Sun Devil-ed Egg on My Face
My apologies to Arizona State for suggesting that Stanford had the sand to give y'all a legitimate scare. Sorry for the misgivings ladies... although its still unclear how one gives the shocker to a Cardinal arbor (check the shirts). Two in the phloem, and one in the xylem? Or is it the other way around? I digress...
NU, Turner the Spurner
Saturday was yet another day of excitement, promise, and trepidation for Huskerdom. In sum, an anemic offense, seemingly prolific red-zone defense, and defensive line play that was as disruptive as Ive seen from the Shirts in a long time are fitting descriptions of what transpired on Saturday. Couple all of the above with a 4th quarter kick return for a score by Niles Paul (Ahman's lil' play cuzin), and a resurgent performance by Ndamakong Suh, Zach Potter, and Pierre Allen and the game is more or less encapsulated. Commentary skewed too much to the negative (see Tom Shatel, Omaha World Herald), or skewed too much to the positive (Sam Mckewon, Daily Nebraskan) this early in the season is just page-filler. The jury is still out on this years brand of 'Skers. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the hell out of the 21 unanswered we dropped in the final stanza... now get your popcorn ready for New Mexico State, and Chase Holbrook.
What we do know however is that the biggest blow of the day was the injury sufferred by DE Barry Turner. Turner, a player former DC Kevin Cosgrove compared to All-American Erasmus James at Wisconsin, was the nuts of this years Dline. His loss will be felt heavily against Mizzou, TTech, and OU - and thats not page filler, but a sobering reality that Husker nation needs to embrace. My zeal for those three games eroded when our best defender was sidelined for the season. "I like our starters on the D Line, but I say a prayer every night before I go to bed that no one gets hurt," Bo Pelini in late August. Like I said, get your popcorn ready for New Mexico State, because conference play promises to pull at the heart strings.
The Game of the Week
OSU / USC will be covered so thoroughly that the game itself will disappoint. Outside of this certainty, not much else can be speculated. Did OSU struggle against Ohio - hell yes - and they needed a blocked kick to salvage momentum, and eventually the game. Does USC look dominant - also, hell yes - but when hasn't USC looked dominant over the last 6-7 years? Buckeye nation quakes at the thought of another primetime, uber-hyped nonconference affair that serves to remind the world that the Big Ten has fallen sluggishly behind teams from the warmer states. But to my pensive, and meek friends from the North I say do not write this one off the way the odds makers, and the media might have already. I was shocked to hear that the Bucks were a 10.5 point dog; 5-7 points seemed much more reasonable. And I will be shocked again if USC actually covers a double digit spread. So to ScarletandGray, and a nation on the verge of calling J. Tressel the next J. Cooper, I say temper your emotions and expect a good game. OSU is capable of stunning Petey C. the Trojan MC - but then again I predicted a Husker win in last years USC Nebraska game. Oh well, atleast we get to see the Song Girls in primetime.
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