The Barnyard

I'm unable to post there. I think it is restricted to subscribers of your site only.

Looking forward to a good game, Nebraska is well respected by all gamecock fans. We have very fond memories from the CWS and our series with you back in the 80's.. What do you think is the most important matchup for the game. I think it is our DL vs. your OL. We have to slow down the run to beat you.

I think it's the offensive line versus the defensive line on BOTH sides. Our OL has endured a tough B1G season for the first time and honestly came out pretty well, but we haven't faced a defensive line as talented as yours. We'll be missing Andrew Rodriguez who has been a stellar run blocker all year, replacing him with a former walk on Choi (I don't even try to spell his first name) who is a weight room freak who played quite well in the non-conference schedule which was, admittedly, rather weak. Thankfully TE Ben Cotton WILL be playing - he's basically an offensive lineman playing tight end, though he's stepped up a bit in the receiving end of things. I think y'all are probably ahead in this match-up.

I don't know how many SEC teams run the zone-read option these days (maybe Auburn and Mississippi State?), but it's a slightly different game in that the DL can't just be fast and strong - it has to be disciplined. Too aggressive and you'll run into problems. It will be a great match-up to watch in the trenches on both sides.

It will also be interesting to see how your OL plays against our DL. Nebraska does NOT blitz very often -- occasionally in obvious passing situations you'll see some blitz packages but for the most part the scheme relies on the DL creating pressure. Considering pre-season all american Jared Crick has been out with an injury for most of the season, this could be a potentially problematic match-up, but if the DL can create some pressure on your young QB there could be some issues. When they were able to create pressure against Iowa and Michigan State, it was a completely different defense.

I'm excluding the obvious (Burkhead, Martinez, David) because everyone knows about them or at least has heard their name.

1) Ameer Abdullah, KR/PR. He's earned a lot of accolades for his punt returning ability and for good reason. He's fast, but more importantly, he's quick and able to make people miss. He slowed down a bit toward the end in this run, but he almost made me tear my ACL just watching this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DCaDhvN7a0

2) Brett Maher, K/P. Second special teams person here... we lost literally the statistically best kicker of all time in FBS Alex Henery last season but Maher's stepped up and then some, especially in the punting game. If Nebraska gets to the 30 yard line, you can basically accept 3 points because he has that kind of range and accuracy - he's made some at 50+ this season even and has flipped field position on more than one occasion.

3) Alfonzo Dennard. Complete stud. Defense got immediately better when he returned from his injury. It will be a really great match-up between Dennard and Jeffries -- Dennard was able to shut down some of the best receivers in the game this season, for instance Michigan State's Cunningham, whom he held to zero receptions for the first time in Cunningham's career. Nebraska's coverage scheme could best be described as a match-up zone (playing man-to-man within zone coverage) and Dennard's really experienced within this system. The only question is how much help he'll get from our safeties.

4) Kenny Bell. Obviously this is a run-first offense, but Bell has breakaway speed and great size -- he's 6'2 and runs a sub 4.5 and is our leading receiver as a redshirt frosh. He's had some butterfinger issues, but not many, and coach Beck likes to find different ways to give him the ball in space, from screens to end arounds and everything in between. Nebraska MUST make your D respect the pass to win, and if we do that, Kenny Bell will play a huge part in that.

5) Kyler Reed. He'll probably see a bit more playing time since Cotton is somewhat injured, but Reed is our receiving threat at TE. His numbers are down this year due to increased playing time for Ben Cotton and I think a slight change in offensive philosophy, but if you see #25 on the field, keep an eye on him because he's probably going to run as far and as fast as he can against whatever linebacker you have covering him. Reed has receiver speed and TE size.

TM's 40 time is something like a 4.5. Rex Burkhead's is a 4.6. I can't get more specific than that.

Martinez isn't going to wow people with speed or agility like Denard Robinson, but what he does have is the most impressive acceleration I've ever seen from a quarterback. He goes from 0 to 60 in ONE move, but doesn't have the top-end speed or ability to make guys miss that some mobile QBs have.

Burkhead is more of a power back - he's not going to run by many people, but he consistently turns 0 yard gains into 5 yard gains. What makes him good isn't necessarily his speed but his versatility and especially his vision. You'll almost certainly see him out of the WIldcat and don't be surprised to see him throw - he played QB in high school and has a surprisingly good arm (so good in fact that there's a small but vocal minority amongst our fanbase that legitimately would rather have him at QB than T-Magic).