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Am I delusional to be optimistic about the Huskers?

S

SVJoshi

Recruit
Another heartbreaking loss that the Huskers could have won. They were driving in the third quarter only down 14-7. But then offensive errors spiraled out of control. That led to the defense being on the field too long.

But I am optimistic.

The defense is clearly better than last year. Period! They stifled Minnesota's run game and sacked CU QB Sanders 8 times!

The offense is error prone and inconsistent. But I applaud Rhule's commitment to the run, the fullback, and the tight end. They will improve over the course of the season as they get used to the new system.

Finally, let's give the Huskers a break. They drew 2 qualify opponents ON THE ROAD to start the season with a brand-new offense and defense.

Taking on Colorado at altitude with an inconsistent offense was particularly problematic. The altitude makes a bigger difference in the 4rth quarter than people realize. So, if the defense is on the field too long, the altitude causes them to collapse.

Coming up are two decent but lesser opponents (Northern Illinois and Louisiana Tech) at home! I think Rhule gets the errors fixed and wins both.

Michigan is my pick for national champion, so I don't think the Huskers will win that one. But after Michigan, having watched most of the other teams on TV, all the remaining teams look beatable to me.

Illinois got clobbered by Kansas. Northwestern has issues. Purdue is re-building. Michigan State and Maryland haven't played a quality opponent yet. Wisconsin just lost to Washington State. Iowa is good but we play them at home.

I'm not saying the Huskers WILL beat the rest of the slate except Michigan. I am saying that I like what I've seen so far despite the losses. A winning season and bowl game are still possible! If I'm right and we go to a bowl game, that will be a big step forward from the last coaching staff.

Am I delusional? Let me have it.
 

I would agree with most of that. I am having nightmares already of what Iowa's disciplined defense will do to us and Sims but there are a few wins there. My dream of going to a bowl game is probably dead but I will hold out hope. GBR
 



IMO:
(caveat: I've seen only part of both games - grandson's fall ball takes precedence.)

We don't yet know how good Minn and CU are, so to say they are each quality opponents is not really based on anything substantial. Where the defense does show improvement is in aggression and pursuit.

I'm not sure there's anything to indicate Rhule is committed to the FB, the run, nor the TE. I hope he's more committed to game-planning to the abilities of the players.

We should be able to beat N. Illinois and Louisiana Tech without fixing those problems by talent level alone, though if we have -3 turnover ratio agains either of those teams, I wouldn't be surprised to struggle.

Kansas clobbered Illinois. My guess is Kansas would clobber Nebraska. To be honest, I see 3 wins this season, N. Illinois, Louisiana Tech, and (fingers-crossed) Northwestern. We'll be underdogs in all other games.

I get it: look for the silver lining. But you can't ignore the dark clouds.
 
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If Sims continues to be the QB it will be another year of snatching defeat out of the jaws of victory. He makes poor decisions across the board and is fumble prone on top of it all. Make him a WR and move on. That’s his only shot at the NFL and we need more anyway so why not.
 
Personally, I wasnt expecting anything this year but hoping for the best. All I really want is steady improvement in all facets. Defense has excelled but needs to get better, to many blown coverages yesterday led to big Colorado plays. The offense, nowhere to go but up. Special teams looked good the first week, not so much yesterday. So let’s just improve and the wins will follow.
 
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For me it all depends on progress. This was supposed to be the year of growth, where we finish better than we start as Rhule and Co. Establish their culture. Well they set a real low floor, so it should be easy to finish better than we started, right? RIGHT? :Confused:
 
I'm somewhat optimistic because that defense is much improved and will only get better. With even a pedestrian offense, we could be 2-0 right now. Trouble is . . . the offense is terrible, with the added bonus of turning the ball over once each qtr on avg (led by the QB . . . the one guy who can't be a near-complete disaster).

We're a couple QBs, some WR and O-linemen away from where we need to be. Rhule has some tough decisions and lots of work ahead.
 



ramsker said:
I'm somewhat optimistic because that defense is much improved and will only get better. With even a pedestrian offense, we could be 2-0 right now. Trouble is . . . the offense is terrible, with the added bonus of turning the ball over once each qtr on avg (led by the QB . . . the one guy who can't be a near-complete disaster).

We're a couple QBs, some WR and O-linemen away from where we need to be. Rhule has some tough decisions and lots of work ahead.
Click to expand...
That sounds like an entire offense. NU will never be what they once were. They will never get this kind of athletes.
 

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