Red N vs. Blue N
Friday, Aug. 31, 2007 @ 5:09 pm
The Wolf Pack won’t beat Nebraska.
The offense is too inexperienced and the Memorial Stadium atmosphere is too intense.
Oh, and the Cornhuskers are No. 20 in the nation.
That doesn’t mean the game can’t be close, however. At least closish.
The Little General is always quick to point out that there are no moral victories for Nevada football anymore, but the prospects of a season-opening blowout loss leading to a serious case of shell shock are very real.
And even if it doesn’t show up in the stat sheet, the Wolf Pack can earn some respect by being competitive. Too many times the Wolf Pack has entered a game of this magnitude only to get blown out.
It’s important that the Wolf Pack is competitive against the Cornhuskers to build a little confidence starting the season.
To that end, the Wolf Pack has a few things going for it. The defense is definitely this teams strength, and offenses tend to struggle at the beginning of the year.
Also, Cornhuskers quarterback Sam Keller hasn’t thrown a pass in more than a year. He’ll be a little rusty.
Those two things combined will give the Wolf Pack’s defense a chance to keep the score low and maybe even set up a score or two with some big plays, allowing the Wolf Pack to hang around.
Saturday also marks the first real glimpse of the Wolf Pack’s two highly-touted quarterbacks. Sophomore Nick Graziano, he of the ridiculously powerful arm, will start, but freshman backup Colin Kaepernick, freakishly athletic for a 6-foot-6 dude, will also play. The pair oozes potential, but it’s hard to imagine them carving up the Blackshirts without a little more seasoning.
Therefore, the offense’s challenge lies in protection.
Both Wolf Pack tackles, John Bender and Alonzo Durham, are underclassmen and center Josh Catapano entered the season as third string. Catapano’s starting because Dominic Green is out with a foot injury and backup Kyle Robertson got kicked off the team after taking a swing at a coach.
The Cornhuskers defense is going to be in full attack mode trying to capitilize on the inexperience of Nevada’s quarterbacks and offensive line.
Expect a few protection breakdowns to leave Graziano and Kaepernick vulnerable. How the youngsters respond in those situations could decide the game.
On the whole, the Wolf Pack will struggle to move the ball against the Cornhuskers defense. On the same token, the Little General could pull a surprise if he can generate a couple big plays then lean on the defense.
I’m going to say 27-10, Nebraska, but the game could get exciting if the Wolf Pack can take the crowd out early with a couple big plays.
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