Nebraska Football: Team should watch Tra Minter closely

MOBILE, AL - NOVEMBER 10: South Alabama Jaguars running back Tra Minter (5) carries for a first down during the South Alabama vs Louisiana Monroe game on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, AL. (Photo by Bobby McDuffie/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
MOBILE, AL - NOVEMBER 10: South Alabama Jaguars running back Tra Minter (5) carries for a first down during the South Alabama vs Louisiana Monroe game on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, AL. (Photo by Bobby McDuffie/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Nebraska Football should keep an eye on Minter at all times.

At first glance, South Alabama may not seem that imposing. However, just because they may be one of the more unknown teams Nebraska Football plays on their schedule does not mean that they do not have players that can make an impact. Much like the Nebraska Football program themselves, South Alabama has a running back who is sure to light up the stat sheet.

Tra Minter is set to enter his third season in the collegiate ranks. A junior, he had a tremendous 2018 season. He carried the ball 183 times for 801 yards and six touchdowns. Averaging 4.4 yards per carry, he also recorded 201 receiving yards.

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His best game of the 2018 season came in  South Alabama’s season finale against Coastal Carolina. In that contest, he carried the ball 24 times for 203 yards. He also added two receptions for 49 yards to his day. It was a nice final performance for a player that performed a high level throughout the entire season. Now, he will begin the 2019 season facing a Nebraska defense that has been revamped and is littered with veteran talent.

Nebraska Football needs to watch out for him. This is a guy that is explosive and can get yards in bunches. In addition to his impressive performance against Coastal Carolina, he also recorded at least one touchdown in a five-game stretch from September 15 to October 13. That included a two-touchdown game against Texas State. He carried the ball nine times for 61 yards in total.

Nebraska Football needs to bring as much pressure as possible. Collin Miller and Mohamed Barry are two players that should be able to have a big game. Minter will be too quick for defensive ends to get to him, and I can see him getting to the second level of defense quite frequently. That’s where Barry and Miller will have to step in. Their athleticism and ability to find the football will definitely help them in this case. Minter will definitely get the yards he needs, it is about just limiting the damage. When he gets the football, Nebraska needs to swarm to him immediately. Failure to do so could result in big gains and a long game for the defense.

It will be interesting to see what he does against Nebraska on Saturday and how he matches up. If Nebraska can stop him, that would be huge. I don’t anticipate South Alabama giving Nebraska a ton of trouble, but eliminating all of their weapons will make things even easier for them.