gotta get his team going before the first game of the season in order to get far this year.
by Kyle Beggs on Jul 13, 2010 12:17 AM CDT reply actions 1 recs
How much better can the offense be in 2010?
That’s the key to the entire season right there and it’s hard to see how they could fail to improve. If we can just accomplish a consistent, mediocre scoring offense our defense should be better even if only through playing fewer downs and getting better rest than last year and we should be pretty tough for anyone to beat.
Consider the situation this year:
1. We were a fraction of a second away from winning the Big 12 last year.
2. We only need basic competence from the offense to really help the D out and improve greatly as a team.
3. That’s a ridiculously favorable schedule we have.
4. Texas lost Colt McCoy’s passing and running.
5. Oklahoma lost probably four of the five best Sooners of the past 2 decades in the same year and the losses are at QB, LT, DT, and TE.
The Callahan era definitely taught me my lesson on setting expectations too high, but under those circumstances I’ll be disappointed in anything less than the Big 12 title and at least the Fiesta Bowl at the end of the regular season. Anything less than 10 wins after the bowls will make me miserable.
I'm dying.......
……….from all of this hype! I’ve never paid so much attention to the ENTIRE offseason as this one. Maybe it’s because I live in Texas and me and my two brothers had to endure last year’s heartbreaker with a giant party of all of our Longhorn friends, but deep inside we were the only people in that room that knew we had a chance to play exactly how we did. Maybe it’s because all of the disappointment of the previous regime has been replaced by a fiery swagger and bold-faced self-confidence that you can clearly see on every last Husker on the team. Or maybe it’s just been plain miserable being relegated to has-been status by the college football world, and I believe deep in my heart that the football gods can’t and won’t keep kicking us for forever!
So……..11-3 makes my schizaphrenic brain very happy! We have to be able to take everyone’s best shot, lose a game or two, win the Big 12 North, hopefully Beat the South like a Confederate drum, and get ready for one heck of a fight in the last bowl game as a member of the former Big 12! Let’s go Big Red!!!!!
So,
But, the bottom line is that I really do believe in this team. But this season is giving me a Multiple Personality Disorder. One side feels that we will win every game because we can, and because I know we are going to fight like a pack of wild dogs! The other side understands that this is our last year in the conference, and every team is going to give us everything they have. And upsets do happen all the time in College Football so even if we beat UT we still might have a hell of a time with Colorado, A&M, ISU, KU, KSU, and Okie State. As much as I know that we can beat all these teams, I also know that we could lose to any one of these teams if we don’t come to play, if our offense doesn’t develop an identity and also the confidence it needs to kick ass, if we turn the ball over 9 times, if it’s raining cats and dogs and we don’t get pressure on their QB. Lots of things can happen
If NU makes it to a BCS game
or the title game.
Do we thank SP for the schedule?
You can't possibly be a scientist if you mind people thinking that you're a fool.
~Wanko the Sane
Big Red Kool-aid Drinker @ Corn Nation
If Suh had another year
I’d say Nebraska at least goes to a BCS game (heck, if the refs get the call at the end of the Texas game correct, they do anyway), if not the BCS NC game.
As it stands, I’d say Nebraska goes 2-2 between Texas, TAMU, Mizzou, and Washington (this team is getting better), and goes to the Big 12 Championship Game again, though favored this time.
Idle talk and hollow promises; cheating Judases; doubting Thomases
It’s tough because you want to manage your own expectations, but then I start thinking…
The d loses Suh, Dillard, Asante and O’Hanlon. But I still figure that with yet another season down of instituting his system I find it likely that the defense by the Brothers Pelini will be comparable in capability or perhaps with some minor fall off in run and pass defense.
On offense we really don’t lose anything, and there are possible reasons to think there could be dramatic improvement. They are as follows.
There were lots of dropped passes last year, but it’s possible another year of practices and work outs could add a great deal of consistency for all of our wide outs. Niles Paul will be a home run threat and it’s possible that Brandon Kinnie, Stanley Jean-Baptiste, Khiry Cooper or Currenski Gilleylen will show substantial improvement. Also Mike McNeil could prove to be a consistent target at wide out.
Qb might have improved, Cody Green has had another year to develop, as had Taylor Martinez and Zac Lee. Zac Lee will be healthy and he’ll to outplay those other guys, he could prove to be “faster Zac Taylor.” No way to tell until the season begins.
Supposedly the line will be the best in the Big 12, both talented and deep.
You’ve got to like our running backs. If Helu and Burkhead can stay healthy they can be a force to be reckoned with.
Even if I am trying to be skeptical I am almost certain that we’ll see at least minor improvement from the QBs and WRs. I think the RBs will be healthy and so will the line, this will allow the Huskers to keep the ball longer and score more points in of itself. This will also swing the time of possession in our favor and help the defense out.
I feel safe saying that the Huskers will be better this year then they were last year.
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