Definitely not a perfect game....but ...

[Dadmaster]

I've been critical on here....but for some reason I feel pretty good after that game. We definitely are not giant killers but the guys played hard...the coaching did not let it slip away...that's all we can hope for at this point.

other thoughts on this game?

 

[Husker Hambone]

Big plays saved us... liked the long drive at the end of the first half. Loved the aggressive special teams. Hated getting our FG and PAT blocked. Defense is improving.

 

[WC_'sker]

I looked at the box score this morning. It said we had one penalty for 15 yards. Is that right? If so, that's the fewest penalty yards we've had for a long time.

 

[HuskAir]

-Few stupid penalties was fantastic.
-The pressure on punts (while not hitting the punter) was great all night.
-Taylor and Jaimes injuries worry me. We can not afford to lose more OLinemen.
-I’m still not sold on playcalling. I don’t understand the QB draws up the middle, when the OL is clearly struggling. Swing passes in the end zone. Ehh. More than a few things had me scratching my head.
-Martinez still doesn’t look right. Maybe it’s the 15 pounds. Maybe it’s that he’s running for his life on 75% of the snaps. Maybe he’s playing hurt, idk.

 

[HBK4life_rivals100467]

-Few stupid penalties was fantastic.
-The pressure on punts (while not hitting the punter) was great all night.
-Taylor and Jaimes injuries worry me. We can not afford to lose more OLinemen.
-I’m still not sold on playcalling. I don’t understand the QB draws up the middle, when the OL is clearly struggling. Swing passes in the end zone. Ehh. More than a few things had me scratching my head.
-Martinez still doesn’t look right. Maybe it’s the 15 pounds. Maybe it’s that he’s running for his life on 75% of the snaps. Maybe he’s playing hurt, idk.

Lamar Jackson tweeted that Cam is alright. Haven't heard anything on Jaimes.

 

[WoodRiverJennings]

I'm happy with the overall performance from last night, I thought they improved a lot in some of the areas that they had been exposed in previously.

If AM could lose 15lbs, if we could find an OL, and if we could find a kicker, then we'd be pretty dangerous.

 

[SoFL Husker]

-Few stupid penalties was fantastic.
-The pressure on punts (while not hitting the punter) was great all night.
-Taylor and Jaimes injuries worry me. We can not afford to lose more OLinemen.
-I’m still not sold on playcalling. I don’t understand the QB draws up the middle, when the OL is clearly struggling. Swing passes in the end zone. Ehh. More than a few things had me scratching my head.
-Martinez still doesn’t look right. Maybe it’s the 15 pounds. Maybe it’s that he’s running for his life on 75% of the snaps. Maybe he’s playing hurt, idk.

Running for his life and try scheming a cohesive gameplan with that OL with no big bodied possession WR IS NOT EASY. Frost has limited tools to work with, ****, he's straight-up handcuffed.

The only thing I see Frost not doing is getting our TE more involved in the game. Those guys need ALOT more touches.

 

[dand84]

A win is a win. It was NIU. Lets see how we do in conf play.

 

[HBK4life_rivals100467]

Was nice to see more receivers involved. Noa finally getting some catches. Darien Chase had a catch. Mike Williams. Need more TE involvement. Wandale will break one sooner or later.

 

[HUSKERFAN66]

I looked at the box score this morning. It said we had one penalty for 15 yards. Is that right? If so, that's the fewest penalty yards we've had for a long time.

Yep. The unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on special teams. I thought the zebras let them play. A lot of contact they let go which is fine. But what usually happens is the next crew won't let you breath without getting a flag.

 

[WoodRiverJennings]

Was nice to see more receivers involved. Noa finally getting some catches. Darien Chase had a catch. Mike Williams. Need more TE involvement. Wandale will break one sooner or later.

Yup, it's definitely a good sign seeing more receivers involved.

I don't know how much more TE involvement we are going to see this year, we don't have a TE that is a true threat in the passing game. Plus, depending on the injury to Jaimes, they may need to stay in and block more often.

 

[SoFL Husker]

3 more wins before the bye, 3 wins before the bye, 3 wins before the bye!!!!

Take a stick and poke em in the eye!

I fly Southwest when I fly!

3 more wins before the bye!

GBR

 

[SoFL Husker]

Yup, it's definitely a good sign seeing more receivers involved.

I don't know how much more TE involvement we are going to see this year, we don't have a TE that is a true threat in the passing game. Plus, depending on the injury to Jaimes, they may need to stay in and block more often.

Yea but our TE can post up a zone or make a catch over the top of someone. Martinez can't see his receivers half the time or has to make a touch pass which he sucks at right now, and he's got a couple seconds in the pocket max.

 

[HUSKERFAN66]

-Few stupid penalties was fantastic.
-The pressure on punts (while not hitting the punter) was great all night.
-Taylor and Jaimes injuries worry me. We can not afford to lose more OLinemen.
-I’m still not sold on playcalling. I don’t understand the QB draws up the middle, when the OL is clearly struggling. Swing passes in the end zone. Ehh. More than a few things had me scratching my head.
-Martinez still doesn’t look right. Maybe it’s the 15 pounds. Maybe it’s that he’s running for his life on 75% of the snaps. Maybe he’s playing hurt, idk.

Agreed. The be crowd was VERY close to booing a few times.

Oline is very close to needing to be taken out with yesterday's trrash. When you out weigh the opponent by as much as we did yesterday, and only rushing 3 with HUGE splits, why in the heck were we not playing power football and going right at them.

I cannot believe how many times our 5 could not block 3.

Frustrated (concerned) with o line play, AM decision making, and play selection/calling.

 

[Truehuskerfan]

I can only laugh sometimes at this stuff. We won by a larger margin yesterday than just about everybody predicted, and by a quite a bit more than many predicted and put the game away early, and yet there are people that are picking at more than they are praising. As the original post said, no it was not a perfect game by any means. But it was a heck of a lot better than just about everybody expected. I found it rather enjoyable, myself.

 

[HBK4life_rivals100467]

I can only laugh sometimes at this stuff. We won by a larger margin yesterday than just about everybody predicted, and by a quite a bit more than many predicted and put the game away early, and yet there are people that are picking at more than they are praising. As the original post said, no it was not a perfect game by any means. But it was a heck of a lot better than just about everybody expected. I found it rather enjoyable, myself.

Amen. We won, we covered. We got backups PT. 1 penalty. Adrian had no turnovers. Got Mills and Mo going. Got more receivers involved. Cam's snaps are better. D continues to shine. Yes, we still have a long ways to go but after the piss fest last week on here I'll take it. This board is like a bunch of schoolgirl crybabies and makes it miserable to even come on here with all the pissing and moaning. Enjoy it and shut the hell up already.

 

[HBK4life_rivals100467]

 

[mgbreeze]

Agreed. The be crowd was VERY close to booing a few times.

Oline is very close to needing to be taken out with yesterday's trrash. When you out weigh the opponent by as much as we did yesterday, and only rushing 3 with HUGE splits, why in the heck were we not playing power football and going right at them.

I cannot believe how many times our 5 could not block 3.

Frustrated (concerned) with o line play, AM decision making, and play selection/calling.

I agree the o-line is a project. But you realize that NIU has been objectively GREAT against the run? Mills posted the first 100yd game against them in 18 games. I think the line is getting better and isn’t as bad as most of you are making out.

 

[SoFL Husker]

Amen. We won, we covered. We got backups PT. 1 penalty. Adrian had no turnovers. Got Mills and Mo going. Got more receivers involved. Cam's snaps are better. D continues to shine. Yes, we still have a long ways to go but after the piss fest last week on here I'll take it. This board is like a bunch of schoolgirl crybabies and makes it miserable to even come on here with all the pissing and moaning. Enjoy it and shut the hell up already.

Meh. Nebraska fans see everything like Hayley Joel Osment sees dead people.

There are some good players on this team and many positives, but the fact remains, Nebraska has holes to fill and the "keep getting better" crowd tends toward a level of excellence. Just the way it is around here. Deal with it.

 

[Redscarlet]

Lamar Jackson tweeted that Cam is alright. Haven't heard anything on Jaimes.

It appeared that Cam had a ice pack on his right shoulder and didn’t look serious but Jaimes leaving the field with assistance was not a good sign..

Didn’t notice MW on the sideline in the 2nd half and Frost said He was bumped up during the first half but didn’t indicate it was serious..

 

[HominidHusker]

A lot to like in that game and a lot to not like. Minus a handful of bad plays, the defense really played lights out. A few of NIU’s successful plays were just good calls/execution. Cheers to the defense all around. It hasn’t been announced that I’ve heard, but if Domann doesn’t have a blackshirt yet, will someone please give him what he deserves. Taylor was on sideline w/o a sling: great sign.

Loved the aggressive punt blocking w/o running into kicker, esp since punt return has been non-existent. Austin Allen dropping the easiest floating grab and go TD was terrible. And getting our kicks blocked also a problem (right side not getting blocks was inexcusable).

That leads to blocking: Blocking Blocking Blocking.
Blocking.
It is simply not good enough right now, and that’s on the OL, WR, TE and special teams. While there were many well blocked plays, and particularly pass pro being solid (helped AM was rolling out at times), the run blocking isn’t there yet. I can see potential for improvement, but the blocking needs to get better ASAP. The Jaimes situation is worrisome in a big way.

We left a lot of points on the board- fumbles also worry me (Stoll got lucky Allen bailed him out). Martinez is occasionally a bit slow with decision making and wasn’t throwing to wide open guys he seemed to look at in exchange for guys who were more covered or were tougher throws. He will continue to get better with that no doubt.

I thought Mills played a great game (except for fumble) after I’ve been left unimpressed by him. He made good cuts and squeezed extra yards by dragging guys after getting hit early.

Noa’s end zone catch was PRO and the throw to him was PRO. Just beautiful. We coulda gone deep more esp with so much single coverage.
Maurice Washington: his ability to juke with a little backwards cut thrown in and maintain momentum to get around guys is special. Very special.

The lack of penalties on our team made me so proud also. Really clean game, and that goes a long way, especially in closer games ahead of us.

 

[F5Tornado]

A good outing, always looking to improve and get better. On to Illinois.

 

[z28craz]

Amen. We won, we covered. We got backups PT. 1 penalty. Adrian had no turnovers. Got Mills and Mo going. Got more receivers involved. Cam's snaps are better. D continues to shine. Yes, we still have a long ways to go but after the piss fest last week on here I'll take it. This board is like a bunch of schoolgirl crybabies and makes it miserable to even come on here with all the pissing and moaning. Enjoy it and shut the hell up already.

Yep. I saw everything I wanted to see. Continued improvement on defense. I think not giving up a TD was a nice step forward for the defense. Played a complete game. There was about a 10 minute period in the third quarter where our offense sputtered, but other than that, they played 4 quarters of football. Running game looked better. More receivers involved. I liked seeing AM rollout of the pocket a few, I think that’s something we’re going to need as we go into conference play. We are still a work in progress, but that was a game we needed to come out and dominate and that’s exactly what happened.

 

[Hugo_Stiglitz7]

I've been critical on here....but for some reason I feel pretty good after that game. We definitely are not giant killers but the guys played hard...the coaching did not let it slip away...that's all we can hope for at this point.

other thoughts on this game?

I think they played well last night and responded how a team with higher aspirations should. They played with great energy and enthusiasm and did it for 4 quarters ( on a hot and humid night).


Most encouraging was getting Mills going and finding a couple other receivers. Also, a couple nice vertical pass routes. I thought Martinez played well and feel like his TD run was huge for his confidence. Only 1 penalty last night. They also kept after these guys and we got a glimpse at some younger guys in a live game situation.

The defense was good and I think they are much better overall. We will need them, because the margin for error will be pretty low for the rest of the season. Who knows, when our PK will be ready. Probably affects the play calling until further notice.

Oline is a work in progress and we need more consistency as a whole. If they can build on this and just win next week ( I'm not concerned about the margin or how bad Illinois is), it will go a long way and a bowl game could be a very realistic possibility.

 

[bshirt73]

I think they played well last night and responded how a team with higher aspirations should. They played with great energy and enthusiasm and did it for 4 quarters ( on a hot and humid night).


Most encouraging was getting Mills going and finding a couple other receivers. Also, a couple nice vertical pass routes. I thought Martinez played well and feel like his TD run was huge for his confidence. Only 1 penalty last night. They also kept after these guys and we got a glimpse at some younger guys in a live game situation.

The defense was good and I think they are much better overall. We will need them, because the margin for error will be pretty low for the rest of the season. Who knows, when our PK will be ready. Probably affects the play calling until further notice.

Oline is a work in progress and we need more consistency as a whole. If they can build on this and just win next week ( I'm not concerned about the margin or how bad Illinois is), it will go a long way and a bowl game could be a very realistic possibility.

A very good post sir.

Just like you, I'll be a very happy camper with any kind of win vs Illinois. I'm starting to really believe our defense is coming on strong and looking pretty damn good. That helps boatloads.

Our OLine? Well, we'll hope for the best. But we do have some offensive skill players that are quick and fast as hell. Of course, I would wayyyyyy rather have a terrific OLine and average skill players but we'll hang in there.....hopefully in a couple of years we'll have both. :Cool:

 

[Headcard]

Don’t get the pissing and moaning about play calling, I thought we called a great game (yes the swing pass for a Safety was a disaster, because of Allen’s whiffed block).

The OL remains a concern, especially with the injury to Jaimes. However, we were able to run the ball very well against a team that has been very good against the run for a long time.

Safety is also a big concern. Losing Taylor would hurt, not too excited about having Lee and Sullivan manning those spots, long term.

 

[big red23]

I can only laugh sometimes at this stuff. We won by a larger margin yesterday than just about everybody predicted, and by a quite a bit more than many predicted and put the game away early, and yet there are people that are picking at more than they are praising. As the original post said, no it was not a perfect game by any means. But it was a heck of a lot better than just about everybody expected. I found it rather enjoyable, myself.

I am not upset we won, but I just feel like we could of put this game out of reach a lot sooner, and Jaimes would of been on the sidelines before that injury even happened.

1. After Mills long run we fumble... 3 to 7 points.

2. Blocked punt where we got the ball on their 14 yard line. That should of been 7 points, but the ball went right through Allen's hands. Ended in a blocked kick

3. Their failed onside kick we got the ball at mid field and got nothing. Should of been at least 3 points there

4. One blocked extra point and two blocked field goal tries. Even though one of the field goal tries was after blocked punt, it still was points left on the field

This game could have easily been 60 plus point on our side of the scoreboard, and that is what makes us an average team instead of a great team. We don't capitalize on our opportunities, great teams do that.

Last thing I am going to say is, we are not bad. We are looking pretty good out there at times. This team is young, and over time I can see us getting to be a better team. Right now we just aren't, and I don't really care we beat the 14 point spread. It was a home game against a mediocre MAC team. If we want to be the team everyone wants on here, that spread should be 36 points before it starts. Then we need to end up winning by 50. That is the only way the masses will be pleased, and there is no denying that!

 

[RedSea_rivals91325]

Ray of hope. A chance to solidify our gains next week against a team we should beat even on the road. GBR.

 

[SoFL Husker]

Don’t get the pissing and moaning about play calling, I thought we called a great game (yes the swing pass for a Safety was a disaster, because of Allen’s whiffed block).

The OL remains a concern, especially with the injury to Jaimes. However, we were able to run the ball very well against a team that has been very good against the run for a long time.

Safety is also a big concern. Losing Taylor would hurt, not too excited about having Lee and Sullivan manning those spots, long term.

Speaks to Mills and Washington, both of which created something out of nothing, both of which are very very very talented RBs.

 

[Headcard]

Speaks to Mills and Washington, both of which created something out of nothing, both of which are very very very talented RBs.

Plus AM and Wandale can do the same. OL doesn’t have to be dominating for us to run the ball, but they need to improve.

 

[Truehuskerfan]

I am not upset we won, but I just feel like we could of put this game out of reach a lot sooner, and Jaimes would of been on the sidelines before that injury even happened.

1. After Mills long run we fumble... 3 to 7 points.

2. Blocked punt where we got the ball on their 14 yard line. That should of been 7 points, but the ball went right through Allen's hands. Ended in a blocked kick

3. Their failed onside kick we got the ball at mid field and got nothing. Should of been at least 3 points there

4. One blocked extra point and two blocked field goal tries. Even though one of the field goal tries was after blocked punt, it still was points left on the field

This game could have easily been 60 plus point on our side of the scoreboard, and that is what makes us an average team instead of a great team. We don't capitalize on our opportunities, great teams do that.

Last thing I am going to say is, we are not bad. We are looking pretty good out there at times. This team is young, and over time I can see us getting to be a better team. Right now we just aren't, and I don't really care we beat the 14 point spread. It was a home game against a mediocre MAC team. If we want to be the team everyone wants on here, that spread should be 36 points before it starts. Then we need to end up winning by 50. That is the only way the masses will be pleased, and there is no denying that!

Yes, there were problems. Yes, we left points on the field. But when we had people actually concerned that we could lose this one, and most everybody else thought it would be a real dogfight and we'd only win by maybe 2 TDs, we exceeded just about everybody's expectations. Picking at the things that went wrong and not recognizing that seems to be overly negative in my view.

 

[oldjar07]

Yes, there were problems. Yes, we left points on the field. But when we had people actually concerned that we could lose this one, and most everybody else thought it would be a real dogfight and we'd only win by maybe 2 TDs, we exceeded just about everybody's expectations. Picking at the things that went wrong and not recognizing that seems to be overly negative in my view.

We did about what I expected. Beating a MAC team is beating a MAC team. I wasn't freaking out about last week either, I thought we should win this game pretty easily if this team really has 8 or 9 win potential.

 

[oldjar07]

Speaks to Mills and Washington, both of which created something out of nothing, both of which are very very very talented RBs.

Mills had a good game, but he still has a lot to prove. Washington has been good, just wish he'd learn to cut it inside once in awhile instead of always bouncing outside.

 

[oldjar07]

I am not upset we won, but I just feel like we could of put this game out of reach a lot sooner, and Jaimes would of been on the sidelines before that injury even happened.

1. After Mills long run we fumble... 3 to 7 points.

2. Blocked punt where we got the ball on their 14 yard line. That should of been 7 points, but the ball went right through Allen's hands. Ended in a blocked kick

3. Their failed onside kick we got the ball at mid field and got nothing. Should of been at least 3 points there

4. One blocked extra point and two blocked field goal tries. Even though one of the field goal tries was after blocked punt, it still was points left on the field

This game could have easily been 60 plus point on our side of the scoreboard, and that is what makes us an average team instead of a great team. We don't capitalize on our opportunities, great teams do that.

Last thing I am going to say is, we are not bad. We are looking pretty good out there at times. This team is young, and over time I can see us getting to be a better team. Right now we just aren't, and I don't really care we beat the 14 point spread. It was a home game against a mediocre MAC team. If we want to be the team everyone wants on here, that spread should be 36 points before it starts. Then we need to end up winning by 50. That is the only way the masses will be pleased, and there is no denying that!

That's kind of how I feel about it. We played like an 8 or 9 win team against NIU and we already have a loss to a team we shouldn't. So I think we're looking at a 7 or 8 win season if we play like we did against NIU the rest of the way.

 

[SoFL Husker]

Mills had a good game, but he still has a lot to prove. Washington has been good, just wish he'd learn to cut it inside once in awhile instead of always bouncing outside.

He bounces it outside because there is nowhere to go inside.

Watch his TD run.

Bounce

 

[bshirt73]

He bounces it outside because there is nowhere to go inside.

Watch his TD run.

Bounce

Exactly, there was almost zero holes inside to run through.

 

[Wyldcard]

Part of me thinks the problem with AM is mental after his knee injury last year and played with a knee brace last season. Maybe it's a security blanket and would run with less hesitation with it on. The other might just be thinking how he missed his entire senior season due to injury. I think it's 100% mental. Some guys develop a mental block after a couple bad injuries and can't let them go.

 

[oldjar07]

He bounces it outside because there is nowhere to go inside.

Watch his TD run.

Bounce

Yeah that's ok with me if it's an inside run and if there's nothing there he bounces it to the outside. The problem I have is when it's a designed outside run, he continues running outside when there's nothing there instead of cutting upfield for some yards.

 

[SoFL Husker]

Yeah that's ok with me if it's an inside run and if there's nothing there he bounces it to the outside. The problem I have is when it's a designed outside run, he continues running outside when there's nothing there instead of cutting upfield for some yards.

I am just glad he's here he's a game-changer and we're lucky to have him.

 

[Truehuskerfan]

We did about what I expected. Beating a MAC team is beating a MAC team. I wasn't freaking out about last week either, I thought we should win this game pretty easily if this team really has 8 or 9 win potential.

I can go along with that. I'm speaking more about those who were expecting a close game and then still found more to complain about than good things from the game even though we did better than they expected.