Week 11 Reflection

     A few surprises, content top ranked teams, another crazy Bedlam shootout and a solid Husker victory remain as we leave Week 11 in the dust. Not much chaos came out of this past weekend, but we have solidified a few spots in a couple of the conference championships and even had a bit of shake up in the Heisman voting! This post will reflect back on the past weekend and have my breakdown and analysis of the Huskers win against Illinois, enjoy!


     Nebraska dropped another 50-bomb on Saturday as they knocked the Fighting Illini 54-35. Adrian Martinez and Devine Ozigbo both came away with BIG 10 honors for their performances and once again the Husker offense was humming. Nebraska dominated Illinois 3rd worst defense in the country, racking up 606 total yards of offense (316 rushing, 290 passing) and going a perfect 3 for 3 on 4th down conversions. While a lot of points were put up, Nebraska still struggled in some areas on the offensive side and Illinois actually had the edge when looking at the stats. The Huskers were 4/12 on third down compared to 7/13 for the Illini. The big difference maker was special teams in this game... and I think there actually may be a special teams unit worse than Nebraska now! Illinois had 2 muffed punts leading to Husker turnovers and could not get much working in that area of the game. Nebraska even blocked a punt for a safety! The Husker defense struggled to defend against ex-Husker AJ Bush, and the Illini offense, but with 5 turnovers and lots of dropped passes by the Illinois receivers, Nebraska was able to pull away. I'll break down the game with my GOOD, EXPECTED and BAD categories below.

GOOD: The Husker offense rolled over a lack-luster defense on Saturday, so the GOOD award of the game goes to them. Nebraska had no issues scoring in this game, opening up with a 5 play, 75 yard drive in just over a minute to score their first touchdown. Devine Ozigbo busted out some career high runs and finished with 162 yards on just 11 carries and 3 TDs. His speed down the sideline was incredible and he looks 5 steps faster than his previous years on campus. The Man Stan had 8 catches on the day, racking up 131 yards and 2 long TDs over the Illinois secondary. Maurice Washington and JD Spielman both left the game with injuries, but will hopefully be okay to return against Michigan State. For Adrian Martinez, it was business as usual. An easy 290 yards passing with 3 TDs and one crazy interception that you have to tip your hat to Illinois for. He also racked up 55 and another TD on the ground. Opposing defensive coordinators have struggled to slow him down in nearly every game this season, and I cannot wait to see what this kid has coming in the future. Nebraska really seems to have figured out a good portion of Frost's offensive scheme, but there's still a long way to go. This offense will continue to grow, but I really like what I'm seeing so far!

EXPECTED: My expected aspect of this game was the success of AJ Bush in his return to Lincoln. Apart from his fumble, Bush played an exceptional game. The second of his two interceptions was a poor decision, but the game was over at that point. He finished with 187 yards on the ground and 3 TDs, averaging 7.5 yards per carry. The Blackshirts could not stop him for the vast majority of this game, and if Bush had any receivers who could catch, this would've been a very different game. Through the air, Bush finished with just 126 yards and completed just 11 out of 25 passes with 2 picks. I already mentioned the interception to Mick Stoltenberg, but the his first interception was a perfect pass in the hands of his receiver who then dropped it into Aaron Williams' lap. I would venture to say there were at least 8 drops by the Illini wide receivers in Saturday's game, leading to Bush's poor numbers. However, he used his legs well, and I'm surprised Lovie Smith and crew didn't just run a QB Draw every single play. Bush was a one man wrecking crew against the Blackshirts and is the primary reason Illinois was competitive for a while. As someone who was friends with him during his time as a Husker, I'm happy to see him playing so well. As a Husker fan, it really frustrates me when I can predict every time he's going to run the ball and exactly where he's going to run it, yet the defense still can't stop him. Great game AJ, it was fun to watch you work!

BAD: The bad award of the week definitely falls on the Blackshirts, especially the linebackers. As mentioned in the section above, AJ Bush had a field day running all around the field against Nebraska. Defensive Coordinator Erik Chinander has really struggled to limit opposing offenses this season, and Saturday was just another example. Because of all the drops by Illinois' wideouts, their offense was extremely one dimensional with the run game. I think Chinander was breathing a sigh of relief once Illini running back Reggie Corbin went out with an injury, because he was running just as wild as Bush was. The Blackshirts had numerous blitzes called throughout the game to put pressure on Bush, but never left a spy to prevent the scramble. Bush picked up countless first downs with his feet because there were no linebackers waiting at the second level to contain him. Defense has been an issue all season long, and if Nebraska wants to start competing for BIG 10 Championships and beyond, they need to get it fixed quickly.

     Overall, a solid performance by Nebraska and another step forward in the process. I know Frost is happy with the offensive production, but there's still a long way for this team to go before they're going to be one of the top competitors in the nation. I'm getting really excited for next season, but Michigan State and Iowa better be careful, I think Nebraska is the last 3-7 team anyone wants to play right now, GO BIG RED!

Now for some other news from around CFB:

- Northwestern won their first ever BIG 10 West Division Title on the road against the Hawkeyes this past weekend. They are never an easy team to beat, and whoever faces them in the BIG 10 Championship better be ready for a fight. Also, Iowa's offense has taken a nose dive off a cliff in recent weeks. They do not use QB Nate Stanley and star TE Noah Fant to either of their maximum potentials and that's been detrimental to their season.

- The rest of the BIG 10 West is a complete mess as Wisconsin lost easily to Penn State and Minnesota rocked Purdue in the snow. Michigan still has a vice grip on the East, but the game with Ohio State will determine who plays Northwestern.

- Tennessee knocks off #11 Kentucky 24-7. The Wildcats probably had a huge hangover from the Georgia game, but I don't want to take anything away from 1st year head coach Jeremy Pruitt and the Vols. They racked up over 400 yards on a fairly solid Kentucky defense and really came to play.

- The Big XII drama continues as BEDLAM came down to a failed 2-point conversion, Texas mounted a late comeback on the road at Texas Tech and Baylor and Iowa State ended up brawling in their game. These last two weeks are going to be chaos for this conference.

- Speaking of chaos, we look to the Pac-12 South, where every single team had a shot at winning the division coming into last Saturday... yes, even 2-7 UCLA had a chance. The Bruins chances were spoiled by Arizona State who is fighting Utah for the top spot in the division. The Sun Devils have the tie breaker over the Utes, but the arch-rival Wildcats are right on their heels and there are some very tough games left on the schedule for each team. Utah has the easiest road by beating Colorado this weekend and waiting for Arizona State to lose, so get ready for some craziness.

- Wazzu is looking very strong after a solid win on the road in Boulder. If they can get past Arizona and rival Washington in the next couple weeks, a Pac-12 Championship might be enough to throw them into the playoff conversation.

- Kyler Murray has taken some 1st place Heisman votes away from Tua Tagovailoa, and the race is heating up as Will Grier pushes with a late season surge.

- With Louisville parting ways with Bobby Petrino, it's even more obvious how flat out amazing Lamar Jackson was for that school. He has arguably the most deserved Heisman in recent history because he carried what would've been a 2-3 win team to major bowl games and national power. I'm happy I had the opportunity to see him play live, incredible athlete.

Thank you all for reading my Week 11 Reflection post and be sure to watch for my Gameday Predictions on Saturday morning, GO BIG RED!

#CFBKnowItAll
Alex Fernando