Nebraska vs. Washington
This game is all about quarterback play. Nebraska needs regular starter and star Taylor Martinez to be able to play at full strength. Their offense has been based around his ability to run the ball since he took the starting job in training camp. While Roy Helu is a dangerous runningback in his own right, so much of his production comes from teams keying in on Martinez and leaving him in favorable match-up situations. Washington’s defense got gashed by the Huskers rushing offense earlier in this season and while that experience should give Washington a better idea of what they need to do to be successful in this game, it doesn’t necessarily make the Washington defenders faster. Washington would do well to have one of their safeties spying Martinez at all times. If they can neutralize him with just one player, it’ll be easier for the rest of the defense to key on Helu and backup runningback Rex Burkhead. The problem with doing that is that it makes it a little easier for Nebraska to take shots down the field. That’s not a big risk to take though, since Martinez is an inconsistent passer. Nebraska knows that their success has been built on the ground game and they aren’t likely to deviate from that formula in this game. Look for Washington linebacker Mason Foster to have a lot of tackles.
On the other side, Washington quarterback Jake Locker is having a terrible season, with his worst game of the year coming when Washington played Nebraska earlier this season. In that game, he went 4 for 20 with two picks. I doubt we’ll see Nebraska’s defensive coordinator deviate from the strategy he used in that game. Expect to see a lot of pressure with few blitzes, as Jared Crick and Pierre Allen are both able to win against the Washington offensive line in one-on-one match-ups. I wouldn’t be surprised to see blitzes though, the Nebraska secondary is very deep and very talented, highlighted by Prince Amukamura. Amukamura is one of the premiere corners in college football and should have few problems shutting down one side of the field. Washington should try to force the ball down Nebraska’s throat with runningback Chris Polk. Run defense has been an issue for Nebraska, with their defensive line being very inconsistent at anchoring against the run. Once Polk has the attention of the defense, Washington can use bootlegs and rollouts to get Locker away from the pressure of the defensive line. He can even help in the running game by taking off out of those plays.
Prospects to Watch
Nebraska
Prince Amukamura – Cornerback: Amukamura came into the season with high expectations and continues to meet those expectations. His great combination of speed, recognition skills, ball skills and ability to step up in run support have helped him be considered among the top five defensive players coming into the draft this year. He has great long speed, though his ability to explode through directional changes is somewhat questionable, which will allow NFL receivers to get some separation from him in comeback and out routes. However he has enough speed that even if the receiver does get away from him, he shuts the window on that separation extremely fast. Look for him to be a top ten to fifteen pick.
Washington
Jake Locker – Quarterback: Once considered the top prospect in the Draft, Locker has fallen on hard times of late. He throughout the course of his senior season, Locker has consistently shown that his decision-making ability just isn’t good enough to succeed at the NFL level; at least not yet. That being said, he still comes into the bowl season with an impressive set of physical gifts, including the strongest arm that will be available in the draft this year. He also has good athleticism and accuracy, though he still will try to force balls into windows that just aren’t there. He also has a lengthy injury history, most of it coming from the Tyrone Willingham days. In-spite of the flaws he has shown, he still is thought well enough of, that he is likely to go somewhere between late first and early third rounds.
Final Pick
Nebraska – With Martinez expected to be back to form and Locker having a bad year, it’s difficult not to see a repeat of the whipping the Cornhuskers gave the Huskies earlier this season.
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