While the college football season is still a couple of months away the anticipation is building for its return. Even the casual college fan understands what the outlook for the Big Ten is heading in to 2016 with Michigan State as the defending conference champions with both Michigan and Ohio State the favorites to knock them off at the top. The big question is whether or not there is another team that could improve enough to factor in to the mix. Last year, Iowa was that fourth team but there are some questions as to whether or not they were legit and whether they merely benefitted from an easy schedule. This year, it looks like a different Midwestern team could be in the mix.
Nebraska had its moment in 2015 but deemed to have some shortcomings as well. Could an offseason of work help them improve their level of consistency? Here is why they’
Returning 14 Starters
Nebraska will return 14 combined starters on both sides of the football from a year ago including 94-percent of its production on offense. That should translate to marked improvement as the individual improvements and cohesiveness factor in to the Cornhuskers success. Quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. is poised to deliver on his immense potential and he will have plenty of help around him with running back Terrell Newby and his top six leading receivers from 2015 back in the fold. Another year in Mike Riley’s pro-style system should really help as well. Meanwhile, the defense is expected to be better with three starting linebackers and three of the four starters in the secondary back in the mix. Michigan State, Ohio State and Michigan were all hit hard by personnel losses this past offseason so Nebraska should have the edge in terms of returning talent and chemistry on both sides of the football.
Bad Breaks
The Cornhuskers finished 5-7 last season but could have easily been at least 7-5 with a little more luck and some more favorable bounces. Opening weekend was the perfect example of what Nebraska had to deal with. With the final seconds ticking off the clock and the Cornhuskers looking to open the season with a win over BYU, Cougars quarterback Tanner Mangum rolled out and threw a 42-yard pass to Mitch Matthews to seal a 33-28 comeback win. Remember, that’s after the Cougars lost their starting quarterback in the game.
That wasn’t the only time the Cornhuskers suffered a bad beat as they lost a number of close games. They lost by three points in overtime to Miami, they lost by one at Illinois, they lost by two to Wisconsin and two to Northwestern. They need to do a better of competing and closing out late-game situations – as they showed their capable of when they beat Michigan State – and win some of those tight contests.
Tough Schedule Ahead
Nebraska might very well be the team that improved the most in the Big Ten but a tough schedule will factor in to whether they can deliver based on their potential. The Cornhuskers will play Oregon before their nine-game Big Ten schedule, which will feature six bowl teams from a year ago. That includes a cross-division showdown against Ohio State. The fact that they have to travel to play Ohio State, Wisconsin and Iowa doesn’t help. They can’t afford to lose too teams like Purdue and Illinois, though.
Ultimately if Nebraska is ready to challenge for a Big Ten title as one of the most improved clubs they will need to prove it against their top competition.
Expect A Small Step Forward
Just based on their returning talent and the bad luck they had a year ago, an improvement from 5-7 to 7-5 should be a given for the Cornhuskers. Nebraska is overdue for some good fortune and certainly has the talent on its roster to make some noise within its conference. The Cornhuskers need to be able to overcome a tough schedule to prove it but right now it appears that Nebraska is the most improved team in the Big Ten heading in to the 2016 season.
