As the Huskers set to open their season against head coach PJ Fleck and the Minnesota Golden Gophers, what does Nebraska’s defense need to do to secure Matt Rhule’s first win as the head coach of the Cornhuskers? Let’s find out.
The Defensive Line Has To Generate Pressure
Throughout the 2022 season, the Cornhuskers had a solid veteran group at the defensive line position. This started with senior Garrett Nelson and was followed up by Caleb Tannor and Ochaun Mathis. But they have all left for greener pastures in the NFL. Now as we approach the 2023 season, the defensive line unit is encountering a rebuild under Terrance Knighton. But it won’t be as hard as people might think. This is because Ty Robinson is set to take on a leadership role within Nebraska’s defense. Furthermore, the Cornhuskers also scooped up Princewill Umanmielien and Cameron Lenhardt to make an immediate impact. And there’s no reason that they shouldn’t succeed. Both players were named by On3 Sports as Pre-season True Freshman All-Americans, based on incredible production in high school. The biggest challenge remaining for Knighton? He has to be able to develop them into impact players.
Read more about Ty Robinson and the rest of the defensive line here: Nebraska’s Depth At Positions of Need In 2023
Can The Safeties Find A Way To Thrive Without Myles Farmer?
When Myles Farmer decided to transfer out of the program to go to Syracuse, Nebraska’s defense was dealt a huge blow. Now, defensive backs coach Evan Cooper will have a decision to make. This might seem a bit concerning for the staff but could be a bright spot in Marques Buford. Before his knee injury, he was one of the stalwarts of the position group with 59 tackles and two interceptions. But beyond that, Cooper and the staff will have a big decision to make. Only Omar Brown and Tommi Hill have seen the field at some point at the position, but they don’t have much experience. Fortunately for the Huskers, Cooper can play DeShon Singleton. According to Rhule’s comments on Sports Nightly, he’s gone from the, “Two deep to being one of the Huskers’ best players.” Now, his biggest challenge is performing well against Minnesota.
The Importance of Good Linebacker Play
If linebackers coach Rob Dvoracek is going to have any momentum going into conference matchups, he will have to demonstrate that he can pull premiere play from Luke Reimer and Nick Henrich. And there is plenty of evidence that they can step up to that next level. In 2022, the duo combined for over 123 tackles as well as 6.5 tackles for loss. But who will replace them if one of them gets injured? A good candidate to fit this mold would be MJ Sherman. He just transferred from a winning program in Georgia, and he was a sure tackler in the Spring game. The only negative is that he was not able to play consistently for the Bulldogs. This was shown when he only recorded 15 tackles and a half-sack. But there is hope that he can improve his play as a member of the Blackshirts.
Photo courtesy: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports
