Nebraska Football: Report Card Grades for the Cornhuskers' First Game

Nebraska beats Chattanooga, 40-7. Sure, you've seen the score. But that doesn't really tell you what happened. It doesn't help you understand why Nebraska won. It doesn't help you get an idea of what could happen next week and throughout the season.

So let's take a look, unit by unit, at how NU did against the Mocs. The college football season has started, so school is back in session. Time to get the grading pen out.

Quarterbacks: B

Go ahead and say it. Taylor Martinez ran for over 100 yards, threw for over 100 yards and had three touchdowns. How can the quarterbacks’ grade be less than an A?

A few reasons. First, it’s clear that the "Tim Beck Offensive Experience," Nebraska’s new offense, is going to depend a lot on the option. Far too often, Martinez looked uncomfortable or did not execute the option as well as he could. When he did (as with Rex Burkhead’s first big run), the results were stellar. But consistency was lacking on the option execution.

Additionally, Martinez’s passing left much to be desired. He was off target on many throws, forcing his receivers into awkward positions attempting to catch the throws. Admittedly, he didn’t get much help from his receivers when they were on target (more on that later), but Martinez isn’t going to be mistaken for Peyton Manning anytime soon.

Additionally, backup quarterback Brion Carnes got some action in the fourth quarter. He looked (to borrow a line from Kevin Kugler) like a redshirt freshman backup quarterback, either pitching the ball too soon on an option or running himself into difficulty. Sure, it’s only the first game. But based on the evidence presented, Nebraska’s quarterback depth issues are as bad or worse than previously thought.

Running Backs: A

Rex Burkhead is who we thought he was—the true platform off of which Nebraska’s offense operates. To see that in action again (with a little more of a burst than last year) was reassuring.

What was exciting to see was the three-headed monster behind him. All three freshman running backs, Ameer Abdullah, Braylon Heard and Aaron Green, saw playing time and impressed.

What is different about Nebraska’s offense in 2011 as opposed to 2010 is the speed on the field. The diversity of weapons in the backfield should be exciting for the "Children of the Corn."

Receivers: B-

Hey, remember last year, when Nebraska’s receivers were dropping passes all over the place? Yeah, that’s still a problem. Not an every play problem, but frequent enough to be a concern, especially given last year’s history.

The depth at the position is encouraging, though. Kenny Bell, Stanley Jean-Baptiste and Jamal Turner all got time on the field along with veterans like Brandon Kinnie and Quincy Enunwa.

There were a couple of plays specifically designed for Turner’s talents, and late in the game, he almost provided the crowd with an electrifying highlight. More of him would be a good thing.

Offensive Line: C

Yes, there’s a LOT of youth on the line. Nebraska started a true freshman on the offensive line (Tyler Moore) for the first time ever. But in grading a performance, you can only look at the results, and the results weren’t encouraging.

Nebraska regularly struggled to run the ball effectively between the tackles and regularly failed to set the edge on runs designed to go wide.

This is against Chattanooga, folks. A team that struggled to stop opposing FCS offenses last year. If the Pipeline can’t move the Mocs out, what’s going to happen against the Badgers in Madison?

Defensive Line: A

As advertised, the defensive line was the strength of the team. We all know that Jared Crick is a beast, and he lived up to the hype. But we also saw a solid game from Baker Steinkuhler and a monster game from Cameron Meredith.

The emergence of Meredith as another playmaker on the D-line could pay great dividends down the road.

Linebackers: B+

Lavonte David, once again, was all over the field making plays. But losing Will Compton to injury puts a depth question to an already-depleted corps of linebackers.

Sean Fisher looked a little off the pace, which could be expected after spending a year coming back from his horrific injury in 2010.

Tyler Roach may have played his way into more starting time as well, particularly if Compton’s injury is serious.

Secondary: B

Tough to grade as a whole. The safeties would earn an A, with Austin Cassidy and Courtney Osborne performing well, and junior college transfer Daimion Stafford auditioning for breakout star of the team.

But the cornerback play, particularly from Aaron Green, was into C territory. A return of a healthy Alfonzo Dennard will be a big help to the rotation of the secondary, allowing Nebraska to have only one player with limited experience to be on the field at a time.

Special Teams: A-

Brett Maher was a revelation in just about everything he did. He had an excellent game punting, went 4-of-4 in field goals (including a hooking 50-yarder into a howling wind) and kicked off with good height and distance.

Ameer Abdullah, in his first start as a true freshman, showed real promise as Nebraska’s featured returner.

But kick coverage was still an issue, and the kick return teams need to give Abdullah a little more help than they did. As a whole, the unit still rates an A grade but barely.

Coaching: A

Bo Pelini and his staff had to roll out a brand new offense, with a lot of young players and new starters, and make the whole thing work under pressure. Ultimately, they succeeded in what they set out to do, which is get a comfortable win against an outmatched opponent.

It certainly felt like there was plenty of untapped potential, but it’s likely that Nebraska’s game plan was designed to be as vanilla as possible to get the fundamentals down first (and to keep a few surprises in store for opponents down the line).

But the lack of mental mistakes, particularly penalties, speaks to a well-coached team ready for its first test of the season.

Intangibles: A

The Memorial Stadium crowd was what it has been for years—loud at the start, quiet and nervous when things seem dicey, then energized during a big play. Nebraska’s home-field advantage playing before the Sea of Red remains intact.

Nebraska’s confidence after their 40-7 win should also remain high. Of course, not much can be learned against an opponent of Chattanooga’s caliber, but the production on offense, defense and special teams should be enough to keep NU believing, while having enough problems for the coaching staff to keep their attention.

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