Nebraska Cornhuskers -- Quick Primer

What Comes Around Goes Around

Resources:
Nebraska Cornhuskers Preview Capsule (Hawk Digest) | huskernetwork.com | Big 12 Digest

Series: Nebraska 88-22-3
Time: 11:30 a.m.
TV: Fox Sports
Line: KU (-19)

Recent History: (home team)
1997 NU 35, KU 0
1998 NU 41, KU 0
1999 NU 24, KU 17
2000 NU 56, KU 17
2001 NU 51, KU 7
2002 NU 45, KU 7
2003 NU 24, KU 3
2004 NU 14, KU 8
2005 KU 40, NU 15
2006 NU 39, KU 31 

The Rundown

Kansas is a 19-point favorite tomorrow in Lawrence, but Nebraska fans are oddly confident that they'll be able to handle KU. Why wouldn't they be? Look at what they have going for them:

• A lame duck coach that has guided one of the top five programs in the country into oblivion despite top level facilities, guaranteed weekly 80k attendance and high level recruits
• A virtually unknown quarterback forced into the starting role by an injury to Sam Keller (we are assured that Ganz will be as awesome as Keller was said to have been in preseason magazines)
• A near win against a Texas team that has knocked off powerhouses Central Florida, Baylor and well ... Nebraska (See KSU notes 2006, 2007)
• A defense that ranks dead last in the nation vs the run

Plus, it's not like KU has any motivation. Consider the following:

• Nebraska ran up some kind of streak of like 107 straight wins where they'd frequently head into the 70-point range
• The first and only home game in Lawrence with a name opponent
• 9-0
• Another week in the national title hunt
• Push the division record to 3-0
• Another step toward the north title and a Big 12 Championship
• The chance to win early then watch Mizzou sweat it out on the road
• The powerful motivating factor of a homecoming parade

The Key

Play your best game. Again, Kansas still has not thrown out a full four quarters of good football execution. One thing that is not mentioned much is that this is a relatively young football team with only one senior starting on defense. They are still improving and as we go into the stretch run it would be a fantastic time to put it all together -- especially on offense.

Clearly it will help to get some pressure on the new quarterback as Callahan has stressed that they will run the same offense. I'd run the ball early and shorten the game if I was wearing red pants on Saturday, but Bill knows what he's doing. If our defenders can catch the ball this week, that pressure should merit some turnovers.

Offensively, it would be great to come out early and score, but clearly it doesn't matter. The interesting thing about Reesing is that he usually comes out on fire for the series that matters. Every time we get in the second half and I'm thinking this is about where you need to take over the game, Sparky comes out with purpose. That is what distinguishes him from every KU quarterback I've seen play. Well ... that and the snake wrangling.