H U S K E R D A N
December 11, 2009
TEXAS' "SECOND" CHANCE NIPS
HUSKERS, 13-12
How the Huskers managed to squeeze 12 points out of
a total of 106 yards of offense in Saturday's Big 12 Championship game
in Arlington, Texas, is truly amazing. And even more amazing was
that those 12 points came within one second of being enough to beat
the heavily favored third ranked Texas Longhorns.
(To find Husker offensive futility that comes close
to Saturday night's, you have to go back to January 2nd, 1989, when the Huskers
lost to Miami in the Orange Bowl 23-3. In that loss to the Hurricanes, the
Huskers had only 10 first downs and 135 yards of Total Offense. Or,
how about the Mother Lode of all stinkers, the 7-0 loss to Colorado in
1961 when Nebraska failed to register a single first down
the ENTIRE game?)
JUST A SEC
The Huskers were just one tick away from a huge
upset.
But for that one second, Nebraska would
have:
1.) Beat a Top 5 team for the first time
since 2001.
2.) Had to have paid Bo Pelini
a bonus of $100,000.
3.) Been assured of its first 10 win season
since 2003.
4.) Had a chance at an 11 win season, the
first since 2001.
5.) Won the Big 12 Championship game-their
first since 1999.
6.) Restored its position as the team to beat
in the conference.
7.) Restored its position as one of the top
programs in the country.
8.) Had a positive impact on recruiting,
especially in the state of Texas.
9.) Been playing in a BCS bowl game for the
first time since the 2001 season.
10.) Seen Bo Pelini tie Osborne and
Solich with one career Big 12 championship.
While Husker fans are still gnashing their teeth about the call that gave
Texas the opportunity to kick the winning field goal with just one tick
remaining in the game, most fans have been steaming this week about the
miserable Husker offense.
WHERE'S THAT SMELL COMING FROM?
Since the third game of the season, the Husker offense has been the
"Elephant In The Room". It's been like the boorish relative
who attends family gatherings, drinks too much, belches, talks with his
mouth full and passes gas. People complain, but not much
changes.
To be sure, troubles began to surface at Virginia Tech when the
Husker offense managed only 5 field goals and was kept out of the end zone the
entire game. And when it needed to pick up a first down late in the
fourth quarter to seal the game, the Huskers came up short and left the
door wide open for a Hokie Miracle.
And then there were home losses to Texas Tech and Iowa State. There
was a 10 point win at Baylor, but the Huskers were shut out in the
second half. And when the Sooners came to Lincoln November 7th, the Husker
offense scored only 10 points, seven of which were set up by an
interception that was returned to the Sooner one yard line.
Problems continued with K-State and Colorado. And Saturday night, it
was more of the same. After Niles Paul returned a Longhorn punt to the
Texas 10 yard line late in the game, Nebraska had to settle for a field
goal that put the Huskers up by 2 points. But instead of getting a
touchdown that would have sealed the win with less than two minutes to go,
the Huskers left the door wide open for a Longhorn Miracle.
(BTW, did anyone really expect the Huskers to score a touchdown on
that drive? I didn't think so.) Sure, the Huskers were up against one of
the best defenses in the country, but 106 total yards and 5 first
downs? You gotta be kidding.
WAZZUP?
And why was it necessary to take Zac Lee out of the game
to "settle him down"? And why does Zac Lee need settling
down, anyway? Wasn't this his 11th start of the season?
Maybe I'm wrong, but I can't recall a Husker coach ever taking a quarterback
temporarily out of the game to settle him down, especially so deep in our own
territory. And doesn't changing quarterbacks on your own 5 yard line pose
a risk of a bad center snap exchange?
WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?
The sobering fact is that the Husker offense is giving everything it
has. Missing this year is a lot of talent, depth and
experience. Gone are playmakers like Ganz, Swift, Petersen, Castille and
Lucky. Gone are O-linemen like Murtha and Slauson. We knew the
offense was going to struggle this year, but just not for this
long.
Offensive Coordinator Shawn Watson has had to simplify the offense in
order to give the Huskers the best chance of winning. The O philosophy for
the second half of this year has been "Play Not To Lose." This year,
graduation, the dismissal of Quentin Castille, injuries to Helu and Burkhead and
recruiting busts have helped create the Perfect Storm for the offensive woes of
2009.
And to make matters worse, we learned this week that 4-star quarterback
Tyler Gabbert and receiver Curtis Carter have reneged on their
"commitments" to sign with the Huskers in February. While these losses are
seldom good, it's understandable, particularly with the Husker current Husker
offensive woes.
The question is, what changes will take place by San Diego and how
much can the offense improve by next fall? Pelini needs
to do for the offense what he has done for the
defense. And the sooner, the better.
MOVIE REVIEW
"The Blind Side"
Four stars (out of a possible 5)
Sandra Bullock, Kathy Bates and Quinton Aaron
This is movie is based on the true story of Michael
Ohre, who is a rookie starting offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens of the
NFL.
While this is a movie about football, it's more about
faith, family, compassion and love. It's about doing what is right,
not what is expedient. It's about honesty, integrity and character.
The movie casts a positive spin on religious faith, the NRA and shows that
racism sometimes can be a two way street. With all its traditional values,
don't look for "The Blind Side" to receive many industry
awards. The movie (thankfully) just doesn't fit into the
Hollywood mold.
PANCAKES AND SYRUP
There are only a couple of syrupy moments, but with all of
Michael's football pancakes, a little syrup tastes pretty good. And
despite some mild cuss words, this is a movie you can enjoy
with your entire family.
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