Things to anticipate from a team of 18-22 year olds led by a true freshman starting at QB, a new coach, and a young team on their opening day:
- getting a play in
- lining up in the correct position
- avoiding delay of game penalties
- off-sides
- reading a defense and making adjustments before the snap
- staying in the pocket
- time management
- not wasting TOs
- realization that CFB players are faster than HS players
- getting the game to slow down
- getting up time and again after being hit
- overcoming nerves and high expections (internal/external)
- not staring down the intended reciever
- finding 2nd, 3rd, 4th reads
- ball control
- playing at high level for all 4 quarters
No matter how talented coach Scott Frost might be, he and his players are simply not battle tested. They don’t have anywhere near the reps that a more mature team and a more stable coaching staff will have.
CU’s Montez - Wins on road in hostile and loud Oregon, setting school records for total yards in the process; Has been awarded conference player of the week; Has faced and led scoring drives vs USC, UDub, Washington, and other ranked teams in loud and hostile environments; Is a known entity who has multiple skills players and has demonstrated an ability to get six TDs from six different players in one game as recently as last week.
NU’s Martinez - unknown & green
CU might load the box, apply pressure, focus on getting to the QB and stop the run. I expect CU to force Martinez to win with his arm against manned coverage. (Frost probably burns CU with the TE pass up the seam)
Martinez will make mistakes, as green college QBs tend to do. When he does. CU will exploit them.
Sorry not sorry for the sacks, the picks, and all those bad calls by the refs that will cause NU to lose this season opener. The good news for Husker fans is that the most improvement happens between games 1 and 2.
Certainly the harsh lessons CU will provide to the Huskers on Saturday will go a long way towards helping the bug eaters game ready for their matchup against Troy the following week.