Nebraska Football will have a new-look offense in 2019.
Nebraska can move the football. Not yet to the level of the offensive superpowers, but well enough to rack up 456 yards per contest and secure the 27th spot nationally for yards-per-game.
Of course, every Husker fan wants to do better than 27th, just as we want to finish the season with a record better than 4-8. Having the 27th-best offense in the land hardly means that we have returned to our mid-1990s form, but it’s a far sight better than the 385 yards-per-game we put up last year, which had us in the lower half of D-1 programs (ranked 87th in total offense).
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Of course, championships are won on the scoreboard, not by racking up offensive statistics, but a year-over-year jump of 60 spots in our offensive productivity ranking is something to be proud of and certainly indicates that we are moving in the right direction. I think we can safely declare that Coach Frost’s reputation as an offensive guru is preserved by our showing this season.
Troy Walters and the offense will miss their graduating seniors, of course, especially: star running back Devine Ozigbo, record-breaking wide receiver Stanley Morgan Jr., linemen Cole Conrad, Tanner Farmer, and Jerald Foster. With the loss of wide receiver Stanley Morgan Jr., Nebraska must find a new primary split end.
Next year’s receiving core is headlined by J.D. Spielman, but his smaller stature and video-game shiftiness make him ideal for the slot, not the split end spot. Redshirt freshmen, Kade Warner, Jeavon McQuitty, and true Freshman Andre Hunt have more prototypical X-receiver measurables. junior college transfers Jaron Woodyard and Mike Williams, who both push the smaller side for a split end, could get some looks at the position. Hopefully Nebraska can close the deal with four-star verbal commit Darien Chase. Chase is rated as an athlete but he played wide receiver and defensive back in high school. He could help fill the void left by Stanley Morgan in years to come.
Maurice Washington is sure to have his playing time extended with the departure of Devine Ozigbo. If ‘Lil Mo’ can put on a bit more weight during the offseason and improve his durability, he promises to be an exciting player for the Husker offense. Also, with Wandale Robinson’s commitment, the Cornhuskers will gain another backfield playmaker who could be used as a flanker in an effort to keep both Washington and Robinson on the field at the same time. If the offensive line is able to replace Conrad, Farmer, and Foster, then I expect the offense to be improved from last year, as the young players gain more experience and Frost’s offensive formula is further implemented.