Nebraska Football: Predicting Stats for Cornhuskers' Top Players in 2012

“There are three kinds of lies: lies, damn lies, and statistics.”

- Mark Twain

Ultimately, the only statistic Nebraska fans care about are wins and losses. But looking at the numbers helps us get an idea of not only what the wins and losses may be, but also what Nebraska’s offense and defense will look like.

So let’s put our collective Carnac turbans on, peer into the Magic 8-Ball and take some informed guesses as to the statistics of the top five performers for Nebraska in the major categories.

Passing

Look for Nebraska to throw the ball more, particularly earlier in the season, as NU tries to find more balance in its offense.

The off-season work Taylor Martinez put in on his mechanics, combined with a more effective play-calling scheme from second-year offensive coordinator Tim Beck, leads to an improved Nebraska passing attack.

	Att.	Comp.	Cmp. %	Yards	TD	INT
Taylor Martinez	312	188	60.5	2122	16	10

Rushing

Tim Beck has promised that Rex Burkhead won’t have the same workload as he did in 2011, but Superman should still be the primary weapon in Nebraska’s rushing offense. Burkhead’s consistency should be the foundation upon which the rest of Nebraska’s dynamic offense will be based.

With a full season to heal, look for Martinez to have more carries and more explosiveness.  

Ameer Abdullah should be the primary backup, and he will get most of the carries that were divided between him, Aaron Green, and Braylon Heard.

Mike Marrow should see playing time as a change-of-pace back and a goal line vulture, while Jamal Turner is primed for a breakout season as a rushing threat.

	Att.	Yards	TD
Rex Burkhead	259	1373	15
Taylor Martinez	201	1105	11
Ameer Abdullah	104	500	7
Mike Marrow	36	108	3
Jamal Turner	20	140	2

Receiving

Kenny Bell is the clear leader of Nebraska’s receiving corps coming into 2012.

Jamal Turner, with a year to focus and make up for his late season fade, makes a strong recovery and adds a level of dynamism to Nebraska’s offense.

After a year off, Tim Beck rediscovers the matchup problems Kyler Reed provides to opposing defenses, and he has a bounceback year.

Quincy Enunwa and Tim Marlowe remain safe possession receivers.

	Rec.	Yards	TD
Kenny Bell	45	595	5
Quincy Enunwa	30	305	3
Jamal Turner	25	325	3
Kyler Reed	22	290	4
Rex Burkhead	18	205	2

Tackles

Don’t look for anyone to be breaking Lavonte David’s record-setting pace of tackles.

But given the structure of Nebraska’s defense, it will be very surprising if a linebacker isn’t the lead tackler. And Compton, being the leader of the linebacker corps, is the most likely candidate to lead the way.

	Tackles
Will Compton	105
Daimion Stafford	85
Cameron Meredith	63
Sean Fisher	60
Mohammed Seisay	55

Sacks

Nebraska’s defensive structure lends itself more to sacks coming from the interior defensive line and linebackers. The exception to that rule might be Cameron Meredith, who should play lighter than he did in 2011.

Hopefully for Nebraska fans, that will help Meredith regain some of the speed and ferocity he was able to use in attacking the edge of the offensive line.

	Sacks
Will Compton	4.5
Cameron Meredith	3.5
Zaire Anderson	2.0
Baker Steinkuhler	1.5
Chase Rome	1.0

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