Nebraska ended a two-game slide with an impressive 48-25 victory over the Minnesota Golden Gophers this Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium. Quarterback Tommy Armstrong led the offense with 299 yards of total offense and no turnovers, while the Blackshirts stuffed the Gophers rushing attack, allowing just 65 yards on the ground. Here are the final grades for the Husker’s impressive performance.
Nebraska vs Minnesota Game Grades
Quarterback: A
You have got to hand it to Tommy Armstrong, the kid has got some impressive mental toughness. Armstrong bounced back from a terrible two game stretch in which he completed just 35.6 % of his passes, completing 18 of 26 passes for 261 yards and three touchdowns. The junior also gave Nebraska a nice boost in the run game, rushing for 38 yards on eight carries while showing the ability to improvise on a busted play without becoming reckless. This is the Armstrong that Nebraska needs to have a shot at making some noise in their final five games this season.
Running Back: B+
After tinkering with their running back rotation for 5 games, the Husker coaching staff settled on their backfield against Wisconsin and stuck with the same formula against the Gophers. Junior Terrell Newby rewarded their trust in him as the #1 back, rushing for 116 yards on 13 carries, including an electrifying 69 yard touchdown in the 1st quarter while also catching two passes for 20 yards. Senior Andy Janovich continued his impressive season, rushing for 27 yards on seven carries and giving Nebraska a physical inside running presence. Neither Imani Cross nor Devine Ozigbo received very many touches, but the pair were productive when giving the chance to work.
Receivers: A-
Jordan Westerkamp finally came out of his midseason slump to catch six passes for 76 yards, including a crucial 27 yarder that gave Nebraska a 1st down midway through the 4th quarter. Junior Alonzo Moore continued his quietly stellar season, catching four passes for 84 yards and a touchdown, his 5th touchdown catch of the season. Demornay Pierson-El had the play of the day for the Cornhuskers, tipping a pass to himself in the corner of the endzone to beat double coverage for a 15 yard touchdown, the sophomore finished the game with three catches for 31 yards. Tight End Cethan Carter had a great individual effort on his only catch of the day, bulling over a Gopher defender and stretching the ball over the pylon for a 10 yard touchdown. Overall just a great bounce back game by the Husker receiving corps against a very good Minnesota secondary.
Offensive Line: B+
The husker offensive line paved the way for Nebraska to rush for 203 yards on 5.2 yards per carry, while allowing Tommy Armstrong to get sacked just once on the day. Seniors Alex Lewis and Chongo Kondolo were the two MVPs for the Husker offensive line this Saturday, as both dominated their individual matchup. Lewis locked down Thieren Cockran for the majority of the game, while Kondolo shut down Minnesota Defensive Tackle Steven Richardson for the entire game. This Nebraska offensive line has slowly rounded into form as the season has progressed, and have put together two very impressive performances against Wisconsin and Minnesota. Now comes their biggest test yet, as the Husker offensive line will have to battle it out with Northwerstern’s massive defensive front next Saturday.
Defensive Line: A
No one can run up the middle on the Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Minnesota found that out the hard way on Saturday. Maliek Collins and Vincent Valentine absolutely dominated the interior line Saturday, and the Gopher rushing attack was held to a measly 65 rushing yards on 26 carries. If you take away wide receiver KJ Maye’s two nifty reverses in the first half, and Minnesota finished with 44 yards rushing on 24 carries. Nebraska also got to Mitch Leidner twice for sacks while getting consistent pressure on him throughout the game. One has to wonder how could this unit would be if everyone could just stay healthy, as the Huskers D-line dominated despite missing three major contributers in Kevin Maurice, Freedom Akinmoladun, and Kevin Williams.
Linebackers: B+
Nebraska’s drastic improvement at linebacker continues to be one of the most fun things to watch this season, as the Nebraska linebackers had another solid day. Junior Josh Banderas looked good in his first game back since suffering a groin injury against the Miami Hurricanes, as the Lincoln native provided a physical presence against the Gopher run game while also getting some good shots on Mitch Leidner when blitzing from his MIKE position. Sophomore Marcus Newby had yet another solid game at the WILL linebacker spot, though he wasn’t quite as terrific in coverage as he was against Wisconsin. True freshman Dedrick Young continued his solid freshman year, as the young man has cut down on the mental mistakes that plagued him during non conference play. With Chris Weber and Michael Rose-Ivey expected to return from injury soon, Nebraska suddenly finds itself having depth at linebacker for the first time since 2011.
Secondary: C
Lets get one thing clear, Mitch Leidner is not a very good passer. The junior was averaging 65 passing yards PER GAME during Big 10 play, but he looked like Peyton Manning early against the maligned Husker secondary. Leidner completed 16 of his first 17 passes for 156 yards as Nebraska gave Minnesota the easy passes underneath by playing soft coverage for most of the 1st half. Nebraska tightened their coverage in the 2nd half and Mitch Leidner’s stats returned to normal, as he completed just 10 of 23 passes the rest of the way while tossing two interceptions. The Nebraska secondary is taking small steps forward, and has another chance to work on things against a less than impressive Northwestern passing attack next Saturday.
Special Teams: B
Welcome back Demornay Pierson-El, how Nebraska fans have missed seeing you return punts. The sophomore receiver had a fantastic 42 yard punt return that put Nebraska in great field position early in the 1st quarter, but kicker Drew Brown missed a 31 yard field goal that would have given Nebraska the early lead. Brown redeemed himself by drilling a 45 yard field goal that gave Nebraska a 10 point lead and then making a 41 yard field goal that pushed Nebraska’s lead to 16 midway through the 4th quarter. Sam Foltz had a decent game, averaging 43.5 yards per punt but failing to pin Minnesota deep on either of his kicks. Nebraska still has yet to get anything out of their kick return game, as true freshman Jordan Stevenson continues to struggle back there.
Final Grade: A-
I think people are overlooking how impressive a victory this is for Nebraska. The Huskers came to TCF Bank stadium, where the Gophers are extremely tough to beat, and dominated the Gophers for the majority of the game. Nebraska’s defensive line continues to be the strength of their team, but the Husker offense is slowly finding its identity with a misdirection heavy run game and a passing attack that mixes deep shots and quick screens. If Nebraska can continue playing at the level they played at this Saturday, I could very easily see them going 4-1 the rest of the way and spoiling either Michigan State or Iowa’s undefeated seasons.
