Nebraska Football '26 Preview

 Nebraska Football 

Breakdown of the 2026-2027 Season

INTRODUCTION

It is officially that time of year again. The air begins to cool, the leaves begin to fall, the radio waves are filled with college football talk, and we as fans begin to say "I think we can actually do something this year". Myself included, hence this dumb ass blog. What am I doing?

I love talking ball. I love this time of year because the anticipation of the upcoming season makes the start of it that much better. But I need an outlet to get all these thoughts out of my head. I no longer live in Nebraska, so I don't get the luxury of talking these points out with every Tom, Dick and Harry that I interact with. Nobody where I live cares about Nebraska football, they have their own team to care about. Which is fine, I get it. I just don't want to be the annoying guy at every social gathering who makes people uncomfortable because, "he kept talking about Jared Crick's 5 sack game against RGIII and Baylor in 2009?" Sorry that I love this sport and I love my Cornhuskers? So, as a result, I am forced to just try this out. I don't care if this never gets read, I don't care if it gets read and people think, "he's still an idiot". I am doing this for my own sanity. Nobody asked for this. I'm not getting an influx of messages, "Big Lazy you're so smart, you know so much about football, you should write a blog." Certainly not. But sometimes you gotta just say some shit out loud (or in this case, write it all out). Enjoy. Cheers!

PREVIEW

Let's get real, I love college football just as much as the next guy, but I along with many others, have had to sit through pure agony over the last decade and watch the team that I admire, the program I grew up idolizing, render itself down to a mere afterthought in college football. I mean really, the fall of relevancy of Nebraska Football could be studied in a Sports History class at a liberal arts college. What was once the most dominant dynasty in the 90's under Tom Osborne, built on the best option attack and blackshirt defense, has slowly dwindled down to a middling B1G team fighting tooth and nail each week to stack up enough wins to make a December bowl game. Sad. It feels as though Rhule and Co. have shown some signs of progress in bringing this program out of the depths of despair brought about by Mike Riley and Scott Frost, with back to back bowl appearances. But as they say, Rome wasn't built in a day. Now, do I think Nebraska can get back to National Title contention level soon? Quick answer, no. I don't even think we can contend in the B1G at the moment. But, it is hard to deny the fact that the product on the field under Matt Rhule, has shown glimpses of positive trends. The next step would obviously be consistency. Consistency between plays, games, weeks, and seasons. Consistency that will travel and last well into November, which has been this coaching staff's biggest heel. That is the toughest part of a rebuild. Make no mistake about it, this is still a rebuild. It's hard to admit when guys like Curt Cignetti come in to the losingest program in all of college football and win the National Title in two years. But, generally speaking, unless you catch lightning in a bottle, a true rebuild is a 3-5 year process. We are in the thick of it. 

Now, you can argue that in today's CFB landscape, the rebuild window has shrunk because of what teams can do and what they can acquire through the transfer portal. Honestly, I would tend to agree with you. But this staff really hasn't hit the portal all that hard. They've added some pieces here and there, but not like these other places have. Obviously not when you compare it to the likes of Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss and now LSU, Steve Sarkisian at Texas, Kalen DeBoer at Bama, or even Joey McGuire at Texas Tech. But even relative to the rest of the country, it's not like Nebraska has been throwing lump sums of cash around and getting all these highly rated, big name portal additions. I mean, do we truly realize what happened over the previous offseason/portal window? We got outbid, for our QB1--the guy our staff scouted and wanted more than anyone else--Kenny Minchey, to....Kentucky. Kentucky? The Kentucky football who, historically is a below .500 program, has zero national titles, zero Heisman winners, and in it's 111 year history has just 23 bowl appearances? Kentucky football outbid you? Not to knock Kentucky, because they are in the SEC, and I do like their recent hire of Will Stein, but I state this to relay to all of you Husker fans an honest and truthful wake up call about where this program sits and where it ranks amongst its peers. Getting outbid by Kentucky, on your QB of the future is an eye opening kick to the shins, and should immediately garner your expectations of where Nebraska currently sits, and where it will be a year from now. The 1990's dynasty was 30 years ago. We are no longer on the precipice of "we're back". We have nothing to "get back" to. It's been 10 YEARS since we've won 9 games. TEN YEARS! Yet, we all still think we are one offseason away from "getting back" to 1996. Wake up. Use your own two eyes and half a brain to really take a long hard look at what Nebraska football is, right now, and what needs to get done to build back to a consistently competitive program. Year 4 under Rhule has to be a building block to move forward. Keep climbing. Yes, I do like Matt Rhule. I think he says all the right things and it is obvious he is a likeable and relatable players coach. However, as we've seen in the past, being a "good guy" and pumping out a bunch of ear candy only gets you so far in this game. Winning cures all.

Admittedly, this is how I operate. I fluctuate between optimism and cold hard reality. But it's gotten to the point, in terms of Husker fandom, that I can't continue to ignore facts. As you'll see throughout this breakdown, I'm going to keep it real. It would be easy for me to read one HuskerOnline article and say, "This team can win 9 games!" But even if this blog gets lost in the ether, and I end up talking to the empty abyss, know that this is a realistic breakdown (mixed with some vibes, "feels" and sarcasm) of the schedule, of the roster, of the staff and what my expectations are of the '26-'27 Husker Football Team. 

SCHEDULE BREAKDOWN

Analytically, this team is predicted to look and perform much like they did the year prior. With an average power ranking of #33, and an average SoS inside the top 20, Nebraska falls right in line with a large pack of teams staring down the barrel of somewhere between 5-7 wins. 

Let's dive into the schedule and how I see each game unfolding:

Ohio - W

Ohio has been one of, if not, the most successful program in the MAC in recent history. Although they are not the favorite to win the league this year, anything goes and anything is possible in MACtion. Ohio has a new Head Coach in John Hauser who was brought in as an interim for the bowl game last year where they beat UNLV and, yep, you guessed it, Anthony Colandrea. Whether or not you want to put any stock in to a Scooter's Coffee Frisco Bowl game is totally up to you, but I do find it worth noting. (Scooter's breakfast burritos slap by the way). Aside from that nugget, Ohio looks to replace a lot this year--starting QB, RB, top two WR's, all 5 starting offensive lineman, a TE who fled to Ohio State (traitor) and both defensive safety's, one of which led the team in tackles. Whew. Brutal. There appears to be somewhat of a QB battle going on between Nick Poulos, who enters his 3rd year at Ohio and stands 6'6" 240lbs, and incoming transfer Matt Vezza, from New Hampshire where he threw for 2,600 yards, 19 TD's and ran for another 600 yards and 8 tugs with his feet.  Regardless of who wins the job there, that is a whole lot of offense to replace for a MAC team with a new head coach. I respect any MAC school out there because they give us Tuesday night football in November. But I think at some point in the game, the size, speed and athleticism of Nebraska really starts to show and puts this game out of reach. (Respect this Ohio team though!)

Huskers - 38

Bobcats - 14 

 

Bowling Green - W

Second year head coach Eddie George looks to improve on somewhat of a disappointing season where his team lost 5 of their last 6 down the stretch, three of those coming by one score or less. (That sounds familiar). However, George and the Falcons come in with the best recruiting class in the MAC last year. Bowling Green was well below average offensively last year, thus the emphasis to improve on that side of the ball over the offseason. Led by returning RB Austyn Dendy, who didn't get much action until the final 5 games of last year, yet he still proved to be worthy averaging nearly 100 ypg and finding pay dirt 5 times in such limited time. The QB favorite seems to be Oregon transfer Austin Novosad, who has a lot of hype behind his name, but a true lack of tape to make any sort of opinion on. Much like Nebraska's previous MAC foe, Bowling Green also faces the challenge of replacing their entire starting offensive line. There will be some talented pieces on this team, no doubt, but at what point in the game will the lack of depth show up and Nebraska begins to put it on? (Again, respect these MAC schools).

Huskers - 45

Falcons - 20 

North Dakota - W

So, I'm going to be brutally honest here. I refuse to do any sort of research on this North Dakota team. Not because I don't respect them, they almost beat Kansas State last year to open the year, but simply because this game should not be close enough for me to put in the time to research them. Who's their coach? Don't know. Quarterback? Hell if I know. What's their mascot? I could give a damn. The point is, if I think there is even a remote chance in hell that this North Dakota team can give Nebraska a scare, to the point where I have to put in time to research the ins and outs of these guys, then I shouldn't be doing this stupid blog in the first place. We have bigger problems if that's the case. (There is absolutely no shot this comes back to bite me in the ass).

Huskers - 44

North Dakota - 10 

 

@ Michigan St. - L

Nebraska is 1-3 in their last 4 matchups in East Lansing with the most recent win coming all the way back in 2012. Do I know much about this Michigan State team? Absolutely not. But I do know Pat Fitzgerald will have this team playing physical football at this point into the season. Can Nebraska match their physicality? I don't know. I would sure hope so. On paper, we could run circles around this team as far as athleticism goes, but in B1G play, some of these rock fights have to be won in specific and sometimes ugly aspects of the game that aren't so blatantly obvious, i.e., time of possession, penalties, field position, getting off the field on 3rd down, etc. I think that style of play is right up Fitzgerald's alley and is exactly what he wants to build this program around. Just think back to his Northwestern teams. They were always outmatched in athleticism, yet they always seemed to find themselves in the game late, just waiting for a ball to bounce their way, an opportunity to arise and ultimately, cease it. On top of all of that, Nebraska always seems to slip and fall on one opponent that we should theoretically win. I don't even need to know what time this game kicks off, I just know this game will be dreary and gray with some weird things happening (feels like a detrimental muffed punt game). Don't feel great about it!

Huskers - 24

Sparty - 27

Maryland - W

Maryland is one of those schools that I just really can't wrap my head around, logically. Like I kind of forget that they are in the B1G sometimes? Until I see them on the schedule and I'm like, "oh, shit..yeah okay." (Yes, I'm aware other fanbases probably feel the same way about Nebraska). Mike Locksley feels like he should have been fired a decade ago even though he only enters his 9th year at Maryland (AND even though he had back to back 8 win seasons? Who remembers that? Not me). I don't know, I love their uniforms and I know that DMV area is a recruiting hot bed, so they'll have talented pieces, but similar to my take on North Dakota, if we have to worry about getting too far over our ski's when predicting Maryland as a win at home, then we've got bigger problems at hand for the 2026 season. With that being said, I will provide a few tidbits about what to expect from this Terrapin ball club. (One of my favorite all time mascots by the way). It all starts and stops at the QB position--Malik Washington. We got a glimpse of him last year. He's athletic and talented, but showed some freshman flaws. I would think he would take the next step in his second year but time will tell. The defense was close to abysmal last year. 16th in the B1G in both scoring and total defense, all while allowing a 40% conversion rate on 3rd down. However, they return much of their production, so much like Malik Washington, can this group take the next step? IF they can, this Terps team may give themselves a fighters chance in a lot of games this season (take a look at Maryland's schedule..not too shabby). And to be real with you, I guarantee this team is circling Nebraska as a very winnable road game in league play. I still like Nebraska to win in Lincoln. It's closer than we would like to admit though. 

Huskers - 33

Terrapins - 28 

 

Indiana - L

Alright, hear me out. I know it's Curt Cignetti. I know it's the defending National Champs. I know they are coming off what was arguably the greatest sport's story, in terms of turnarounds, maybe ever. But let me just paint you a nice little picture--You arise out of your slumber on Saturday, October 10th. College Gameday on the tele. Group chat is firing off with a combination of Best Bets of the Day, player props, parlays and teasers. You crack that first cold snack before you even get food in your belly. The air is cool and crisp outside. Hoodie weather. Football weather. The recipe for a historic upset that day in Lincoln is sitting on the table, and you've already got the first few ingredients in the bowl. Is Nebraska more, or as talented as Indiana? No. Are they as tough? Nope. Better coached? Not by a long shot. BUT! A potential "look ahead" spot looms over the Hoosiers on that day in Lincoln. A "trap game", if you will. Look at their schedule--Indiana will no doubt be 5-0 heading to Memorial Stadium on October 10th with a phenomenal chance to go 6-0. And who awaits them the following week? Ryan Day and the Buckeyes of Ohio State. What a chance to stumble the defending national champs before they go into the eminent and premiere battle of the two B1G goliaths. Now, back to reality. As great as that optimistic story sounds, we must remember who we're dealing with here. Cignetti wouldn't let his team fall victim to a trap game if they were playing the local YMCA. He would hang 90 on the Bloomington School of Blind if you let him. But can the Huskers show some fight? Can they push back a little bit on the new king that sits the Iron Throne? Just enough to let them know who we are and what we can be? Just enough? I think they do. Ultimately, Josh Hoover and the Hoosiers offense puts it away late, but a valiant effort from the boys nonetheless. 

Huskers - 24

Hoosiers - 34 

 

@ Oregon - L

This one here scares me. On paper, Oregon has, what I believe to be the best roster in America. Of course they'll have the skill guys like they've always had. I'm sure they have someone on the outside buried in the 4 deep depth chart that runs a 4.2 40yd dash in pads. A team that finished 13-2 last year returns QB Dante Moore who threw for 3,500 yards, 30 tugs and completed passes at a 70% clip AND STILL feels like he has something to prove. But this defensive unit in Eugene is something maniacal. The group that was 7th in total defense and 12th in scoring a year ago returns its entire defensive front. Secondary will be great again, especially over the top as they replace first round draft pick safety, Dillon Theineman with another pre season All-American in Minnesota transfer, Koi Perich. The thinnest position group on this defense is the linebackers and the coaching staff felt good enough about the depth of this position to not add anyone through the portal. I think this one gets ugly, early and often. Oregon has a sneaky tough conference schedule and I think Dan Lanning will emphasize how this team has to bring it each and every week. A team that talented with that mindset? Scary stuff for little ol Nebraska. (I hope and pray we don't have to see Raiola enter this game in the second half, but something tells me that's exactly what's going to happen. Because we all know how that will go.)

Huskers - 20

Ducks - 41 

  

Washington - L

Washington is a bit of a weird one. This team has a more recent B1G title than Ohio State. That's crazy, yeah? After the departure of Kalen Deboer and the CFP run, Washington has been a little bit up and down. Jedd Fisch is a great coach, and offensively he gets these boys going. In his 3rd year up in Seattle, Fisch looks to build off the two years prior where they've gone 6-7 and 9-4 respectively. As noted before, the offense is talented. They can put up some big numbers while making it look seemingly easy. Returning QB Demond Williams is a highlight reel waiting to happen. Last year he threw for 3,000 yards with 30 TD's and added another 600 on the ground with 6 TD's. A true dual threat QB that can extend plays with his feet which stresses the defense on every play. Washington returns 4 starters on the offensive line who appears to have NFL talent across the board. All that to say, I still think it feels as though Washington is kind of playing with what they want their identity to be? The easy answer would be a high powered, high scoring offense with a bit of a stop-gap defense who is fast and can create turnovers. But this team took a big jump defensively from 2024 to 2025, particularly against the run. So they've improved in that aspect. But in the last two years there have been some slip ups by this program, particularly on the road in conference play. In 2025, two of their four losses came at Wisconsin and at Michigan, while the other two came from Ohio State and Oregon at home. In 2024, Washington lost all five of their conference road games including Rutgers, Iowa, Indiana, Penn State and Oregon. Now, granted there were some big players mixed in those losses like Indiana, Penn State and Oregon, but if you want to talk about Washington being a second tier team in the B1G, they need to start winning some of these road games in league play. Fisch and Co. have yet to really establish that or show that they are capable of winning these games away from home. This alone bodes well for the Huskers. On the flip side of things, Nebraska's so called "home field advantage" has been far from it, through a results standpoint. The Huskers are 6-8 at home against B1G opponents since the inception of Matt Rhule. (It's sad, but this is a big step up from what Scott Frost did at home.) From a crowd standpoint, you can not argue that the fans don't provide some sort of advantage. It's soldout every week. For whatever reason, Nebraska just can not get it done at home. This feels like yet another heartbreaker right in front of our face, and another sad drive home for 90,000 Husker faithful.

Huskers - 31

Huskies - 37 

 

@ Illinois - W

Back to back 9 win seasons for Brett Bielema and the Fighting Illini, for the first time in school history. It's hard to ignore the success Bielema has had in Champaign, but this year will be interesting as they have to replace a lot of production on both sides of the ball. Losing Luke Altmeyer will hurt because who wouldn't want a QB who's been there for a million years with tons of experience. But Illinois did okay for themselves in the portal. I trust that Bielema and staff know the caliber of players they need to fill any voids this team could potentially have. Will it be enough to make it three straight 9 win seasons? Illinois has sneakily become another one of those teams that Nebraska just simply can not beat. The Huskers have one win against the Illini since Covid. They join the likes of Minnesota and Iowa where they just seem to have our number. And it is infuriating. Brett Bielema is just one of those guys though. He's going to establish the run, wear you down up front, cause a turnover or two defensively, manage the game, win the field position battle and walk out of that stadium with a one score win. And they are perfectly content with that. It's a winning style! Hello, Iowa. Hello, Minnesota. Anyone see the pattern here? Nebraska has issues with teams that play with this style. I can't quite put my finger on why, but dare I say.....ahem..physicality? In order to be successful with this style of play, you must be consistently physical. Anyone can be physical in the first couple of drives, hell, anyone can be physical in the first quarter. Can you sustain that level of physicality through the end? Late into the fourth quarter. Late into the season. Nebraska hasn't been able to do that. Rhule talks about it. He talks about it every single offseason, but the results have not shown up. Is this more ear candy, or is this shit actually happening? If I don't believe it now, then when? I have to believe this is the year Rhule and staff finally see culture changes start to culminate and manifest themselves with a group that can match physicality late into the year and late into games. I think this will be a great opportunity to get to prove that change. Nebraska finds a way defensively to put this game on ice, in a one score win for the Huskers. 

Huskers - 24

Illini - 20 

 

@ Rutgers - W

One of my favorite things to do at this point in the year is to look up Rutgers' football roster and staff to see all the Italian names listed. Giacobbe, Cocozzo, Pizzaro, Rainone, Ciarroca, Carrezola, Vallone, Cardinali, DiFede, and the boss man himself, Schiano. I just love it. If the name ends in a vowel, I'm guessing they're from New Jersey. Whether it's Tony Soprano, Tony Hawk or Tony Stark, Rutgers football is as Rutgers football does. 6-6ish. .500 ball. Schiano and Rutgers are exactly 19-19 in the last three seasons. (For the sake of the joke, don't look up Matt Rhule's record in the last three seasons of Nebraska). Death, taxes and Rutgers football being between 5 and 7 wins. Believe me, I get the irony of me making that statement as a Nebraska fan in recent history, I do. But it's undeniable. And I say that to make it a point, that this Rutgers team, at any given moment can be that one team on the schedule that you look back on after the season is over and say, "damn, how did we let that one get away?" Because whether or not you respect Rutgers football in B1G play, they're still a P4 team with P4 caliber talent. They're gonna get to .500 some way, some how. Will Nebraska be on the right or wrong side of that? A new transfer but experienced QB takes over in Piscataway in Dylan Lonergan, to add to a surprisingly productive offense with key pieces in RB, Antwan Raymond and WR, KJ Duff. Raymond a 1,200 yard rusher a year ago and Duff a 1,000 yard pass catcher with some high draft stock. The defense is refining. When you think of a Schiano coached team, you think defense. Well, the Rutgers defense hasn't been what Schiano is used to since the 2023 defense. It has since flipped the script, and not in a good way. What was once a serviceable and rock of a unit, crashed to a defense that ranked 127th in the country last year. In come the changes. Schiano brings in new defensive coordinator Travis Johansen who was the HC at South Dakota last year, and with him comes a large influx of talent through the portal. If this team can get back on a firm and sound foundation defensively, this could be one of those games that sneaks up on ya. A sleepy 11am kick on the east coast? Sounds like a slow start with some fireworks late to escape by the skin of our teeth.

Huskers - 28

Scarlet Knights - 27 

 

Ohio State - L

What do you want me to say here? You want me to coddle your delusionally optimistic brain into thinking there's a chance we can steal one at home against Ohio State? The All-World, All-B1G, All-American loaded, favorite to win the national title? Nice try, idiot. I mean where shall I begin? QB? Julian Sayin, who returns for his second season where he only threw for 3,600 yards at a horrendous 77% clip. RB? Bo Jackson. Not the Bo Jackson, but just some average joe who ran for 1,000 yards in his freshman season. WR? Good thing for us is Ohio State never has talent at this position. They just happened to get lucky and land this one kid, Jeremiah Smith. He only marched to the tune of a 1200 yard receiving season with 12 scores. And nobody knew who this kid was, he definitely was not game planned against with those stats. Enough? You want me to keep going? How about another top 5 recruiting class for the zillionth year in a row. How about reloading at all three levels on both sides of the ball, again. There's levels to this shit and we can't even fathom what the air smells like up on Ohio State's level. Just pray we stay healthy and maybe catch this team sleeping in, because they got bigger fish to fry than a regular season game in Lincoln, NE. 

Huskers - 13

Buckeyes - 35 

 

@ Iowa - L

Well. Here we are. You knew it was coming. If you didn't, now you know. It's sad that it has come to this point. Where I have to predict a loss at the hands of Iowa, without even knowing or seeing what this team looks like. They own our sorry ass. They dominate us in virtually every aspect of the game. They suffocate us to the point where all you can do, is sit there in silence and watch, as this horrendous nightmare continues on and becomes another monotonous and universal norm, much like the sun rising in the East, and setting in the West. It's just a matter of when and how. 2-11 against Iowa in our last 13 matchups since 2013 with an average margin of victory (in our case, loss) of 11. The worst part of all of this, is the fact that Iowa beats us down, year after year, the exact same way Nebraska beat down teams in the 90's. It's built on defense and the ground game. Control field position, control the clock, not turning the ball over, and repeatedly running the ball downhill, right through your damn face. That was our identity! And now we have to watch our rival, right across the street, recreate that exact identity and shovel that right back into our face and say "That was fun. See you same time next year." I don't even need to research this Iowa team. Defense will be great, they'll be deep at RB with one guy being the bell cow who gets stronger as the game goes on, special teams will be essentially perfect, and they'll win almost every single conference game by less than a TD. And they'll do it again and again and again and again. Until I see something otherwise, nobody in their right mind, should ever count this game as a win. It's the unfortunate but honest truth. If I'm wrong, I will be happily wrong. 

Huskers - 17

Hawkeyes - 21 

 

(6-6) OVR (3-6) B1G

Here's the thing when making predictions about Husker football. A lot of it has been pretty much copy and paste from years prior. We all seem to think otherwise. Call it delusion, call it stupidity, call it whatever you want, but boil it all down to wins, losses, performance and toughness? It's the same. And the product is an average ball club (at best) fighting to stay above .500. I need to see it to believe it before I put anything down on paper. If this team goes out there and proves me wrong, week in and week out, fantastic. I will sit my happy ass down and repeatedly tell everyone who didn't ask, that I couldn't have been more wrong. 

Floor is 5-7.

Ceiling is 8-4. And that's IF Nebraska can win all of our "toss up" games--Michigan St., Washington, Illinois.

ROSTER INSIGHT

Offense

I think the offense has potential to be a really fun group to watch. The talent is undoubtedly there. Several weapons on the outside, specifically at WR with Jacory Barney, Nyziah Hunter, Kwazi Gilmer and Cortez Mills, but also add in the pass catchers at TE--Luke Lindenmeyer and Carter Nelson? I like the way it looks on paper. I believe offensive line is also a strength for us this year, particularly between the tackles. Elijah Pritchett and Tree Babalade are some enormous human beings with some highly graded talent, but I believe the meat and potatoes of this group lie on the interior. It feels like we have depth at this position group for the first time in a long time. RB is a pretty obvious question mark, but I also believe this position to be the most expendable in modern day football. Does it help to have a stud at this position? Absolutely. But I would argue a great offensive line can more easily turn any skill player into something better, rather than the other way around. Whoever gets to be the number one guy at RB, I just want it to be known, that your job does not have to be anything spectacular. Tote the pill,  get four yards when you can, protect the ball and for the love of everything holy..PLEASE PASS PROTECT. Anthony Colandrea has a lot of upside just because of what he can do with his feet. I don't think he will wow you with his arm, but I do think he can wow you with how he can extend a play, throw out of the pocket and seemingly turn a broken play into a positive chunk play. He and Dana Holgerson on paper are a match made in heaven. But in my opinion, the jury is still out on Dana and what he has done as a play caller in the last year and some change. I think I like the idea of him more than I actually like what he has done? I don't know, maybe he was handcuffed a little bit last year at different positions (QB) that limited his ability to show a lot of the explosive, high octane offense we were used to seeing from Holgerson. He's much better at calling plays than Satterfield, remember having to watch that? Anyway, I hope it pans out and I hope this offense utilizes it's weapons well.

Defense

Defensively, I have no idea. Nebraska is on it's third defensive coordinator in four years so I think overall continuity from this group will be glaringly scarce. Schematically we will look different. Personnel wise we will look different, even uniform wise we will look different. Just so many question marks on this side of the ball it is hard to provide a meaningful breakdown of what this unit will bring. Very high likelihood we find ourselves in a lot of shootouts--which could be fun, but at the same time having a defense that can't stop a nosebleed is in its own tier of torture. If I were to pick an area of strength from the defensive side of the ball, I would say it starts at the front four. New DC, Rob Aurich had a pretty phenomenal defense at San Diego State which ranked just outside the top 10 in total defense, and was very good at getting to the quarterback. That's something we have not seen consistently (there's that word again), since....Randy Gregory? Who will be that guy? A lot of people speculate (or want to believe) it's Williams Nwaneri. I get it. Former 5 star talent out of high school, he's the shiny new toy. But maybe a schematic change can force his hand and land him some more productivity, because there wasn't a whole lot there last year. Regardless, the defensive line has a good amount of experience on it, so I have no reason to believe that this group will be the unit that leaves us shaking our heads. (Famous last words). Linebackers and secondary are an absolute toss up for me. I don't know who's going where, what role is given to who, who's on first, what's on second and so on and so forth. Couple of transfers here, couple of transfers there, badda bing, badda boom. We've got a defense. Bottom line is this: the first two years under Rhule we had some pretty damn good defenses, both ranking inside the top 20 in Opp/PPG. Last year, the defense undoubtedly regressed. Don't let this be a trend, fix the defense and get it back to where we were in the first couple of years and we could potentially have some fun games ahead. 

Special Teams

I don't know. Just don't f*** up? The best special teams units are the ones that never get talked about. Just abundantly boring but doing their job. That's it. 

 

Overall, I think we see much of the same that Husker fans have become accustomed to over the last decade. Some good, some bad. Some awesome moments, and some moments that make you want to find the tallest building in close proximity and nose dive right off that thing and out of the tortuous fandom of Husker football. We have yet to see any sort of meaningful performances in the back half of the schedule under the Rhule regime, and this years loaded schedule from October on provide no favors in terms of changing that narrative. Regardless, football season is near, and the excitement surrounding the program grows rapidly with each passing day. GBR.

- Big Lazy -