"T-Magic" and Nebraska Roll Over Washington, 56-21

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Nebraska Cornhuskers Have a Running Game.

Experts that predicted an upset of the 8th ranked Huskers at the hands of quarterback Jake Locker looked foolish (that's you, Mark May...), and the Husker offense has now established itself as a primarily rushing team-- and a darn good one.  Big plays have also become a staple of this offense, mainly coming from Taylor Martinez and Roy Helu Jr.

Taylor Martinez passed his first road test with flying colors in a very hostile environment, leading his team to a huge win over a good Washington Huskies team in Seattle.  The sensational redshirt freshman ran wild for his third straight 100 yard rushing game, rolling up 139 yards and 3 touchdowns on 19 carries (including an 80 yard sprint to open the second half), and passed for 150 yards and his first career touchdown, completing 7 of his 11 attempts.  Running backs Roy Helu Jr. and Rex Burkhead also had big days, rushing 10 times for 110 yards and 2 touchdowns, and 13 times for 104 yards and 1 touchdown, respectively.  Helu had another huge touchdown run this week, going for 65 yards, complemented by another 8 yard touchdown.  Burkhead was Nebraska's most reliable weapon once again, consistently gashing the defense for 5 to 9 yard gains, including a few 10 plus yard runs, and a late 19 yard touchdown in which he burst out of a cluster of players after seemingly being halted.  The Huskers collectively rushed for 383 yards against a hapless Washington defense, lacking linebacker Cort Dennison.  Brandon Kinnie was again Martinez' favorite target, catching 5 passes for 105 yards.  Converted wide receiver Mike McNeill also pitched in with a 24 yard touchdown catch to open up the scoring.  Nebraska ran the ball at will against the Huskies, and Martinez took a step forward this week as a passer.  Nebraska racked up 533 total yards against a defense that is not all that impressive (although one that is better than either Western Kentucky or Idaho).  Now, for the bad: fumbles, fumbles, fumbles, fumbles!  Nebraska frankly annoyed me at times during this game, fumbling three times and giving up one, which kept the Huskies in the game until Martinez put the Huskers up 35-14 with his on the first play of the third quarter.  One of the fumbles was by Martinez, which was one of his few mistakes in this game.  McNeill saved Martinez' hide by recovering his fumble.  Backup quarterback Cody Green, however, was not so lucky, as his second quarter fumble in Husker territory led to a UW touchdown.  He had another fumble late in the game, which was recovered by Nebraska.  You can bet Green will be carrying a football high and tight around campus this week.  This type of sloppy play will not fly against the Kansas State Wildcats or the Texas Longhorns.

The defense was up and down today.  At times, particularly on one drive (the Huskies' first touchdown drive), the Huskers looked to be in 2007 form, giving up long run after long run, ending in a 2 yard touchdown run by Chris Polk, one of 2 on the day for Polk.  The secondary also looked  to be in 2007 form on Locker's 45 yard touchdown pass to Jermaine Kearse, a play in which Prince Amukamara and Dejon Gomes (or, as Kirk Herbstreit calls him,  De"Juan" Gomes... ?) both had a brain fart.  Kearse was wide open.  Other than that one drive, the rush defense was fairly solid today, but not solid enough.  A guy like Daniel Thomas would have ran all over the Huskers today, who needed better play from their defensive tackles in particular.  The secondary, on the other hand, was brilliant, other than the previously mentioned touchdown pass.  Jake Locker had a terrible day, completing just 4 of 20 passes for 71 yards, 2 interceptions and that touchdown pass, along with 11 carries for 59 yards and a touchdown run.  The first pick was snagged by peso back Eric Hagg (or, as another ESPN analyst calls him, Eric Stag... what's with these ESPN morons??), and the second was a beautiful 31 yard pick-six by cornerback Alfonzo Dennard.  And don't be fooled: Jake Locker is not that bad.  Nebraska's secondary is just that good.  I now solidly support the claim that Nebraska has both the nation's best cornerback tandem and the nation's best secondary as a whole.  There is just no team that has guys as good as Amukamara, Dennard, Gomes, Hagg, and Rickey Thenarse (who had another pick negated by a stupid penalty) all on the same team.  No, not even Texas.  Just ask Steve Sarkisian, who called the Blackshirts "the top pass defense in America" in a postgame interview.

Nebraska has very good special teams, and it showed in this game.  There was really nothing left to be desired on the part of those special teamers.  Kinnie had a nice kickoff return out to the 50, and the Huskers consistently won the position battle.  Star kicker Alex Henery was never needed as a field goal kicker, but had a fantastic day punting (one was a 61 yard boomer).  Overall, this was a big win against a good team on the road in a hostile environment.  The win puts Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini at 23-8 overall in his third season as head man.  Nebraska takes on South Dakota State at home next weekend, a game that should be a very easy win, but should not be overlooked given the success of FCS teams so far this season.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

*Kansas State beat Iowa State 27-20.  Although that's not all that impressive, Nebraska had better be ready for a dog fight when they head to Manhattan.  Daniel Thomas ran all over the Cyclones, taking his 34 carries for 182 yards and 2 touchdowns.  This is a guy that could conceivably beat Nebraska by himself if the Huskers aren't ready for him.

*The West Virginia Mountaineers likely doused the Maryland Terrapins' recently kindled ACC championship hopes with a 31-17 win.  Quarterback Geno Smith smoked the Terps through the air with 4 touchdown passes, and star running back Noel Devine chipped in with 131 rushing yards.

*The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets outlasted the North Carolina Tar Heels 30-24 in the Battle of the Disappointments.  The Jackets were upset by the Kansas Jayhawks a week earlier, while the Heels are still without several defensive starters.  So much for all those first round draft picks...

*Ohio State spanked the in-state Ohio Bobcats 43-7. Whoop-de-doo.  Does anybody else think Terrelle Pryor, a Heisman favorite who threw two picks, is overrated??

*Michigan survived a major scare from FCS opponent Massachussetts, 42-37.  Geeze, what's with the FCS? They are, well, competitive!  (Nebraska plays FCS member South Dakota State next week, Pelini better not overlook the Jackrabbits.)  Denard Robinson looked a little more human in this game, but was still impressive.

*Arkansas receiver Greg Childs foiled a comeback bid by the Georgia Bulldogs, taking a Ryan Mallett pass for a touchdown with just seconds to go in the game to put the Razorbacks up 31-24.  Ryan Mallett is another overrated Heisman candidate.  He had 380 yards passing, but had wide open receivers all day.  I'm confident Georgia would have won had star receiver AJ Green been allowed to play.  Arkansas will get crushed by Alabama next week.

*Ole' Miss's woes continue with a 2 touchdown loss to SEC bottom dweller Vanderbilt.  Jeremiah Masoli threw a pick-six.  I guess that's what you get for breaking the law and getting kicked off your incredible football team.

*That incredible football team, Oregon, proceeded to dismantle another inferior opponent, Portland State, 69-0, a score that was reached after only 3 quarters.  Anybody who thinks anobody else is going to win the Pac-10 is lying to themselves, barring a major upset.  Oregon is an offensive machine, and there is no defense in the Pac-10 that can stop them.  I bet they hang 40 plus on USC.

*Northwestern handled Rice 30-13.  The only reason I bring this up is because Texas only beat Rice 34-17.  Texas has to be better than Northwestern, but again, Texas just hasn't impressed me so far.  That being said, Texas will want to beat Nebraska much worse than they wanted to beat Rice.

*Texas A&M survived a scare from Florida International, scoring 3 touchdowns in the 4th quarter to escape 27-20. Phhewww!

*Dez who? Oklahoma State hung 65 points on a hapless Tulsa team, who had 28, 14 of which were in the 4th quarter after the game was well over.  Dang!  Obviously Tulsa doesn't have half the defense Nebraska does, but the Huskers better not overlook a possible trap game in Stillwater, a place we haven't fared well at in the past.

*Missouri barely survives against San Diego State, 27-24.  Sam McKewon was right when he said SDSU was better than Illinois.  Mizzou hasn't been particularly impressive either so far this season.  Nebraska's secondary might have a very nice game against Blaine Gabbert (and the offense against a defense that might not have an answer for T-Mart).

*LSU had a nice win against a decent Mississippi St. team, 29-7.  The Tigers control their own destiny in the SEC.  Les Miles might save his job after all (thank goodness).

*The Auburn Tigers breathed a sigh of relief as they pulled out a 27-24 overtime victory over Clemson.  Cam Newton, who probably faced the best defense of the three hyped newcomer quarterbacks (the other two being Martinez and Robinson), had the worst day.  Still, he didn't look too bad.  He should develop into a quality, Josh Freeman-type quarterback.  He has the skill set to be successful in the NFL.

*A couple wolfpack leaders had good days this week.  Russell Wilson and NC State handled the Cincinnati Bearcats 30-19, while Colin Kaepernick and Nevada surprised the California Golden Bears 52-31.  This is the same Cal defense that was ranked 1st in the nation coming into the game...

*I'm really rooting for new Kansas coach Turner Gill (obviously), but his Jayhawks suffered a tough loss at Southern Miss, 31-16.  Gill was left with very little to work with, and he has done a nice job adjusting and coaching up his team thus far.  He has a bright future as a head coach.

*The USC Trojans again looked thoroughly unimpressive in a 32-21 win over crappy Minnesota.  The Trojans won't even come close to winning the Pac 10.

*Florida finally showed up this week-- well, sort of.  A 31-17 win over a Tennessee team that lost to Oregon 48-13?  Maybe not a statement win, but Urban Meyer will take it.

*Colorado cruised over Hawaii 31-13.  What the...??  Is that the same CU that... Huh???  This is a head scratcher.  So which Colorado is going to show up next week against Georgia?

*Wisconsin eeked out a 20-19 win over Arizona State.  The experts called it right when they put this game on upset watch.

*Speaking of upset watches, Oklahoma also survives a scare from a very good Air Force team, 27-24.  The Falcons should go up in the rankings despite the loss.

*Virginia Tech recorded their first win of the season, running away from East Carolina 49-27.  Frankly, this should have been the Hokies' third win.

*The Texas Longhorns escaped Lubbock with a 24-14 win over the Red Raiders.  Garrett Gilbert had a paltry performance, but the Longhorn secondary ruled the day.  Gilbert will be facing a much better secondary when they travel to Lincoln.

*Michigan State wins a thriller against Notre Dame in overtime, 34-31, on a fake field goal for a touchdown.  Poor Notre Dame... not.  In all seriousness, Notre Dame will get better with Brian Kelly.

*Earlier in this article I stated that Oregon is by far the best team in the Pac-10.  That was before I watched Arizona stun Iowa 34-27.  The Wildcats survived a late comeback bid by the Hawkeyes, showing that they can in fact handle adversity and play as tough as the top teams.  Nick Foles had a fantastic game, and although I still think Oregon will win the Pac-10, if anybody will come close to beating the Ducks, it's Arizona.  Mike Stoops got fight out of his players that was nonexistent against Nebraska in last season's Holiday Bowl.

*The UCLA Bruins, after getting humiliated in their first two games, manhandled the Houston Cougars, 31-13.  Where the heck did this come from?  Houston must have a terrible defense.

*Stanford destroyed Wake Forest 68-24, solidifying itself as the third best team in the Pac-10, and a dark horse for the Pac-10 Championship.  Last week's drubbing of UCLA looks a lot better now.

That should be plenty for you to chew on this week.  Watch for a commentary on Taylor Martinez later this week!