5 Things I loved
1. The Boneyard. The student section has taken more than their fair share of crap over the years. "They don't fill their section". "They leave early." "They're too quiet." Not on Saturday. The first students were there at 9 am - OVER NINE HOURS BEFORE KICKOFF. With two hours until kick, their section was almost entirely full. They were loud all night long, and I'm thrilled they were able to rush the field in celebration. Say what you want about the quality of the opponent, but the students earned the right to celebrate.
2. Ty Robinson. Blackshirt Mountain was a force all night long. He batted down the opening pass, and had a huge sack to shut down Colorado's first possession. He blocked a field goal to preserve the first half shutout. And by drawing double teams, he freed up everybody else to make plays. The impact of a dominating defensive tackle is tough to overstate.
3. Tommi Hill. Tommi had a tough assignment on Saturday, but he more than held his own. After Hill's beautiful pick six put the Huskers up 14-0, the game felt completely in control. Travis Hunter got his yards, but he and Jimmy Horn, Jr. were not the big play threats they have been in other games. It was fun seeing Hunter get noticeably frustrated - partially because his quarterback couldn't find him downfield, and partially because Tommi Hill was in his ear.
4. Jacory Barney Jr. I love how Marcus Satterfield is utilizing the speedy freshman. A nice little package of plays - push passes, reverses, etc. - all designed to get him the ball in space. For all of the crap that Satterfield takes, it's worth noting that he's one of the few Nebraska OC's to properly use somebody with Barney's talents (unlike the freshmen years of Tyjon Lindsey and Wan'Dale Robinson). Just imagine what Tom Osborne would do with Barney as a classic wingback.
5. Dante Dowdell and Rahmir Johnson. The duo of Husker running backs are a great 1-2 combo. Dowdell is used as a bowling ball: hard and fast down the middle of the lane, trying to knock down as many pins as possible. Rahmir is used like a soccer ball: moving down the field with quick strikes and short passes. Together, they accounted for one-third of Nebraska's offensive production.
