Couple not-so-enthusiastic outside opinions of the 2018 Huskers

[Brew City Husker]

Again, I don't think from the outside looking in (non-Husker fan) there's much to get worried about. All the things that made Vegas give our 2017 pause in year 3 of a coach coming off a 9 win season are still there. New QB (with less experience, we will be playing someone who hasn't started a college game before), new defensive coordinator, new head coach who bring a new offensive coordinator.

As fans I have no problem with our optimism, but there will be some bad times this season. This staff is all about rebuilding confidence. They started in the weight room, then there's some quotes that are coming out where they are really building these kids up and giving me some pause. There's some work to do.

When times get tough this year (and they will), the optimism and positivity in the locker room will come in handy. Coach Frost and his staff have a road map for how to take a losing team and build it into a winner.

 

[Deleted member 5200]

Nobody really knows until we play.

I do. Coaching is way underrated by most people.

 

[OldFatHerbie]

I sometimes wonder if this year will either be feast or famine on predictions. We could easily end up with another boring playoff with the same cast of characters (Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Oklahoma, Ohio State, etc), or nothing will play out the way anyone has thought. Vegas is right for a good reason with their deviations, but how they get there might be in ways nobody had forseen.

 

[BleedinHuskerRed]

I don’t really disagree with the assessment in the first article - he makes some great points. (Though I think his “the Boilermakers have had Nebraska’s number in the past” comment is a little pointless - our look has changed so much that hopefully that won’t even be a contributing factor.)

2nd article the guy writes like a homer. Let’s hope the entire NW team has that attitude, so they’re completely shocked when we give them a smack-down.

 

[Bleed Red]

Again, I don't think from the outside looking in (non-Husker fan) there's much to get worried about. All the things that made Vegas give our 2017 pause in year 3 of a coach coming off a 9 win season are still there. New QB (with less experience, we will be playing someone who hasn't started a college game before), new defensive coordinator, new head coach who bring a new offensive coordinator.

As fans I have no problem with our optimism, but there will be some bad times this season. This staff is all about rebuilding confidence. They started in the weight room, then there's some quotes that are coming out where they are really building these kids up and giving me some pause. There's some work to do.

I certainly see why outside sources are skeptical, especially those that may not do alot of work and dig for information. However, one thing i'm curious about. Would NU be considered more favorably by these people if they were starting a QB that had college experience? So, my what if is, if Lee was returning to start...or POB, would anyone be predicting a better final win total? AND, if so, WHY?

The QB that starts this year will be a better fit and more successful than either returner would have been (thus they are not here) so saying "new QB" should really increase expectations and not decrease them.

 

[AzHusker]

Love it.

We can't shock the world without media coverage like this.

Unfortunately, the cat will be out of the bag after our first few games.

 

[Deleted member 5200]

It's completely understandable that outsiders might pick us to win 6 or less. Most just extrapolate a little bit from previous year's results and returning starters. They aren't going to spend the time to dig into the things us fans know, like the horrific excuse for coaching the players endured the past three seasons and the way Scott Frost is bringing back tried and true Husker principles, and I doubt if any of them have watched all of the Frost press conferences and miked-up sessions from his practices. They also tend to ignore his success at UCF as some sort of anomaly.

I can't wait to see the looks on their collective faces when they are proven so wrong.

 

[EastOfEden]

The Michigan game will be a great indicator of just where we are in the effort to develop a good team.

 

[Warzone]

I get what you are saying, but if you are giving an example from 30 years ago how that wasn't a good indication, it kind of validates that returning starters coming back from a good team is usually a pretty good indicator of next seasons success. There will always be exceptions, but more often than not it's the rule. Conversely, one of the reasons i'm not as worried about Troy is because they lose everyone. Again, there's always exceptions where the new people come in and are even better. But Phil Steele who has been pretty good at predicting uses it for a reason, experience matters.

Last thing to your point, I do remember one time everyone was super high on UTSA (I think that's who Larry Coker coached for) because they returned everyone. But they were coming off a losing season, so I didn't understand how magically that was a great indicator of them being good the following year. They returned a bunch of mediocre players.

I get that it was from 30 years ago but sadly it is still the reason people pick a team.

Maybe not all of them but a lot of them. Plus your team was not a 4-8 team last year. They gave up.

 

[bilsker]

I get that it was from 30 years ago but sadly it is still the reason people pick a team.

Maybe not all of them but a lot of them. Plus your team was not a 4-8 team last year. They gave up.

That is a large part of the reason why I think the whole "happy to win 6 and go to a bowl game" thing is a joke. NU wasn't a national title contender last year. No way. But a lot of things turned would probably should have been a 7 win season into a 4 win season.

1. As crappy as Banker may have been Riley letting Diaco be forced upon him was a disaster. Even with Banker I think they win a couple more games.

2. The loss to N. Illinois effectively ended the season and Riley's tenure. When Eichorst was fired, justifiably, Riley's goose was cooked. We all knew it...including Riley and the players. One more bit of adversity and the team was going to collapse. And they did.

3. Tanner Lee. You can't be ANY good with a QB that turns the ball over at that rate...especially pic 6s. If NU "hits" on a QB this year that's going to be worth 2 games right there IMO. Big if, maybe. But between Martinez and Gebbia I think there's going to be at least one "it" guy.

If it was strictly a talent thing this would take 4 years or so to turn around. But I think it's largely (not entirely) a "mental" thing...confidence, culture, etc. And those things can be turned around fairly quickly. I've brought this up before but the 2007 NU team looked talentless as well. When the team folds, lacks motivation and is poorly coached they are going to look way worse than they are. Bo comes in...with a roster that is ready and willing to accept change and boom...8-4. By all accounts this team appears to have been ready for exactly what Frost and Co. have brought. Yeah, the schedule appears to be brutal. But below Wisco and OSU...is it really THAT brutal? Is Michigan invincible? Is MSU? And after those 4...bring it on.

So...don't count me in with any group that will be thrilled with "making a bowl game".

 

[ShortSideOption]

I certainly see why outside sources are skeptical, especially those that may not do alot of work and dig for information. However, one thing i'm curious about. Would NU be considered more favorably by these people if they were starting a QB that had college experience? So, my what if is, if Lee was returning to start...or POB, would anyone be predicting a better final win total? AND, if so, WHY?

The QB that starts this year will be a better fit and more successful than either returner would have been (thus they are not here) so saying "new QB" should really increase expectations and not decrease them.

Just like why we were supposed to be better with Tanner Lee last year, with our inside knowledge of him being a better fit?

New QB decreases expectations. New coordinator decreases expectations. New head coach decreases expectations.

 

[Hotlanta Husker]

I think a lot of people don't understand the level of talent that is on this team. We are still the second most talented team in the B1G West... Give a good coach pieces to work with and a good coach will find a way to get results.

A mobile QB is a big plus in our division... It means you can't just turn your head and run with receivers. If the line play is improved from last year (it will be) then outside of 2 or 3 games...we should be in or winning the rest. Barring a few flukes we can win 7 or 8 games and maybe the breaks go our way and we can sneak 9... I want to see effort and ingenuity.

 

[Deleted member 5200]

Just like why we were supposed to be better with Tanner Lee last year, with our inside knowledge of him being a better fit?

New QB decreases expectations. New coordinator decreases expectations. New head coach decreases expectations.

Among outsiders who don't realize how much better all three of those areas are this year compared to last year.

 

[Huskerpilk]

When UCF went 0-12 everyone knew they had better talent than that. SF proved that two years later. Our team was weak minded last year and had no leadership. Talent can only take you so far in football. The rest is leadership, dedication, purpose and team. The coaches get it...the players are going to get it. We might stub our toe a few times because of all the newness but in the end these players want to play for SF and I think the staff believes they have talent. I think we win games this year no one expects us to win. So here we go!

 

[Rednu]

Blind squirrels searching for nuts. They're desperately hoping that their predictions will be correct even though deep down inside they know NU will soon be a force to be reckoned with every year in the forseeable future.
Like HCSF said, "better get us now".

Last year some of the game

I do. Coaching is way underrated by most people.

i agree, the younger the guys are the more important coaching is. Have you ever seen a team in college that was good with a bad coach?

We of all people know and have lived this.