The 2024 Huskers – Wary Optimism vs. Red Flags: The Kicking Game Nebraska Brian Buschini Tristan Alvano

As the season approaches, things like Matt Rhule’s track record of improvement as a college coach, the signing of Dylan Raiola, another successful portal off-season and retaining of several key players for an extra season have again sparked hope in a fan base which can probably best be described in the following happy terms:

Cynical.

Beaten down.

Hanging in there.

Now self-deprecating by necessity.

Functional alcoholic.

Hearing Won’t Get Fooled Again when it’s not playing.

Born after 1997.

“WE SUCKED THAT SEASON, TOO!” (After being told 2016 was the last winning season.)

F**k this.

I tried to keep all that in mind when looking for something call some pieces I will be writing leading up to the August 31st kickoff against the Miners of UTEP. To be honest, I usually get a little more fired up than most for kickoff no matter what and after that first contest, the red flags quickly come into focus.

This season, I’ll try to figure out what some of those are before the first game while we’re all allowing hope to rise again and whether there’s legitimate reason for concern and how deep does that go?

So in honor of those emotions, welcome to the first installment of Wary Optimism and Red Flags.

Today, we cover the kicking game, a facet which did not always install confidence in 2023. Granted, it wasn’t as bad as 2019-2021 when we were auditioning club soccer players, enduring sidewinding gut-wrenching 24-yard winners and extra points and punting line-drives to the wrong side of the field for walk-in TD’s.

Last season’s kicking wasn’t quite as bad as it felt at the time – perhaps a little PTSD from those aforementioned years. But if we’re honest, the kickers were part of the problem more often than the solution. Let’s take a look at just a few of the crucial games:

L Minnesota 13-10

They actually were pretty flawless in this one. Freshman Tristan Alvano booted a 27-yard FG and made his only extra point and Brian Buschini cracked his three punts at a 47.7 yard clip. However, a slight preview of things to come was his 38 yard boot to the Gopher 18. It may be a quibble, but all season long he seemed to have difficulty pinning those inside the 10. Inside the 20 is acceptable, but we’d become accustomed to better than that from him in 2022.

Let’s call it the baseline.

L Colorado 36-14

In the 1st quarter, the Huskers and the Buffs began trading punts and, while no scoring took place, Nebraska was operating with a shovel in their own end.

• Colorado punts a 35 yarder into the end zone for a touchback.
• The Huskers fail to move and Buschini boots a 39-yarder returned back to the Colorado 47.
• The Buffs fail to move but Mark Vassett drops a 41-yarder pinning NU on their 7.
• The Huskers move 20 yards out of the hole, but Buschini only manages a 30-yarder to the Buffs 43.
• The D stops CU but a 34-yarder by Vassett is fair caught on the 9.
• The Huskers, whose offensive line finally appears to be moving the Buffs, drive 64 yards, but Alvano misses a 45-yard FG for a 3-0 lead.
• Three-and-out for the Blackshirts and CU pops a 43-yarder backing NU up to their 29. It’s becoming clear who is winning the field position battle.
• The Husker defense which has been stellar reaches a breaking point as a Sims fumble is followed by a Sims pick which turn into a Buffy FG then a TD giving Colorado a 10-0 lead.
• After managing a 1st down, the Huskers are forced to punt with around 2:35 to go in the half. Buschini bonks a 35 yarder to the CU 37 giving them more than enough time to get into FG range for a 13-0 lead.

The game wasn’t blown open until the turnover bug bit again in the 3rd quarter, but failing to even up the field position or take the early lead helped take the wind out of a defense which had completely shut down a potent Buffs offense after a slew of misfires by the offense. During this stretch Buschini punted 3 times for a 31.3 average and Alvano missed a 45-yarder on which we expect someone with his leg to connect.

Photo by Nick Tre. Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

L Michigan State 20-17

A crucial stretch begins after the Spartans take a 13-10 lead with 11:35 remaining in the 3rd quarter.

• The Huskers go three & out and Buschini shanks a 28-yarder which is downed at the Husker 49.
• MSU manages to lose a yard in 5 plays (thanks, James Williams!), but Ryan Eckley drops a 43-yarder on the Husker 7.
• After NU gains a yard in three tries, Buschini pops a 38-yarder which is returned 8 yards to the NU 38.
• Four plays later, the Spartans score on a 25-yard TD toss for a 20-10 lead with 12:13 left.

Essentially that was it as a Husker offense on fumes – 277 total yards – had no weapons with which to fight back until Haarberg set up a TD on a 43-yard run with under 5 minutes left. They got the ball back, but this time he fumbled when sacked on the next possession and the clock ran out on them. Buschini’s only other punt attempt was blocked while Eckley uncorked two more 50-yarders in the ensuing exchanges.

As the curtain is about to drop on the 2024 season, the starters appear locked in again. Alvano made all of his extra points but was only 9/15 on field goals, including a concerning 2/7 on those in the 40-49 range. Yes, it’s better than deep prayer on 22-yarders and XP’s, but it’s not good enough when you want to be a team that’s finding ways to win those one-score games.

Which we seem to attract the way Paul Finebaum attracts offers for hair care products and punches to the face.

Buschini still averaged 40.7 yards per kick which is pretty good considering the number of shanks. His leg is fine, but consistency became the issue. Has it been solved? We won’t truly know until a tense moment in a tie game that requires either a clutch boomer or a coffin corner dart. But for the same reason we need the 40-yard FG’s, we’ll need to at least hold, and hopefully flip, field position.

Husker legacy punter freshman Kamdyn Koch is on campus and kickers freshman Nico Ottomanelli and RFr John Hohl have also been brought in.

The million dollar question right now is – what is the confidence level in the kicking right now?

(By the way, Alvano just recently returned to practice after recovering from a groin injury. Now answer that question about the confidence level.)

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Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images

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