Four B1G Things vs Nebraska

My Nick Toon jersey is washed, pressed, and folded. My Nebraska vs Wisconsin ticket lays precisely on the counter where I left it a month ago. My preferred pre-game beverages? Chilling in the refrigerator.  All that’s left to do is watch the remaining minutes tick by as Moses’s War creeps closer and closer.

But as the hype and anticipation continue to grow, so does the anxiety that die-hard fans sometimes feel in the waning days before their team squares off with a heavy-weight contender. So, in a (probably futile) effort to help stem the nerves, we’re going to cover one key area per day that the Badgers need to focus on in order to send Nebraska home with a losing B1G record.

Let’s get ‘her crackin’.

One of Four B1G Things: Contain, Contain, Contain

T-Magic, Tres Martinez, T-Mart, Taylor Martinez, whatever you call him,containing the Husker quarterback will be paramount to the success of the Badgers. Sam Oleson said it perfectly when he stated, “The Husker offense goes as Taylor Martinez goes.” He is the life and focal point of the Nebraska attack–both through the air and on the ground. Running the option alongside running back Rex Burkhead, Martinez is a beast in the open field. In space, Martinez is one of the top runners in the country. Don’t believe me? Check the highlights from Martinez vs Kansas State last year during Martinez’s freshman campaign.

That being said, it’s not like Wisconsin has never faced a running, dual-threat quarterback before. Seems to me they did just fine about a year ago in another home-game of epic proportions…

So to stop Martinez, I predict the Badgers to follow a similar game-plan as last year vs Pryor and the Buckeyes. For as dangerous as Martinez is running the rock, he still has a ways to go before mastering the art of the aerial attack. Look for the Badgers to keep a spy (Borland, anyone?) on Martinez and to focus on shutting down the run by stacking the box–forcing Martinez to beat them through the air.

If the Badgers can limit T-Magic’s production on the ground, prevent the big play, and force Martinez to go to the air, Wisconsin will be one step closer to defeating the Huskers.

So sleep tight, Badger fans, and may dreams of Jump Around dance in your heads.

More to come tomorrow.

Mitch Larson

Wisconsin vs. Nebraska: Scouting the Cornhuskers

In case you didn’t know (I pray to God that isn’t actually the case), No. 7 Wisconsin (4-0) hosts No. 8 Nebraska (4-0) in the Cornhuskers’ first Big Ten game and one of the most-anticipated games in Badger football history. Not only is this the first Big Ten game for both schools this season, but it’s also a top 10 match-up that could have serious national title implications.

Moral of the story: this is a national championship elimination game for both teams.

So, here’s a scouting report for the high-powered Huskers.

Offense

Quarterback:

Using a spread option attack, Nebraska has one of the most prolific offenses in the country. The key to that specific attack, more so than many other offensive schemes across the country, is the quarterback. A system like this relies on the quarterback to make plays with his feet and if he can’t, the offense becomes extremely limited.

This is the case with Taylor Martinez and Nebraska. The way Martinez goes is the way Nebraska goes. And so far, it’s been going pretty well. The Huskers are averaging close to 43 points a game and Martinez has been the key.

He leads the team in rushing with 421 yards on just 63 attempts and has already scored seven touchdowns. If he gets out in space, he’s one of the most dangerous players in the country and Wisconsin will need to keep him bottled up. They did it to Chandler Harnish, there’s no reason to think they can’t limit Martinez as well.

And, if they can limit Martinez on the ground, it bodes well for Wisconsin. Martinez, only a sophomore, still hasn’t mastered the passing game, completing only around 50 percent of his passes this season with 647 yards, 4 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.

Running Backs:

Other than Martinez, Nebraska’s primary force on the ground is running back Rex Burkhead. Burkhead, like Martinez, is having a fabulous season, rushing for 420 yards already on 63 carries with seven touchdowns.

If Martinez can’t get it going, the Huskers will rely on Burkhead to power the offense. Other than Burkhead, Braylon Heard and Aaron Green have also received a number of carries this season.

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends:

Although they don’t get a ton of action, Nebraska does have a number of receivers capable of making some big plays. Freshman Jamal Turner leads the team with 8 catches for 139 yards with a long of 43. Quincy Enunwa also has 8 receptions for 111 yards and a touchdown.

The Huskers also use the tight end, with Kyler Reed chipping in with 5 catches for 137 yards.

Although certainly not featured, Wisconsin can’t afford to sleep on this receiving corps.

Offensive Line:

Clearly, with the Huskers having already rushed for 1,090 yards as a team, the offensive line is doing a pretty good job. When Martinez has dropped back to pass however, the line has allowed 5 sacks. If Wisconsin hopes to shut down Martinez, they’ll need to penetrate this tough line.

Defense

Defensive Line:

Despite a very talented defensive line, Nebraska has been somewhat vulnerable against the run this year. Opponents are averaging 133 yards a game on the ground and if Wisconsin likes to do one thing, it’s run.

However, after missing last week against Wyoming, the Huskers get back senior defensive tackle Jared Crick, who already has 14 tackles, 3 tackles for loss and 1 sack this year. Containing him will be huge.

Russell Wilson will also need to be on the lookout for defensive end Cameron Meredith, who already has 3 sacks on the year.

Linebackers:

The Nebraska linebacking corps is led by senior Lavonte David, who leads the team with 38 tackles, 2 TFL and an interception. Will Compton (True Blood, anyone?) has also had a solid season for the Huskers, contributing 22 tackles.

Defensive Backs:

This is where Nebraska has struggled on the year. They’re giving up over 216 yards passing a game and have already given up 8 touchdowns.

Wisconsin, under Wilson, has suddenly become quite potent through the air. If given time, the combinations of Wilson-Toon and Wilson-Abbrederis could have big days.

The fact is, as highly touted as the “Blackshirts” were coming into the season, they’ve been quite disappointing so far. They’re giving up 22 points and 350 yards a game and don’t look anything like the defense of last season.

If they play like they have so far, Wisconsin could easily put up 40 points on the Huskers.

Special Teams

Kicker:

Nebraska’s kicker, Brett Maher, has been nothing short of spectacular this season. He’s 8-of-9 on field goals with his only miss coming from over 50 yards.

Punter:

Did I mention Brett Maher was good? He’s also Nebraska’s punter and he may be even better here. He’s averaging 49 yards a punt and has already pinned 6 punts inside the 20-yard line.

Kick Returns:

For the most part, Ameer Abdullah has handled the return duties for the Huskers. And, he’s good. On the year, he’s averaging 42.5 yards a return and has a touchdown.

Punt Returns:

Again, Abdullah. He’s averaging 12 yards a return and has a long of 28. Look out for No. 8.

 

 

Grading the Defense: Week 4

Just another day in the life for the nation’s third-best scoring defense.

The Badgers played well enough up front and essentially made the Coyotes one-dimensional. The secondary was stellar, the linebackers made plays, the front four brought pressure, and the collective defensive unit finally began recording take-aways. Here are the individual grades:

Defensive Line: A-

I’m a bit torn about the line’s performance. While they did bring constant pressure and recorded three sacks, they seemed unable to stop the run game, at times. Granted the Coyotes were very one-dimensional in their play-calling and ran the ball 37 times, it still hurts to see 124 rushing yards under the Coyotes’ stat line. Call me a perfectionist, but while it only averages out to 3.4 yards per rush, I think the Badgers front four can improve. And they’ll need to next weekend against the dynamic rushing attack of Taylor Martinez and Rex Burkhead.

Linebackers: A-

This would be a straight A, but I pass part of the blame for South Dakota’s 124 rushing yards to the linebacking corps. But besides that, the linebackers were effective. Borland continues to demonstrate his knack for making big plays while recording his first interception of the year. The unit also featured the Badgers’ top three tacklers of the day in Mike Taylor, Borland, and Kevin Claxton.

Secondary: A+

Any team who can hold their opposition, no matter how bad, to less than 50 yards through the air deserves mad props. When Nick Toon can out-gain the Coyotes in one play, you know the secondary was on top of their game. Cromartie seems to be fitting in well with the unit and they collectively appear confident to move on to their next challenge.

It’s awfully hard to complain about a defense that has given up 8.5 ppg through the first four match-ups, but the Badgers must continue to improve before their anticipated match-up with the Huskers. Can’t wait.

On Wisconsin.

-Mitch Larson