Nebraska is changing where its offense gets called from. Offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen told reporters Tuesday he will call plays from the coaches’ box Friday night at Illinois, the first time he has done it since joining Matt Rhule’s staff. Offensive line coach Geep Wade will be up there with him.
Rhule said Monday that Holgorsen stays on staff and keeps the play-calling job. What changes is the view.
Why the move
“Well, we’re searching for a few more points,” Holgorsen said, according to Sports Illustrated’s Nebraska site. He said the sideline iPads already let him review every series with the quarterbacks, but he wanted “a calm environment” upstairs, adding that there are enough coaches on the sideline to handle the players. “If that gives us one or two advantages to be able to score a little bit more points to win these games, then by all means, I’ll do it.”
The numbers explain the urgency. Nebraska averaged 43.6 points and 475.6 yards through its first five games. Then came three straight losses to Indiana, Oregon and Washington, all decided late. Saturday’s 17-10 loss to Washington turned on two Huskies touchdowns in the final two minutes after Nebraska led 7-3 for most of the second half.
On the run game
Holgorsen pushed back on the idea that effort was the issue. “The effort was there; the physicality was there,” he said, calling it probably the best game Nebraska has played up front. He said Washington stacked the box and dared Nebraska to throw, and the Huskers did not hit the downfield shots they had hit earlier in the year. Anthony Colandrea threw 44 passes, while freshman Jamal Rule ran 13 times for 72 yards.
“To me, balance is about doing what they don’t want you to do,” Holgorsen said.
What’s next
Nebraska (5-3, 2-3 Big Ten) plays at Illinois (5-3, 3-2) Friday at 7 p.m. CT on FOX. The Illini have won three straight, the latest a 20-17 walk-off win at Maryland. One more win makes the Huskers bowl eligible.
Featured image: Photo: KT King from Stillwater, OK, US. CC BY 2.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dana_Holgorsen_coaches_the_offense_(5670168949).jpg.
