Game On: Storylines, players and matchups to watch in Huskers vs. Nittany Lions | Football

The cast

No. 56, Boe Wilson, 6-3, 300, sr.; No. 65, Christian Gaylord, 6-6, 310, sr.; No. 71, Matt Farniok, 6-6, 330, sr.; No. 76, Brenden Jaimes, 6-6, 300, sr.; No. 70, Matt Sichterman, 6-4, 315, jr.; No. 73, Broc Bando, 6-5, 315, jr.; No. 75, Trent Hixson, 6-4, 320, jr.; No. 51, Cam Jurgens, 6-3, 290, so.; No. 68, Will Farniok, 6-3, 295, so.; No. 54, Bryce Benhart, 6-9, 330, rfr.; No. 57, Ethan Piper, 6-4, 300, rfr.; No. 72, Matthew Anderson, 6-6, 255, rfr.; No. 74, Brant Banks, 6-7, 305, rfr.; No. 77, Michael Lynn, 6-6, 290, rfr.; No. 78, Jimmy Fritzsche, 6-7, 290, rfr.; No. 69, Turner Corcoran, 6-6, 300, fr.; No. 79, Alex Conn, 6-6, 300, fr.; No. 59, Ian Boerkircher, 6-6, 275, so.; No. 63, Nouredin Nouili, 6-4, 320, so.; No. 66, Ezra Miller, 6-6, 325, so.; No. 53, Riley Moses, 6-2, 315, rfr.; No. 62, Noah Stafursky, 6-3, 340, rfr.; No. 65, Bladen Bayless, 6-3, 260, fr.; No. 71, Keegan Menning, 6-4, 330, fr.; No. 76, Eli Simonson, 6-5, 295, fr.

2019 cliffhanger

This group got better as the year went on. Jurgens grew into the center role as he learned on the fly, and by the end of the season, the unit overall was in a good place.

The new cast

Not so much a new cast as new roles this year for the Huskers. Matt Farniok is moving down to right guard from right tackle and Wilson flipped to left guard from right. The spot to fill still is right tackle, where Benhart is the current favorite.

Season preview

This should be among the offense’s strong points in 2020. The Huskers’ returning group has a combined 106 starts, led by Jaimes’ 33. The staff would prefer Benhart step in right away and nail down the right tackle job. If he can’t — he’s just a redshirt freshman, after all — some shuffling might be required, but the Huskers should be well-equipped to handle it.

The star

Jaimes stepped into the starting lineup four games into his freshman season and hasn’t left it since. He enters 2020 as the Huskers’ starting left tackle for a third straight season. Offensive line coach Greg Austin said Jaimes considered leaving for the NFL after the 2019 season, and NU could have lost him to transfer during the period the Big Ten was postponed. However, he’s back and he’s NU’s best chance at a first-team all-conference-type player in several years.