One story in a Wine Country Husker series, looking at position breakdowns for the Nebraska Cornhuskers for the 2012 season. Today, we look at tight end:
Looking back: Though the Huskers lose center Mike Caputo along tackles Marcel Jones and Yoshi Hardrick to graduation, this unit underwent a youth movement for the first time in recent memory.
Walk-on Spencer Long came out of nowhere to start every game at right guard. Andrew Rodriguez and Seung Hoon Choi took their shots starting at left guard. True freshman Tyler Moore started all four non-conference games at right tackle. Even though Jeremiah Sirles played as a backup this year, he has 14 games as a starter at left tackle in 2010 under his belt.
The 2011 campaign showed that the strength for Nebraska was the offense, as the defense was racked by injuries. The offense was once again focused on the run, but unlike 2010 when quarterback Taylor Martinez was a game-breaker, he was focused more on limiting turnovers (sorry, I hate the term “game manager’). The Huskers sustained their share of injuries on the offensive line which led to the lineup being changed often, and at one point in time, Nebraska would rotate the entire line every so often in the game.
Under first-year offensive coordinator Tim Beck, Nebraska dropped in production from 2010, but to be fair, if Nebraska had 2010's defense, they would have done a lot better this season.
Beck introduced some new formations, like the diamond, and shifted from the shotgun being the base formation to the pistol. He also started to use the fullback, which made all the people who remember Nebraska using a fullback happy.
Looking ahead: There were moments when the group imposed its will and shined. The second half against Ohio State in a 34-27 win over the Buckeyes and the first half of the Capital One Bowl game (a 30-13 loss to South Carolina) were prime examples of what Nebraska could accomplish up front against talented opposition. Entering the bowl game, Nebraska ranked 13th in the country rushing while facing its share of talented defensive lines in the Big Ten.
However, the second half of the loss to South Carolina served as a reminder that this unit still has to improve. In the last 25 minutes, Nebraska had almost as many penalties (8) as offensive yards (12).
With another year under their belts, Sirles and Moore figure to be the early front-runners to start at tackle. Depth, however, needs to be established.
The Huskers have some solid and proven depth at guard with Choi, who made the most of his opportunity after Rodriguez was beset by injuries. Rodriguez is long on potential but can he stay healthy?
Spencer Long, who is a walk-on that started every game a year ago, will be starting somewhere. The question is will it be at guard or center? Replacing Caputo at center is a pressing need considering that he saw the majority of the snaps. Cole Pensick is the early favorite to start though others will get a look as well including Ryne Reeves, Mark Pelini and possibly Long. Brent Qvale, who enters his junior year, will have a chance to contribute as well as Brandon Thompson.
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