betting college football
There is no question that Tom Osborne is the greatest coach in Nebraska football history. In winning two national titles, he helped build one of the greatest college football dynasties ever. It’s staggering to consider that over one five-year stretch, Osborne led the Huskers to 59-3-0 record.
However, many folks familiar with Nebraska football history pay almost as much respect to Osborne’s predecessor, Bob Devaney. After all, it was Devaney who brought Osborne with him to Lincoln in 1962. That was the start of a 10-year span where Nebraska went 101-20-2 under Devaney and his assistant Osborne, in the process establishing Nebraska as a football powerhouse.
Devaney’s impact is still felt today through a number of various traditions that the coach helped to establish in Lincoln.
One such tradition is that of the “Black Shirt” defense. In short, Devaney began the ritual of handing out black jerseys to each starting player on the Cornhusker defensive unit to wear during practice.
Over the years, a mystique formed around the Nebraska defensive unit, known simply as the "Black Shirts."
Although the tradition of the “Black Shirts” lives on today, the intimidating image of the Husker defense has been tarnished a bit over the past few years as many teams piled up yards and points on Nebraska.
After a 7-7 outing last season, a disaster for Nebraska football, coach Frank Solich had enough and brought in a new defensive coordinator, Bo Pelini. It has been Pelini’s task from day 1 to re-establish the dominant nature of the “Black Shirt” defense.
If the first three games of this season are any indication, Pelini is way ahead of schedule, as the Huskers have already ascended to the top of the national rankings for total defense. That's quite a turnaround for a unit that finished 55th in that same category last season.
Of course, all three of Nebraska’s games so far have been within the cozy confines of Memorial Stadium, located in the heart of Lincoln, Neb.
This Thursday, the “Black Shirts” will pay a visit to Hattiesburg, Miss. to play the Golden Eagles of Southern Mississippi at M.M. Roberts Stadium. "The Rock," as it is known around town, officially holds 33,000 but school officials are expecting somewhere in the neighborhood of 36,000 (a school record) to come out and support their team as they take on Nebraska.
Don’t think for a second that Southern Miss will be intimidated to step on the field with Nebraska. You see, the Golden Eagles know a little something about ferocious defense. Not only do they also wear black shirts in practice, they play games wearing them, too. Coach Jeff Bower’s program might be best known for producing quarterback Brett Favre, but year-in and year-out, defense has been this team’s signature.
This season is no different, as defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix returns eight starters from last year, highlighted by LB Rod Davis, DB Etric Pruitt and LB Michael Boley. All three of those players are up for All-American and various postseason position awards.
The similarities between Nebraska and Southern Miss don’t stop with the defense though.
Both teams feature a fairly vanilla offense that prefers to do its work on the ground, as well as excellent special teams that are always a threat to block a punt.
While Nebraska is 3-0, it hasn't looked overly dominant in those games, especially on offense and as mentioned, all three games were played at home. That said, following their recent 18-10 win over Penn State, the Cornhuskers moved up to No. 11 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll although they remained No. 15 in the Associated Press poll.
The home/away issue carries a great deal of significance in looking at Nebraska. It has tended to be one of those unbeatable teams at home but much more human on the road. That reputation has only grown in recent years, especially last season when Nebraska was 1-5 away from Lincoln.
The Huskers' ground game has been the story so far for the offense. Look no further than the aforementioned Penn State game, where NU ran the ball 43 of 44 plays in the second half, as evidence of how the Huskers like to control the game. That type of performance has led Nebraska to a top five national ranking in rushing offense at just under 300 yards per game.
The problem for Nebraska will be when it encounters a defense that can handle the running game and force quarterback Jammal Lord to use his arm. That scenario just may unfold this Thursday night.
Not that Southern Miss has any type of advantage at quarterback. After sustaining a concussion in the game against Memphis on Sept. 13, quarterback Micky D'Angelo will be on the sidelines for a while. In his place, sophomore Dustin Almond will make the fourth start of his career.
With all due respect to D’Angelo, the Golden Eagles attack won’t suffer much without him since, like Nebraska, Southern Miss runs the ball first and looks to throw second. Like Nebraska, the trouble will come if and when the Huskers shut down the Southern Miss ground attack and Almond has to throw the ball.
In the end, I don’t think Lord or Almond will play a major factor here. Both teams basically know what the other is going to try to do and likewise, both teams have defensive units that should be able to effectively stop those attempts. And trust me, if the ground game stalls neither team will light it up through the air.
No, this game will come down to three things: field position, turnovers and special teams play. Forced fumbles, field goals and the punting game will all be huge this Thursday night. The team that comes out of this one victorious will most likely have won the majority of the battles in those categories.
I’m tempted to play Southern Miss on the money line here, as the Golden Eagles can be deadly at home, especially with a weak road team like Nebraska. However, a slight advantage to the Nebraska ground game has me content to take Southern Mississippi and what should be more than enough points.
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