Nebraska Football may have the duo of the future.
When you take a look at what the Nebraska football wide receivers room could look like over the next couple seasons, two guys in particular come to mind. Omar Manning and Zavier Betts are going to be the key cogs for the position moving forward.
When you look at the two wideouts, they are different in some ways. Manning measures in at six-foot-four, 225 pounds. Betts is a little bit more on the smaller side. Measuring in at six-foot-two, 200 pounds, I would consider him a bit faster than Manning, and that is certainly no slight to Omar.
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What they do have in common is the ability to be impact playmakers. These two should be the future of the wide receiver position. Just take a look at Betts’ stats from last year. As a senior at Bellevue West, he caught 64 passes for 1,185 yards and 17 touchdowns. After his junior season that saw him record 856 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns, one would assume it would be hard for him to follow up that performance. Instead, he eclipsed that in a big way.
Manning recorded 35 catches for 727 yards and six touchdowns. He established himself as a big-play receiver. In all the film I’ve watched on him, he is definitely the total package. He can run his routes smoothly, he has speed, and he also has size over his defensive backs. The size in particular is something that Betts may not have. That is certainly not a bad thing. In fact, the two wideouts complement each other nicely.
What I envision, is a sort of “thunder and lighting” combination. Think back to the days of USC running backs LenDale White and Reggie Bush. Bush was the faster running back, who could allude defenders with his speed.
White was the power back, who could be trusted near the goal line. I envision Manning being the Reggie Bush in the scenario, and Betts being the LenDale White. That would certainly be great for the wide receiver position, as Nebraska football has not had that combination of receiver in quite some time.
Whatever the case may be, there is no doubt that these two will make up the Nebraska football passing game going forward. Obviously, there will be different pieces along with them. Alante Brown is a name I think you’re going to hear as well. However, these two will be the focal point of the offense moving forward.
It will be a lot of fun to watch, and hopefully it will give the fans something to cheer about on Saturdays. You can definitely see Scott Frost making his imprint on this roster. Manning and Betts should definitely add spark to the offense, and I can’t wait to see what they do.