Nebraska’s offense still a mystery

By Marc Hudgens  |   Sunday, May 25, 2008  |  Comments( 0 )

Nebraska Cornhuskers
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It has seemed over the past few months that the resurrection of the Nebraska Huskers' once-mighty defense has received the spotlight, while the offense has gone relatively unnoticed.

Considering the Blackshirts were by far the biggest culprits in last season's demise, it's understandable that unit is getting more attention. The offense, by contrast, was another story. Not to make excuses for the ex-coach who arguably burned every possible bridge in Lincoln, but Bill Callahan's offenses were pretty good. Nebraska was ranked No. 70 and No. 97 in the nation during Callahan's first two seasons, improving to 14th and ninth, respectively, in his final pair.

After Callahan was fired, many were wondering what the future held for offensive coordinator Shawn Watson, who held the job during Callahan's final season. But new coach Bo Pelini retained Watson, one of only two Callahan staffers who weren't let go.

So it begged many questions: What will the new offense be like? Will it be the Huskers' historic bread and butter, the triple option? West Coast? Spread? What?

"Everybody, stop trying to name it! Geez," Watson vented this past March. "Everybody wants to put a name on it around here. It’s the Nebraska offense. How’s that? Sounds good to me."

Regardless of what its ultimately known as, running will likely take precedence over passing in Watson's offense, so a huge West Coast emphasis is probably going to be there. I-back Marlon Lucky -- who ranked seventh among all Big XII rushers last season -- will be the main event. The backup runner is Roy Helu, Jr., who outperformed Lucky during the Red-White spring game.

Although Joe Ganz locked up the quarterback spot, he has no one singular go-to receiver. Experienced seniors Nate Swift and Todd Peterson return, and it appears incoming freshman Curenski Gilleylen, who has impressed everyone, will get a lot of playing time. So a decent passing game is seemingly in place, which would make it hard to emphasize a triple option unless the aerial attack goes awry.

No one will know exactly what Nebraska's offense will entail until after the first three games or so of the season, but there are things followers of the team are almost certain to see. And from what has been seen thus far, running will be the largest tenet of Watson's philosophy.
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About Marc Hudgens

Marc Hudgens has been with RealFootball365 since 2007, covering college football, specifically Clemson and Oregon. He also writes for SouthernPigskin.com covering the ACC. He enjoys the acidic wit of Hunter S. Thompson, is a freelance graphic designer and has written several screenplays. He ...
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