Nebraska Football Predictions: 5 Reasons Cornhuskers Will Win Big Ten

Third time's the charm?

The Nebraska Cornhuskers enter the 2011 season coming off back-to-back losses in the Big 12 Championship.

Newbies to the Big Ten, Nebraska hopes to find itself in Indianapolis on Dec. 3 playing for the inaugural Big Ten Championship.

Here's five reasons why the Huskers are the team to beat in the Big Ten.

Stellar Defense on All Levels

It's safe to say the Blackshirts have returned under the Pelini brothers following back-to-back impressive campaigns.

Nebraska also returns a wealth of experience from last year's squad and more importantly boasts a potential All-American on all three levels of the defense.

Jared Crick bolsters a physical defensive line while Lavonte David and his school-record 152 stops come back for the linebacking corps.

The loss of Prince Amukamara in the secondary hurts, but Alfonzo Dennard has the potential to be just as good.

No matter the result, Nebraska's defense is a championship caliber defense.

Taylor Martinez Is a Heisman Candidate

Prior to a season-hindering ankle injury, Taylor Martinez found himself on many Heisman watch lists.

Martinez claims to finally be healthy, which should help the Husker offense infinitely after struggling down the stretch last season.

While his rushing numbers may not be as mind-numbing as last year, his passing should be greatly improved following the simplification of the new playbook.

If Martinez can resemble himself from the first five games of last season it could be a long year for opposing Big Ten defenses.

Rex Burkead

It's difficult to describe to the casual fan how much running back Rex Burkhead means to the Nebraska football team.

Burkhead brings much more to the table than his 990 rushing yards, 10 touchdowns and 396.00 passing efficiency rating. Yes, that 396.00 is real, but that's what you get when you are 3-of-4 passing for three touchdowns.

Don't expect Burkhead to take too many snaps this season, but his rushing numbers should be great as he will garner the bulk of the carries.

Freshmen Ready to Contribute

The Huskers may rely on freshmen more than usual in 2011, but rather than being viewed as a bad thing it is definitely a positive.

Bo Pelini is typically reserved when it comes to playing inexperienced personnel, but when venturing down the depth chart it is easy to notice the amount of youngsters on the two-deep.

Jamal Turner dazzled during the Spring and the backup stable of running backs is full of newbies.

Expect Turner, Aaron Green and Braylon Heard to earn some valuable touches this season.

Coaching

It's tough to put a price on coaching but if I had to guess, Bo Pelini and his staff would rank among the highest paid.

Brother Carl serves as the team's defensive coordinator and has put together one of the best units in the country.

Tim Beck takes the reigns of the offense, simplifying the playbook to give players a better understanding.

If there is an area Nebraska is struggling in it certainly isn't coaching.