Nebraska Football: Grading the Cornhuskers' Game against Michigan State

Nebraska knocked of Michigan State 24-3, and in doing so took control of its own destiny in the B1G Legends Division. NU dominated on both sides of the ball, surprising many with the ability to shut Michigan State down defensively as well as the ability to move the ball and score points on offense.

So let's take a look, unit by unit, and try to figure out how such a surprising result (and, for NU fans, pleasantly surprising) occurred.

Quarterback: A-

Hey, remember when you couldn’t talk about Nebraska football without the conversation being about Taylor Martinez? Well, guess what. T-Magic has been getting better, every week. Sure, his throwing mechanics are still teeth-scrapingly ugly. But he’s getting the ball to his receivers, and not to the opponents.

Sure, he’s still putting the ball on the ground, but Nebraska isn’t losing the ball. Sure, he looks uncomfortable running the option. But he’s making it work.

The fact that Nebraska beat Michigan State by 21 points, and that Martinez was relatively anonymous throughout the game, tells you everything you need to know about his growing maturity as a quarterback. And he’s still only a sophomore.

Running Backs: A+

National media, meet Rex Burkhead. Burkhead, national media. With his performance against Michigan State, Burkhead established himself as the central cog in Nebraska’s newly-found power-rushing attack. And Burkhead delivered, rushing for 130 yards and two touchdowns (and one through the air, for good measure).

The freshman running backs got some time as well, with Aaron Green seeing the majority of the non-Burkhead time and Braylon Heard seeing the field after an illness kept him on the sideline for weeks.

Wide Receivers: A

It seems to be a staple that Nebraska’s wide receivers are going to get involved with the offense running the ball as well. This week, it was Tim Marlowe on a jet sweep in the first quarter that set Nebraska up for its second score. Brandon Kinnie also hauled in two first-down grabs in the second half to help keep extended drives alive and wear out the Spartan defense.

Offensive Line: A

Don’t look now, but this offensive line might have something going. Week after week, the post-game offensive quotes start to sound the same. The offensive line, coupled with the no-huddle offensive style, is wearing defenses out and creating more room to operate at the end of games. If NU’s offensive line can do that to a stout defense like Michigan State, then there’s reason to expect that result throughout the remainder of the season.

Defensive Line: A

It’s probably a little early to drop a “Jared who?” line, but the fact remains that Nebraska generated much better quarterback pressure with the front four than it has for most of the season.

The defensive line also bottled up Michigan State’s running attack, holding the Spartans to only 101 rushing yards. It was the type of performance that Nebraska fans had expected to see throughout the season, and it couldn’t have come at a better time.

Linebackers: A

The defensive line got to address the “pressure on the quarterback concern,” so it seems only fair that the linebackers were the primary unit to answer the “tackling in space” concern. Lavonte David has been strong for most of the year, but against Michigan State the rest of his counterparts chipped in as well.

Secondary: A (*)

For the first time in a while, a deep ball was thrown into the Nebraska secondary without having a receiver 10 yards behind an NU defender. Clearly, whatever magic the brothers Pelini have been brewing in the previous two weeks has paid dividends in the secondary's performance.

The grade has an asterisk because Kirk Cousins, for some unexplained reason, continued to throw the ball deep at Alfonzo Dennard, with predictable results. Nebraska’s secondary problems at the beginning of the year came from either Dennard being out or teams picking on the other side of the field. So, thanks, Kirk!

Special Teams: C

Going into the game, it was Nebraska’s advantage on special teams that some thought would be the decisive turning point between two evenly-matched opponents. Good thing it wasn’t. Ameer Abdullah fumbled two kickoff returns, requiring Rex Burkhead to man the breaches on punt duties. Nebraska also continued to give up yardage on kick coverage defense. If there was a weakness in Nebraska’s performance against the Spartans, it was on special teams.

Coaching: A

Pretty much every note played by the coaching staff sounded true Saturday evening. The offensive game plan worked to perfection, allowing Nebraska to sit on a lead and control the game for four quarters.

Defensively, many of the mistakes and deficiencies that have been present all year showed significant signs of improvement. And, from the get-go, it was clear that Nebraska had its fangs sharpened and was ready for a fight. 

Intangibles: A

Nebraska is still successfully riding the momentum of their come-from-behind win over Ohio State, and that has vaulted them into a position where it can control its destiny in the division. The Children of the Corn played their part as well, providing enough sound and thunder for four quarters to help the Blackshirts (we can call them that now, right?) swamp the Spartans.

Like what you read? Follow me on Twitter @patrickrunge to track my thoughts and observations about college football—and one or two other topics—throughout the year!

And if you would like to contact me directly to schedule an interview, ask a question or to get my recipe for a killer peach cobbler, you can send an e-mail to [e-mail]. (DISCLAIMER: Peach cobbler recipe might not be all that killer.)