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| Don't dress for the wins you have. Dress for the wins you WANT to have. |
Saturday, that opportunity presents itself at TCF Bank Stadium as No. 24 Nebraska visits for the teams' second Minneapolis showdown since the Huskers joined the B1G. The Big Red machine certainly isn't where it was back in the 90s under Tom Osborne, which is what their fans base has come to crave and expect, but the Huskers still represent a significant challenge for The U.
Plus, we've become accustomed to hating teams in red.
A win against a top-25 team with the tradition of Nebraska - especially against a team that has dominated you both lately and historically - certainly would serve as Kill's "signature win" by definition if Minnesota can pull off the upset. So can they? Let's snap the ball and take a look at four downs.
FIRST DOWN - FRONT SEVEN SUCCESS
First and foremost, the Gophers' upset hopes depend on how well the Minnesota front seven fares against a tough Nebraska running attack. There's reason for concern here because the Gophers defensive line and linebackers have certainly looked like strengths for much of the season, but they were absolutely dominated in a home loss to Iowa, and that's probably our opponent that most closely resembles Nebraska.
The Huskers have an absolute star at running back in Ameer Abdullah (816 yards, 6 TD, 7.2 ypc) and the team collectively averages 5.5 yards per carry. If they average more than five yards per carry Saturday, we're in big trouble. But if Ra'shede Hageman, Damien Wilson and friends can force Nebraska into some third-and-longs and limit the Huskers' running attack, all of a sudden it's a ballgame.
SECOND DOWN - QB OR JAVELIN THROWER?
Second down goes hand-in-hand with first down. Controlling the Nebraska running game puts the ball squarely in the hands of Husker QB Taylor Martinez, who's expected to play after missing time with an injury. For all his career highlights, Martinez also has a considerable amount of lowlights, and has turned the ball over in big spots throughout his tenure. As Minnesota showed last week, it can both cause turnovers and capitalize on them. And a couple big turnovers could certainly turn the tide in the Gophers' favor as they did in the third quarter against Northwestern.
Martinez has been more efficient this season, completing 66.3 percent of his passes and tossing nine TDs to one INT, but the Gopher pass rush and secondary both looked very good last week, and hopefully a couple interceptions could be headed our way. It helps us that he's coming off an injury and may be relegated more to the pocket than out on the move, which is huge for us because most of the time when he throws he looks more like a javelin thrower than a quarterback. Hopefully those flawed mechanics lead to some errant throws we can defend or even intercept.
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| Can two arms be better than one? |
I made the mistake of listening to some Gopher analysis on the local radio today where they trashed Minnesota for even thinking of rotating QBs this week. Guess what? Neither guy has distinguished himself as the clear-cut starter at this point. Both have shown flashes of greatness, both have been inconsistent and have struggled at times. I'm totally on board with an approach where you start one guy, give him a few series and see what happens. If we're scoring? Stick with it? If we struggle to move the ball? Give the other guy a shot.
We stuck with Nelson for the duration of the Iowa game, even when he struggled and a confident Lamplighter sat idle on the sidelines. But I think our coaches learned from that mistake last week when they inserted Nelson, got a scoring drive, and continued to go with what was working.
The best football coaches are the ones who can identify the strengths of their team, and adjust and adapt along the way, both from game-to-game and within each game itself. With how things have gone under center, that's how our QB situation should be handled right now. If one of the two plays lights-out and we upset Nebraska, then you lean towards that guy as the starter the following week. But we should use a short leash throughout the season, and try to find what works. Saturday, I hope both guys play and play well, and give us reason to keep talking about the QB situation going forward.
FOURTH DOWN - 'OUTCLASS' THE HUSKERS
Fourth down is going to be extremely self-serving, but the Section 117 Classy Gentlemen are stepping up their game for Saturday's showdown in hopes that the Gophers and the rest of the fan base also brings their best efforts. Saturday will be our annual "limo game," so look for a stretch limo dropping off the Classy Gentlemen at The Bank, and expect money to swirl through the breezy fall sky with each Minnesota score.
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| Let's teach Nebraska about class. And Wu-Tang. |
Along those lines, the Gophers will need to show great "class" on the field. Avoid dumb - and drive-killing - penalties. Don't turn the ball over. If we get turnovers, turn them into points. Win the special teams battle. Do all the little things that turn upset hopes into reality. If Minnesota can do all those things, Saturday morning's festivities could turn into a day-long celebration.
MORE ANALYSIS FROM LAST WEEK'S WIN
I had some work obligations last Saturday that allowed me to watch the first half of the Northwestern game, but I had to monitor the second half from my phone. I just got a chance to finish up the game on my DVR and I have some impressions to share that I figure I'd tack onto the end of the Nebraska preview.
First of all, Joey Galloway is a terrible color commentator. My two favorite parts where when he ripped the Minnesota coaches over and over for inserting Nelson, then was dead silent during the final few plays of the drive that ended in a game-tying touchdown. Then, later in the game when a Northwestern receiver made a great catch, he used this gem: "Actually I think the ball caught him." Awful.
Also, I had heard about the offensive PI call that took a touchdown off the board, but finally got to see it and it was awful. I thought the defensive PI call that kept Northwestern's late TD drive alive on 4th and 15 was marginal too, but that series inspired me. One of our biggest defensive problems was getting off the field on all sorts of third downs - third and short, third and long, third an in between. On that drive we got stops on third and fourth down and were hurt by the penalty. Later, we stopped a third and short. We gave up the first on fourth and short, but it seems there's progress there.
Brock Vereen played an outstanding second half. He was all over the field. And I loved the way our offense got the last few first downs and ran out the clock to earn the win. Too many times in Gopher history the offense can't convert, the other team gets the ball, and then anything can happen. Actually, anything HAS happened. This time, the offense didn't let it get to that, and it was a huge relief.
Hopefully, tomorrow Minnesota is in a similar position, and can cement away another big win. See you at The Bank. We'll be dressed to the Philip Nelson/James Manuels. Get it?
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