Nebraska 2021 Football Preview

2020 Recap

Nobody in the Big Ten fought harder than Nebraska to play football in 2020. The Huskers were rewarded with a tough road game to start the season at Ohio State. Nebraska lost big at Ohio State then committed too many turnovers the next week against Northwestern. The season was underway, but Scott Frost and company were off to an 0 – 2 start.

The team came together for a tough home win over Penn State the next week, but was unable to build momentum off the win. Nebraska faltered the next week against Illinois and then lost a tough game to Iowa on the road. At 1 – 4 the team needed to close strong to provide some hope for 2021.

The Huskers were able to do just that over the last three weeks of the season. They picked up a ten point road win over Purdue, lost by seven to Minnesota and then beat Rutgers on the road to finish the season. While they didn’t have a winning streak all season, winning two of their last three games helped end the season with something to build on.

2020 Leaders

Projected Starters

Reasons For Optimism

An Experienced Adrian Martinez

The quarterback position has always been the most important on the field and that’s never going to change. Adrian Martinez has manned the position for the Huskers the past three seasons and although things have not always gone smoothly, he did some very good things in 2020. For starters, Martinez completed 71.5 percent of his passes, easily a career high. He also ran for 521 yards on 5.7 yards per carry, showing the explosive dual threat ability that made him one of the best quarterback recruits in the country. Most importantly, he battled back from adversity. Martinez lost playing time during the season and learned not to take his spot atop the quarterback depth chart for granted. Martinez has always had the tools to be a star, but he now has had an opportunity to mature and become the leader the team needs.

An Excellent Defensive Line

Nebraska returns talent, experience and depth on the defensive line. The top four contributors from 2020 return, with Ben Stille leading the way with 27 tackles and 3 tackles for loss last year. He is a leader who is a rock on the defensive line for the Huskers. Ty Robinson and Casey Rogers are younger players who both contributed last season and have the potential to be stars on the defensive line. They have excellent size and athleticism that allows them to play various roles up front. At nose tackle, Damion Daniels is an enormous player who fits the role perfectly, he clogs running lanes and is disruptive in the backfield. Nebraska has done a good job of loading up on players with the size and athleticism to play their scheme and should have good depth behind the key contributors as well.

Talent in the Defensive Backfield

Despite the loss of Decaprio Bootle, Nebraska returns a talented defensive backfield. Both starting safeties return after combining for eight tackles for loss and seven pass breakups in 2020. They will be pushed by Myles Farmer who was injured in 2020, but has caught the staff’s attention as a talented safety. At cornerback, Cam Taylor-Britt is a proven starter and has been one of the best in the conference. He is joined by Quinton Newsome, who played a good amount last year and will step into a bigger role this season. The Huskers also made an interesting addition through the transfer portal. They added former five star defensive back recruit Tyreke Johnson from Ohio State. Johnson struggled to crack the rotation at Ohio State but has the physical tools to be a good player in the secondary. Add in the fact that star linebacker JoJo Domann is used in coverage quite a bit and it’s easy to see the Nebraska defensive backfield will be a strength in 2021.

Causes For Concern

Unproven Receivers

Wandale Robinson led Nebraska in receiving in 2020 and actually had more yards than any two other receivers on the team. Robinson has transferred out of the program and leaves a production void at the receiver position. There is talent at the position, but it remains to be seen if the players on the roster can perform at this level. Nebraska has added former FCS All American, Samori Toure out of Montana to the receiver room. Toure was ultra productive at Montana, but will need to prove he can make the jump to the FBS level. Omar Manning, Zavier Betts and Alante Brown are all talented recruits from the 2020 class, but none of them has averaged 30 yards a game yet in their career. The hope is that this trio will provide at least one starter this year and add depth at the position. Another interesting player added to the mix is Oliver Martin, he has transferred twice now from Michigan to Iowa and then Iowa to Nebraska, but he was a highly touted recruit and has good speed out of the slot. The Huskers have some talent in the receiver room, but very little of that talent is proven at this level.

Scott Frost Needs to Show Progress

When Scott Frost left UCF and took the Nebraska job it seemed like a perfect fit. He was an innovative offensive coach who has quickly turned around the UCF program and a Nebraska Alumni who would understand the expectations and intricacies of the Nebraska job. In his first three seasons at Nebraska, Frost has been under .500 in each of the three seasons. Now entering his fourth season, Frost has to show the team is headed in the right direction, not only for job security but to help the program succeed. Early in a coach’s tenure at a school he can sell his vision to the players, recruits and administration, but after a few seasons on the job there has to be tangible progress. Without it the players stop buying in, recruits stop paying attention and the administration loses confidence. Scott Frost has to show the program is progressing this year, which means at least a .500 record and a trip to a bowl game.

2021 Schedule

Top 25 Players

2021 Projection

Nebraska has a tough schedule in 2021, with an out of conference game against Oklahoma and crossover games against Michigan and Ohio State. They will need to start the season strong in “week 0” at Illinois and then take care of business at home against Fordham and Buffalo. If they can start the season 3 – 0 that will create some momentum heading into the game at Oklahoma. The in conference schedule starts with a visit to rebuilding Michigan State, home games against Northwestern and Michigan, then a trip to Minnesota before their first bye. Nebraska can win two or three of those games and will likely need to, because the schedule down the stretch is tough. The final third of the season includes home games against Purdue and Ohio State, a bye, a trip to Wisconsin and then a rivalry game at home against Iowa. None of those four games is a gimme and winning two of the four would be a success. There’s six to seven wins on the schedule, but Nebraska can’t lose a game they shouldn’t to finish .500 or better in 2021.