Nebraska Cornhuskers 2017 NCAA Football Preview

College Football Predictions – Nebraska Cornhuskers 2017 NCAA Football Preview

2016 Recap

2016 Record – 9-4

2016 ATS – 7-5-1

Not bad. Not bad at all.

The Huskers started out on SUPAH HOT FIRE with a 7-0 start and almost took it to EIGHT straight wins but fell to Wisconsin in OT. The next week they had to deal with Ohio St and lost their will to live when QB Tommy Armstrong was injured in the first half. Nebraska finished off at 9-4 which was pretty good when you consider their starting QB battled injuries, they had no 1,000-yard rusher and no 600-yard receiver.

2017 MEGALOCKS Opening Power Rating

Big 10 – TBD

West Division – TBD

OFFENSE

We have to be honest. The QB situation gives us the HEEBIE JEEBIES. Tommy Armstrong was a gamer and better than people gave him credit for in our opinion. This season ? Tulane transfer Tanner Lee or redshirt freshman Patrick O’Brien. The running game will not only miss the mobility of QB Armstrong, but in addition, they lose #1 RB Terrell Newby who rushed for almost 900 yards in 2016. Nebraska was only ranked 9th in the Big 10 in rushing last season, and when you consider the turnover at QB and RB, it seems highly unlikely they will take a step forward. Hopefully the offensive line that returns 3/5 starters can exceed expectations. It seems to us that you can expect close to the 26.5 points per game that the Huskers produced last season.

DEFENSE

The Huskers were decent enough last season but not dominant. They allowed 148 yards rushing per game (#6 Big 10), 60% completions (#11 Big 10) and bagged just 26 sacks (#11 Big 10). Nebraska loses their top-2 tacklers from last season’s unit, and unfortunately, they are going to be without star CB Chris Jones (Thorpe Award watch list) for the majority of the season. Or maybe all of it. They still look strong on the DL and at safety, but overall, we feel that the Huskers will do very well to match their defensive performance from last season (24 points per game allowed).

SPECIAL TEAMS

PK Drew Brown hit 12/14 FGs last season and was perfect inside of 40 yards. Otherwise, it appears that this group is average, and that may be generous considering that the Huskers were ranked 12th in punting in the Big 10 last year, 7th on punt returns and 5th on kickoff returns.

Potential ATS Trouble Spot

September 16 – N ILLINOIS. Nebraska is coming back from Oregon with Big 10 play on deck. We think it might be a dicey proposition to lay double digits in this spot.

MEGAmazing Tidbits

Last season marked the first time in the past seven seasons that Nebraska had a positive turnover margin (+5).

The Huskers are 10-4 at home under HC Mike Riley (7-0 last year) but just 4-6 on the road.

MEGALOCKS ATS Value Rating (10) 3.0

MEGALOCKS says:

Overall, we give the CORNHUSKERS a 3.0 ATS Value Rating (Below Average) this season.

Nebraska may be in for a bit of a rough season. There is inexperience on both sides of the football and the schedule does not do them any favors. You could make the case for a 5-0 start if they can spring an upset over Oregon on the road in week two, but to be honest, it seems like an unlikely proposition.

The Huskers have a 12-12-2 record vs Vegas in the two-year reign of Mike Riley. This feels like a bit of a down year for Nebraska and we recommend staying clear unless there are early signs of overachieving.

Want more Nebraska football?

Website

http://www.huskers.com/SportSelect.dbml?SPID=22

Forum

Free

http://www.huskerboard.com/index.php?/forum/1-husker-football/

https://nebraska.forums.rivals.com/forums/husker-board.12/

http://www.scout.com/college/nebraska/forums/4511-bugeaters-place

Restricted

https://nebraska.forums.rivals.com/forums/red-sea-scrolls.24/

News

http://www.cornnation.com/