Nebraska 27, Missouri 12

Nebraska 27 Missouri 12

Looks like we learned a lot about these two teams, perhaps not through literal fire, but through a LOT of rain.

I questioned the validity of Nebraska’s wins, but a 3-1 record is in fact hard to ignore to at least consider on the top 25. Still, the Cornhuskers beating half of the Sun Belt Conference does not exactly show a true power of a BCS conference.

Yet I also wondered why a 4-0 team in Missouri was barely on the top 25, it just seemed to me that their schedule at the time was more impressive than Nebraska, and they won all their games. I had figured that the Tigers, at home, should win by a field goal.

And then the rains came.

I am pretty sure I saw somebody just off screen of the game building an ark…looked like it anyway.

The game, in retrospect, can be asked, “Did Nebraska win, or did Missouri lose?” I can certainly understand the difficulties of playing in a downpour, that kinda game would have been difficult for ANY person or team to manage. But Missouri missed numerous chances to put points on the board, and as many chances to score a touchdown rather than a field goal.

Another thing we seem to be learning is that when a team relies heavily on one quarterback over several years, there is usually a big drop off when they have to put in a new starter. Remember that Chase Daniels was a very good quarterback last year, and now in the NFL, but because he was that good, there was very little room for a back up to take snaps. People think this does not play into the quality of the team, but I submit to you, it has a major impact. One that clearly showed last night.

The first quarter I think was an adjustment to the inclement weather, one that you have to allow for any team playing in that kinda weather. With a wet football, the key to the game seemed to be in keeping a firm grasp of it. Something Missouri failed to do not once, not twice but three times. Whereas Nebraska wasn’t making any real headway, Missouri kept fumbling the ball, taking them out of good drives.

The second quarter was no different, as the Tigers continued to give the ball away, but the Cornhuskers could not capitalize off of it. Give credit where it is due, the Tigers defense held on as best they could. But to give credit to one side assumes you must give it to the other, right? Although I do in fact give such credit, I think for a team to have FIVE turnovers in inclement weather seems to fall more on the team not handling the ball as well. Mind you, Nebraska also had a couple of turnovers too.

Missouri scored with a whisper of a moment left in the half, although it had to be reviewed. It just seemed that if the Tigers got that touchdown, then they were “right back on track”. After all, Nebraska could not get anything going, so in a torrential downpour, one touchdown could easily win the game, right?

Right?

So the third quarter comes along and Nebraska gives up the ball, for the third time. But the Tigers fail to convert a field goal, and all of a sudden things are looking a little harder for them. Was it me, or did it seem like their quarterback was having a miserable day in the rain? Passes blocked, almost intercepted here or there. Odd, because at the top of the broadcast they talked about how he had not thrown one interception this year…which is a great stat, but one you know won’t last.

Nebraska just could not get any real drives going, but at the same time Missouri was botching their opportunities. Late in the third they managed to get a field goal, and with the score being 12-0, surely this was simply a matter of eating up the clock, right?

Right?

I mean, you’re up 12-0 with 2 minutes left in the third quarter, in the rain, why NOT just run the ball?

Yet by the end of the third quarter, Nebraska manages to score, cutting the lead in half. You’d assume a 12-0 score in the rain is like a beat down, but a touchdown changes everything.

And so the 4th quarter comes, and we are still asking, WHY are we throwing the ball? EAT the clock! But Missouri is still going with the game plan, and throwing the ball…

Interception, which leads to a Nebraska touchdown.

Well that’s ok, Missouri is known for scoring, so surely they can get it back. So the Tigers continue with the plan, keep throwing and…

Interception, which leads to a Nebraska touchdown.

Now Missouri is in serious trouble. Now we see that this team struggled the entire game with the passing, and now it has come to a head. They simply are not effective in the rain, with a new starter this year. This isn’t Chase Daniels, and they are not the team of last year. It showed as they were ineffective in moving the ball, giving up the ball on downs twice, one of which lead to yet another Nebraska touchdown, because they were smart enough to run the ball and eat clock.

Final score, Nebraska 27, Missouri 12.

So what stands out in this game? If you saw the special teams, you noticed that Nebraska had a hard time dealing with the punts, but the Tigers never took advantage of it. I also wondered why a team would do so much passing in the rain, especially when you were controlling the game? I know it’s hindsight, but it certainly didn’t seem logical.

The stats for this game are pretty similar; Missouri had the ball about 30 seconds longer than Nebraska…odd, isn’t it? And although there were officially 5 turnovers in the game, Missouri’s two interceptions really cost them. Yeah, Nebraska lost the ball twice, but Missouri never took advantage of it.

I mean, everything else was pretty similar. Total yards, Nebraska 263, Missouri 225. Rushing Yards 105 to 91, Nebraska favoring. Passing yards, 158 to 134, Nebraska favoring. You look at the stats and figure that my 3 point prediction should have been on the money, but if you watched the game, you see that Missouri did not play a very good game offensively. It was almost as if their quarterback just felt absolutely miserable in the rain. But blame goes all the way around too, not just the QB.

So at 4-1, Missouri falls off the top 25, while Nebraska moves forward, with probably the best win they have had in 2 years. Is this the Nebraska team of old, or are both teams slightly overated…time will tell.