D Line

[inWV]

The hope for a portal DT continues. But whether or not NU gets one, the bulk of the play will come from the present roster. Rogers and Robinson have played a lot of snaps. I assume Hutmacher will be in the mix. He's a third year player, so he should be ready. After that? Marquis Black is a third year player. At 6-3/315 he should at least be able to help plug the middle. Buckley's name was dropped by Tuioti on a few occasions. Even though he's a second year player, he will have to be ready to play. Newsome is a 4th year guy and Wildeman is a 5th year guy. I would think this is an up or out spring for one or both of them.

 

[Charlie Marlow_rivals363743]

Would have been good to get that Miami transfer. Definitely need someone (or more) to step up here.

 

[steinek11]

Jailen Weaver steps in hopefully

 

[inWV]

Jailen Weaver is a rather massive human being at 6-8/320. Second year guy. Played basketball and was a weight guy in track, so I assume he is reasonably athletic. Played in one game last year.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

Would have been good to get that Miami transfer. Definitely need someone (or more) to step up here.

I'm hopeful this new staff will locate and find someone in the portal that can come in and play some meaningful minutes.

With Mickey being at LSU and seeing all that good SEC talent, maybe he can lure one of those good backups to come up north.

As was said earlier, NU has some kids that have been in the program 2-3-4 years that maybe ready to step in. Huskers also need Robinson and Rogers to take their game up a notch or two.

 

[TruHusker]

There is reason to be concerned for the coming fall and thereafter. DL doesn't generally come right in and play, so what do we have in the pipeline? Instead, we have loaded up on WRs and RBs, that is the roster imbalance that will catch up with us. If we have kids who are in years 4 or so and haven't seen the field, what makes one think they will all of the sudden? Just by sheer need?

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

There is reason to be concerned for the coming fall and thereafter. DL doesn't generally come right in and play, so what do we have in the pipeline? Instead, we have loaded up on WRs and RBs, that is the roster imbalance that will catch up with us. If we have kids who are in years 4 or so and haven't seen the field, what makes one think they will all of the sudden? Just by sheer need?

I could not agree with you more. Since Frost has been here, we have brought in and lost more WR's than is believable.

Just to name those WR's that have left is ridiculous given Frost kept bringing in receivers that had no one who could get the ball to them.

Plus, Frost went with all those 6'6" and taller linemen, the vast majority of which cannot play effectively against the BIg Ten DL's. Big guys with slow feet and not much athleticism is a ticket to an ineffective offense.

Frost has really screwed the pooch here with his player and position selections. Nikki was right.

 

[Headcard]

There is reason to be concerned for the coming fall and thereafter. DL doesn't generally come right in and play, so what do we have in the pipeline? Instead, we have loaded up on WRs and RBs, that is the roster imbalance that will catch up with us. If we have kids who are in years 4 or so and haven't seen the field, what makes one think they will all of the sudden? Just by sheer need?

If the roster is imbalanced, I don't expect it to stay that way. If we have too many WR's or RB's, I'm sure some will be headed to the portal soon. I am worried about or DL depth too and would like to see us find some guys to come and help. But it is not uncommon for linemen to be in the program several years before they contribute, there is always a point where guys go from not playing to playing and we have had alot of older guys getting the reps for a while now that are now gone (Stille, Danniels, Thomas).

 

[VictoryRed]

Maybe we can snag the top D lineman from Montana and N.Iowa.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

If the roster is imbalanced, I don't expect it to stay that way. If we have too many WR's or RB's, I'm sure some will be headed to the portal soon. I am worried about or DL depth too and would like to see us find some guys to come and help. But it is not uncommon for linemen to be in the program several years before they contribute, there is always a point where guys go from not playing to playing and we have had alot of older guys getting the reps for a while now that are now gone (Stille, Danniels, Thomas).

When Frost was done recruiting in 2018 NU had 20 WR's., and 2019 with 17. Within a couple of years, 10 of them left, including J.D. and WanDale. (Lindsey, McQuitty, J.D., McGriff, Hunt, Warner, WanDale, Nance, Houston, Chase).

In 2020, NU had 23 W.R.'s and 18 in '21.
Over that same period Alabama had 18,16,16,16.

In the Defensive Line, NU from 2018 through 2021 had 19,21,17,15.
In the Defensive Line, Bama had 12,15,15,17.

NU's Wide Receivers have ranged from 17 to 23.
Bama W.R.'s ranged from 16-18.

NU Defensive Line ranged from 15-21.
Bama DL ranged from 12-17.

No doubt, returning players, young players slated to play a lot have to do with pure numbers.

I'm guessing if NU would just settle on about 16-18WR's at the most, and between 17-21 on the DL it would make a lot more sense.
Of course, this year Bama had injury issues with their 2 top WR's and it really showed against Georgia. Not that Bama would have won.

I would expect larger numbers from NU in some areas due to likely losing kids to the portal. WIth Bama, I think it's more a case of kids that may leave early for the draft and skew their numbers. (Injuries always come into play).

No particular method is perfect, but NU is caught in a position on the DL with a couple kids with good experience and then a bunch of untested kids.

 

[Make NU Great Again]

The hope for a portal DT continues. But whether or not NU gets one, the bulk of the play will come from the present roster. Rogers and Robinson have played a lot of snaps. I assume Hutmacher will be in the mix. He's a third year player, so he should be ready. After that? Marquis Black is a third year player. At 6-3/315 he should at least be able to help plug the middle. Buckley's name was dropped by Tuioti on a few occasions. Even though he's a second year player, he will have to be ready to play. Newsome is a 4th year guy and Wildeman is a 5th year guy. I would think this is an up or out spring for one or both of them.

Right now, we only have 2 proven players for DL. I suspect the Polar Bear has improved to be just as good or better than Daniels. We desperately need at least 3 players to step up their game, is it Black, Weaver, Newome, Wildeman? Not sure about Buckley, the previous DL coach use to praise Wildeeman a lot but he never did anything.

 

[mikecanale]

The hope for a portal DT continues. But whether or not NU gets one, the bulk of the play will come from the present roster. Rogers and Robinson have played a lot of snaps. I assume Hutmacher will be in the mix. He's a third year player, so he should be ready. After that? Marquis Black is a third year player. At 6-3/315 he should at least be able to help plug the middle. Buckley's name was dropped by Tuioti on a few occasions. Even though he's a second year player, he will have to be ready to play. Newsome is a 4th year guy and Wildeman is a 5th year guy. I would think this is an up or out spring for one or both of them.

I wonder if Banks should be switched to the DL to add some depth.

 

[TruHusker]

When Frost was done recruiting in 2018 NU had 20 WR's., and 2019 with 17. Within a couple of years, 10 of them left, including J.D. and WanDale. (Lindsey, McQuitty, J.D., McGriff, Hunt, Warner, WanDale, Nance, Houston, Chase).

In 2020, NU had 23 W.R.'s and 18 in '21.
Over that same period Alabama had 18,16,16,16.

In the Defensive Line, NU from 2018 through 2021 had 19,21,17,15.
In the Defensive Line, Bama had 12,15,15,17.

NU's Wide Receivers have ranged from 17 to 23.
Bama W.R.'s ranged from 16-18.

NU Defensive Line ranged from 15-21.
Bama DL ranged from 12-17.

No doubt, returning players, young players slated to play a lot have to do with pure numbers.

I'm guessing if NU would just settle on about 16-18WR's at the most, and between 17-21 on the DL it would make a lot more sense.
Of course, this year Bama had injury issues with their 2 top WR's and it really showed against Georgia. Not that Bama would have won.

I would expect larger numbers from NU in some areas due to likely losing kids to the portal. WIth Bama, I think it's more a case of kids that may leave early for the draft and skew their numbers. (Injuries always come into play).

No particular method is perfect, but NU is caught in a position on the DL with a couple kids with good experience and then a bunch of untested kids.

While those numbers tell us something, throw in the disparity of talent from top to bottom on both rosters and it is even worse. Where do you think the bottom.player from Bama would fit into the Husker rotation? Certainly not at the bottom.

 

[cubsker_rivals142943]

Right now, we only have 2 proven players for DL. I suspect the Polar Bear has improved to be just as good or better than Daniels. We desperately need at least 3 players to step up their game, is it Black, Weaver, Newome, Wildeman? Not sure about Buckley, the previous DL coach use to praise Wildeeman a lot but he never did anything.

Polar Bear better than Daniels? Hahahaohwow.jpg

 

[Make NU Great Again]

Polar Bear better than Daniels? Hahahaohwow.jpg

Yes, that is my prediction

 

[inWV]

Polar Bear better than Daniels? Hahahaohwow.jpg

I doubt Nash will be better than fifth year Daniels. But I hope he is better than 3rd year Daniels, as that guy was limited in how much he could play because he was not in very good shape. The moniker Snacks was well earned. Hutmacher's snap count will need to be higher.

 

[HominidHusker]

DL is a major concern, but the lack of public “desperation” from coaches is hopefully a sign they feel reasonably comfortable with what they got.
I expect there will be at least 1 transfer brought in, but the quality of that transfer remains to be seen.

 

[itseasyas1-2-3]

Right now, we only have 2 proven players for DL. I suspect the Polar Bear has improved to be just as good or better than Daniels. We desperately need at least 3 players to step up their game, is it Black, Weaver, Newome, Wildeman? Not sure about Buckley, the previous DL coach use to praise Wildeeman a lot but he never did anything.

That's ridiculous.

 

[BK12]

I think the staff would love to get a Solid DL transfer - but there just wasn’t one that could contribute that wanted to come here. Sometimes you have to take what you can get. The extra guys at RB and WR are partly due to the supply that was available and also they can play Special Teams which we obviously sucked at and had to address immediately. The fact that we got new coaches at RB, WR and ST contributed to why they overloaded those positions. But it wasn’t like we were turning solid DL away. We tried to get the guy from Miami.

 

[Pennsyhusker_rivals246774]

I hate teams that are all offense and no defense. If we wanted that we should have stayed in the Big 12. And it has been since 2009 since we had a really solid defense. The measure of how far we have fallen on defense is how so many of us, myself included, thought last year's defense was actually very good, when in actuality it was just average. But "average" was a cut above where we had been so we all thought we had a good defense. And without a solid defensive line next year I think our defense will be just average again. At least I hope so since the potential is there for us to be so soft against the run that the defense will actually be below average. Defensive tackles are the hardest position in all of football to find guys who are difference makers. I get that. But next year we are staring down the barrel of our failure to recruit anyone of high quality on the line. Damn, damn, damn I hope I am wrong. I will be watching next year with koolaid in hand for that first game just like everyone. And man do I hope the defensive line surprises me. I hate being so pessimistic all the time. But the past 7 years makes you that way.

 

[steinek11]

I hate teams that are all offense and no defense. If we wanted that we should have stayed in the Big 12. And it has been since 2009 since we had a really solid defense. The measure of how far we have fallen on defense is how so many of us, myself included, thought last year's defense was actually very good, when in actuality it was just average. But "average" was a cut above where we had been so we all thought we had a good defense. And without a solid defensive line next year I think our defense will be just average again. At least I hope so since the potential is there for us to be so soft against the run that the defense will actually be below average. Defensive tackles are the hardest position in all of football to find guys who are difference makers. I get that. But next year we are staring down the barrel of our failure to recruit anyone of high quality on the line. Damn, damn, damn I hope I am wrong. I will be watching next year with koolaid in hand for that first game just like everyone. And man do I hope the defensive line surprises me. I hate being so pessimistic all the time. But the past 7 years makes you that way.

Please use paragraphs.

 

[TruHusker]

I think the staff would love to get a Solid DL transfer - but there just wasn’t one that could contribute that wanted to come here. Sometimes you have to take what you can get. The extra guys at RB and WR are partly due to the supply that was available and also they can play Special Teams which we obviously sucked at and had to address immediately. The fact that we got new coaches at RB, WR and ST contributed to why they overloaded those positions. But it wasn’t like we were turning solid DL away. We tried to get the guy from Miami.

I am sure they would but think about the entire transfer portal situation. Are guys who were starters and/or big contributors the ones transferring? There are a few cases where they are grad transfers and want to explore a year somewhere else, that I get. But a lot of guys are caught up in numbers and playing time or got sideways with a coach and need a different view. As you say, the supply is very limited which further bolsters my point that we need to keep the pipeline full of young DL so we can build them up which we are not.

 

[BK12]

I am sure they would but think about the entire transfer portal situation. Are guys who were starters and/or big contributors the ones transferring? There are a few cases where they are grad transfers and want to explore a year somewhere else, that I get. But a lot of guys are caught up in numbers and playing time or got sideways with a coach and need a different view. As you say, the supply is very limited which further bolsters my point that we need to keep the pipeline full of young DL so we can build them up which we are not.

Hard to recruit DL when the D-Line coach leaves. Also - SF knows he needs quick fixes - not long term projects. He won’t be here for the development if he doesn’t win this year. I think special teams took priority.

 

[inWV]

Hard to recruit DL when the D-Line coach leaves. Also - SF knows he needs quick fixes - not long term projects. He won’t be here for the development if he doesn’t win this year. I think special teams took priority.

Iowa and MSU losses trace directly back to special teams.

 

[HUSKERFAN66]

I am sure they would but think about the entire transfer portal situation. Are guys who were starters and/or big contributors the ones transferring? There are a few cases where they are grad transfers and want to explore a year somewhere else, that I get. But a lot of guys are caught up in numbers and playing time or got sideways with a coach and need a different view. As you say, the supply is very limited which further bolsters my point that we need to keep the pipeline full of young DL so we can build them up which we are not.

Yep. Beginning to think focus on really good fcs kids that didn't/couldn't go to all the camps to get noticed and grad transfers

 

[PeliniTheCrutch_rivals294365]

Right now, we only have 2 proven players for DL. I suspect the Polar Bear has improved to be just as good or better than Daniels. We desperately need at least 3 players to step up their game, is it Black, Weaver, Newome, Wildeman? Not sure about Buckley, the previous DL coach use to praise Wildeeman a lot but he never did anything.

Wait, what?!

 

[Mrs.Jeans15]

I hate teams that are all offense and no defense. If we wanted that we should have stayed in the Big 12. And it has been since 2009 since we had a really solid defense. The measure of how far we have fallen on defense is how so many of us, myself included, thought last year's defense was actually very good, when in actuality it was just average. But "average" was a cut above where we had been so we all thought we had a good defense. And without a solid defensive line next year I think our defense will be just average again. At least I hope so since the potential is there for us to be so soft against the run that the defense will actually be below average. Defensive tackles are the hardest position in all of football to find guys who are difference makers. I get that. But next year we are staring down the barrel of our failure to recruit anyone of high quality on the line. Damn, damn, damn I hope I am wrong. I will be watching next year with koolaid in hand for that first game just like everyone. And man do I hope the defensive line surprises me. I hate being so pessimistic all the time. But the past 7 years makes you that way.

2010 was pretty solid.

T Mart got hurt.

 

[TruHusker]

Hard to recruit DL when the D-Line coach leaves. Also - SF knows he needs quick fixes - not long term projects. He won’t be here for the development if he doesn’t win this year. I think special teams took priority.

But the "coach" didn't leave, he was always there.

Certainly Frost knows he needs immediate help but he has apparently struck out there thus far. That said, if he doesn't get someone going in the pipeline, it leaves a clearly visible weakness in the program.

 

[oldjar07]

I doubt Nash will be better than fifth year Daniels. But I hope he is better than 3rd year Daniels, as that guy was limited in how much he could play because he was not in very good shape. The moniker Snacks was well earned. Hutmacher's snap count will need to be higher.

I don't agree with this at all. Yes, Daniels first couple years here, he had conditioning issues. That's not that out of the ordinary for a young DL. By his third year, he had the conditioning, but our idiot coaches wouldn't play him enough. Hutmacher won't be better or anywhere near Daniels. He just needs to be serviceable. Our replacement for Daniels needs to come from Ty Robinson. Though we haven't seen it much yet, he has the talent to be a complete stud. Ty needs to show that this season.

 

[Reditus]

As suggested by some of the coaches and posters, we will still be a multiple front team but I think playing a lot of even front will alleviate some of the interior depth issue as it spreads it to the RE's a bit. Hopefully Feist comes back an extra year. That would help depth.
Playing 2 Dt vs 3 will help the DL issue.

Even front (with Rush end types)
RE Nelson, Gunnerson orJackson,Schommer
Dt Robinson, Weaver or Black or Hutmacher, Tagoloa
Dt Rogers, Buckley, Newsome or Wildeman or Feist?
RE Tannor or Payne, Butler

 

[inWV]

Tannor is a little undersized to be a true DE. Nelson, Gunnerson, Payne and Butler are in the right size range to be DEs.

 

[Mrs.Jeans15]

Tannor is a little undersized to be a true DE. Nelson, Gunnerson, Payne and Butler are in the right size range to be DEs.

Do it for just pass rushing downs then.

 

[dinglefritz]

Wait, what?!

antirowboat agrees with his hot take WinkingWinking

 

[inWV]

Feist, Jackson and Wildeman should never be mentioned in a discussion about a depth chart. Ever.

Jackson was the backup to Nelson on the Iowa depth chart. Would think we'll see a lot of Nelson, Gunnerson, Payne and Tannor this fall.

 

[Hoyt Shepherd Sr.]

Jackson was the backup to Nelson on the Iowa depth chart. Would think we'll see a lot of Nelson, Gunnerson, Payne and Tannor this fall.

yes, we seem to be loaded at traditional DEs but not at DT and NT.

 

[inWV]

yes, we seem to be loaded at traditional DEs but not at DT and NT.

I'm not a portal checker, but we know the DT position is perhaps the hardest recruiting task. So they come into the portal at a premium. Rogers, Robinson and Polar Bear, with a couple of the younger guys in the mix for depth. Portal options will look different after spring ball.

 

[Mrs.Jeans15]

Maybe of we ran a 4-3 it would be easier to recruit DTs.

Just a thought.

 

[oldjar07]

Do it for just pass rushing downs then.

What good would that do? Tannor's not even a pass rusher.

 

[oldjar07]

As suggested by some of the coaches and posters, we will still be a multiple front team but I think playing a lot of even front will alleviate some of the interior depth issue as it spreads it to the RE's a bit. Hopefully Feist comes back an extra year. That would help depth.
Playing 2 Dt vs 3 will help the DL issue.

Even front (with Rush end types)
RE Nelson, Gunnerson orJackson,Schommer
Dt Robinson, Weaver or Black or Hutmacher, Tagoloa
Dt Rogers, Buckley, Newsome or Wildeman or Feist?
RE Tannor or Payne, Butler

This will get eaten alive against the run. There's no way Tannor should be a starter as an even front DE.

 

[inWV]

Watched the majority of defensive snaps against Wisconsin and Iowa. Lots of 4 and even 5 man fronts, usually with four guys with a hand on the turf. Nelson, Gunnerson, Tannor and Jackson. Looked very 4-2 ish with the Gifford kid in Jojo's spot. The Badgers top back went for 228 and Goodson ran for 156.