'QB Whisperer' could help Nebraska football win out, says analyst
Now that Dana Holgorsen is officially a part of the Nebraska football program, there are more than a few people wondering just how this could work out. It’s not something that’s done very often. Maybe not ever.
And yet, it seems like most people around the sport think if there’s a guy who could pull this off, if there’s a team that could pull this off, it would be Holgorsen and the Huskers.
Count JD Pickell among those who thinks Holgorsen partnering with Nebraska football head coach could unlock something in the offense. And specifically unlock something in starting quarterback Dylan Raiola. And Pickell doesn’t think there’s much that needs to be unlocked in order for the Huskers to win the rest of their games.
Nebraska football has a QB whisperer who can turn the season around
Pickell first trotted out his argument about how good Holgorsen can be by explaining how the Huskers aren’t at the top of their game, and what the strengths of the team were expected to be.
“You thought it was going to be play great defense and run the football, right? Well, defense has been solid. Defense hasn't been abysmal by any stretch, but you are 3.4 yards per carry on the year, 111th in the country. You are 122 rush yards a game, number 98 in the country. So what we thought we could bank on to get our true freshman quarterback a little bit more comfortable not there anymore.”
“Well, it's also start number 10 for Dylan Raiola,” Pickell continued. “Like this is a point now; this is a move to me. If I'm Matt Rule, bringing in a guy who was the quarterback whisperer, a guy who's coached guys like Will Greer, a guy who coached guys like Case Keenum says, okay, we're taking the training wheels off, and we are leaning a little bit more heavily on you here, Dylan Raiola. We're going to go as you go. And I'll say this. If Nebraska gets 15% more production out of Dylan Raiola, 15% more of his ability out of Dylan Raiola, Nebraska, I think we'll win this football game in Nebraska.”
“This game” means against USC. Despite being big underdogs against the Trojans, Pickell thinks Holgorsen can help them win.
Pickell said he thinks the Nebraska football team could win 8 games. Which would mean winning all the rest of their games. And the fans would certainly take that.