Game Day Primer: Indiana Hoosiers vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers
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Written By T.J. Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)
What: Nebraska Cornhuskers at Indiana Hoosiers
When: Saturday, October 15 at 3:30 PM
Where: Memorial Stadium in Bloomington, IN
How to Watch: The game will be broadcast on ABC. You can listen to the audio broadcast on the IU Radio Network.
What’s at Stake: There is so much at stake this Saturday. The two teams are meeting for the first time since 1978. The Cornhuskers are in the top ten and looking to keep their unbeaten record and avoid a damaging loss in their quest for their first Big Ten West division title. The Indiana Hoosiers are hoping to beat their second ranked team of the season (something that hasn’t happened since 2003), beat a top ten for the first time since 1967 and beat a top ten team at home for the first time since 1950. Most importantly though, the Hoosiers are hoping to maintain the momentum gained from a win over Michigan State and a good performance at Ohio State. A victory here would vault them to 4-2 and give them an excellent chance at returning to a bowl game for the second straight season.
Special Note: BTN Tailgate will be broadcasting live from Bloomington this Saturday! BTN Tailgate is the network’s new pregame show that will originate from a different Big Ten campus each week during conference play. The show will begin at 10:30 a.m. from the south side of the Mellencamp Pavilion and will run until noon. Dave Revsine, former IU coach Gerry DiNardo and former NFL player Anthony Adams will be hosting.
A Few Things to Look For
Starting, and Finishing, Strong
The Nebraska Cornhuskers are finishing games incredibly well in 2016. They are +72 in the final quarter during their first five games, the best mark in the country thus far. They outscored Fresno State 22-0, Wyoming 28-0, Oregon 7-6 and Illinois 21-0 for a total of 78-6. This is in stark contrast to the close-game troubles they had in 2015. Not only are they closing incredibly well, they are also beginning games at a strong clip, outscoring opponents 28-8 in the first quarter. They outscored Fresno State, Wyoming and Illinois 7-0, were behind Oregon 8-7 and had a scoreless first 15 minutes against Northwestern. It will be important for the Hoosiers to play a complete sixty minutes against the Cornhuskers, something no previous Nebraska opponent has accomplished.
Capitalizing on Scoring Chances
Indiana’s offense hasn’t been bad by any means but it has yet to reach the high-level we saw in 2015. The major reason for that is a failure to capitalize on scoring chances. Red zone opportunities aren’t the whole story but they do give a decent snapshot of how well a team is cashing in on chances to put points on the scoreboard. Through five games, the Hoosiers have had 18 red zone attempts with 12 scores. That’s a scoring percentage of 66.67%. The real problem is that they have only 8 touchdowns (with four field goals) on those 18 red zone trips. Nebraska’s opponents are converting for points on 75% of red zone opportunities (9-12). If IU intends to pull this upset, they’ll need to improve on their red zone offense. That might mean allowing Richard Lagow to throw the ball as opposed to handing the ball to Devine Redding or trying option plays. It might mean an increased red zone role for Tyler Natee and the Big Bacon package or perhaps more creative play-calling like we saw two weeks ago with Mitchell Paige tricking the Michigan State defense and lobbing it Lagow for the score. IU will need a good day in the red zone and successful trips on most, if not all, of their scoring chances.
Balanced Attack
The Nebraska Cornhuskers have improved their rushing attack in 2016. The result has been a balanced offense that is producing nearly 500 yards a game (472.6, second in the league). The Huskers have run for 234.2 yards per game, fourth best in the conference and 23rd in the country. They have run for at least 200 yards in four of five contests. Terrell Newby leads the running game with 327 yards on 59 carries (5.5 ypc) and Tommy Armstrong has added 293 yards on 60 carries (4.9 ypc). The leading rusher in terms of carries is Devine Ozigbo but he is doubtful for Saturday’s game. His efficiency and steadiness will be missed and Nebraska will turn to Mikale Wilbon and Tre Bryant to pick up some of his carries.
Nebraska has averaged 238.4 yards per game through the air, making them about as balanced as possible (at least yardage wise). Armstrong has done a very nice job of moving the chains without turning the ball over and he’s having a very nice senior season, throwing for nine touchdowns to just two interceptions. There are some areas for encouragement for IU fans though as the Cornhuskers will be dealing with major injuries to their pass-catching corps. Top wideout and security blanket Jordan Westerkamp and tight end Cethan Carter were both left off of the week’s depth chart and they are considered “doubtful” for Saturday’s game. Alonzo Moore is a dangerous big-play wideout and Stanley Morgan is a very capable receiver plus Brandon Reilly will see an increased role with Westerkamp injured so Nebraska is still very dangerous through the air but those injuries will hurt them a bit. The Huskers have gained at least 400 yards in seven straight games (dating back to last season), IU has yet to surrender 400 yards in a regulation game: something has to give!
Names to Know and Injury Notes:
-Just to repeat: Nebraska is likely to be without WR Jordan Westerkamp and TE Cethan Carter. The Hoosiers have been without All-American RG Dan Feeney for the past three weeks but they are hoping to having him back after he travelled with the team to Columbus last Saturday and has “been doing more” in practice. RB Cole Gest (ankle) and DL Jacob Robinson (concussion) have also been practicing but their status for Saturday’s game is unknown at this time.
-Nebraska’s 2016 opponents haven’t been stellar. In fact, they have a record of only 10-17 and Wyoming is the only team the Cornhuskers have played that have a winning record (4-2 with a loss against Eastern Michigan but a recent win over Air Force).
-Nebraska had a bye last week but in their previous game (against Illinois), Nebraska did not punt. It was the first game since November of 2000, in a game against Kansas, the Huskers didn’t punt. Illinois ran only 44 plays on the day and Nebraska held the ball for 38:01 of the game, including an 18-play drive that chewed up 10:42 of the second-half clock.
-IU’s coverage teams have been very good this season but they were burned by Ohio State’s Paris Campbell last week. Nebraska’s De’Mornay Pierson-El is a man to be wary of. He has 11 career punt returns of 25 yards or more and he’s only a junior.
-Indiana will be wearing special uniforms that pay homage to the “candy stripe” tradition of other Indiana Hoosier athletics programs. The uniforms have been covered by others on Hoosier Huddle and photos can be seen in many places. I’m looking forward to seeing them in action and I think they’ve added an additional fun thing to look forward to.
-Over the past 60 years, the Nebraska Cornhuskers have won 538 games. That’s the most wins in the country over that time period (Oklahoma is second with 528 and Ohio State is third with 519). Of course, none of those past victories mean a darn thing this Saturday.