The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/998618
THE WOLVERINE 2018 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ■ 131 BY ANDREW VAILLIENCOURT The 2017 campaign was an ugly one for Nebraska football. The storied program fell to a low point with its 4-8 overall record, ultimately leading to the firing of coach Mike Riley after three seasons at the helm. To fix the mess in Lincoln, the Corn- huskers turned to a former legend that also happened to be the hottest coach on the market — Central Florida's Scott Frost, who quarterbacked them to two national titles as a player, including the one it shared with Michigan in 1997. In his two years at UCF, Frost turned a team that failed to win a single game in 2015 to an undefeated squad (13-0) in 2017 after going 6-7 in his first season. Nebraska is hoping that he can lead the same kind of turnaround at his alma mater. Frost was the consensus 2017 National Coach of the Year and brought all nine of his UCF assistant coaches with him to Lincoln. The Cornhuskers return a talented wide receiver group, led by senior Stanley Mor- gan Jr., who was second in the Big Ten in receiving last season and set a Nebraska school record with 986 yards on 61 catches. He also had 10 touchdowns, good for second in the conference and tied for 16th nationally a year ago. In Big Ten play, Morgan was second in receiving yards per game (85.9), be- hind only his teammate, redshirt sophomore JD Spielman (88.1). Spiel- man finished with 830 yards and two touchdowns in 11 games, and holds the school record for receiv- ing yards in a game after totaling 200 against Ohio State in 2017. The pair will be catch- ing passes from a new quarterback in 2018, how- ever, because Tanner Lee left early for the NFL. Nebraska returns zero quarterbacks with playing experience from last season after transfers left the pro- gram with only two scholarship signal- callers. Frost prefers an up-tempo spread offense, so whoever is taking the snaps will have to be athletic. Fifth-year senior running back Mikale Wilbon and senior running back Devine Ozigbo, Nebraska's two leading rushers from last year, both return and should form a nice backfield for the Cornhusk- ers after they combined for 872 yards and nine touchdowns last fall. Nebraska returns eight starters on defense, which bodes well for a year of improvement. However, there's not much else the defense can do but be bet- ter in 2018 after finishing last season ranked No. 100 in total defense (436.2 yards allowed per game). Senior linebacker De- drick Young is the top returner on the defen- sive side of the ball. He totaled 80 tackles, four tackles for loss and one sack in 2017. Both starting defensive ends return as well. Red- shirt junior Carlos Da- vis and fifth-year senior Freedom Akinmoladun combined for 66 tackles and 3.5 sacks, and should provide a solid pass rush off the edge. Michigan faces Nebraska early enough in the year that the growth the team is sure to experience this fall likely will not have reached its peak yet, meaning the Wolver- ines get the Cornhuskers at a good time. U-M also hosts the game, another good thing, since Nebraska is 415-129-13 all time at home and has sold out 361 consecutive home games dating back to 1962. In 2016, it went 7-0 at home, the first time the program went undefeated in Lincoln since 2012. There isn't an immediate expectation that Nebraska competes for a division title in 2018, but the passionate fan base in Lin- coln is getting anxious. The Cornhuskers haven't placed higher than a tie for second in the Big Ten West Division, and you have to go back to 2012 for the last time they won their division, which at the time was still called the Legends Division. "The biggest expectation is getting Ne- braska back to a more consistent brand and level of football," HuskerOnline.com publisher Sean Callahan said. "It's been such a roller coaster of emotions the last 15 years, and Frost should be able to add much needed stability and unity." Notes Athlon predicts four-star freshman quarterback Adrian Martinez will be the team's starter and ranks him as the No. 68 starting signal-caller in the country entering 2018 … The publication also ranks Nebraska's 2018 schedule as the toughest in the Big Ten, just ahead of Michigan. ❏ The Cornhuskers Turn To Scott Frost To Return Them To Glory 2018 SCHEDULE Date Opponent 2017 Result Sept. 1 Akron — Sept. 8 Colorado — Sept. 15 Troy — Sept. 22 at Michigan — Sept. 29 Purdue W, 25-24 Oct. 6 at Wisconsin L, 38-17 Oct. 13 at Northwestern L, 31-24 Oct. 20 Minnesota L, 54-21 Nov. 3 at Ohio State L, 56-14 Nov. 10 Illinois W, 28-6 Nov. 17 Michigan State — Nov. 23 at Iowa L, 56-14 PLAYERS TO WATCH Offense: J.D. Spielman, R-So., WR — Burst onto the scene in 2017 as a redshirt freshman, recording 830 yards and two touchdowns on 55 receptions … Was named to the USA Today and Football Writers Association of America Freshman All-America Team … Was named third-team All-Big Ten by the coaches … Set Nebraska's freshman record for catches, yards and all- purpose yards (1,572) in 2017 … Was an honorable mention All-Big Ten kick returner by the coaches after taking one kick back for a touchdown and averaging 24.8 yards per return last fall. Defense: Dedrick Young, Sr., LB — Made 11 starts in 2017 and finished with 80 tackles, which was good for second on the team … Had eight games with at least six stops last year … Has tal - lied at least 60 tackles in each of his first three seasons … Would be the first player in school history to have at least 60 takedowns in four straight seasons … Can move into the top five for tack - les in program history if he reaches 75 this fall. Senior wideout Stanley Morgan Jr. earned second-team All-Big Ten honors last year after hauling in 61 catches for 986 yards and 10 touchdowns, all of which sur- passed his career totals entering 2017. PHOTO COURTESY NEBRASKA NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS • SEPT. 22 • GAME 4 QUICK FACTS All-Time Series: Tied 4-4-1 First Meeting: U-M 31, Nebraska 0 (Oct. 21, 1905, at Ann Arbor) Last Meeting: Nebraska 17, U-M 13 (Nov. 9, 2013, at Ann Arbor) Head Coach: Scott Frost, first year at Nebraska and 19-7 overall (3rd year) 2017 In Review: 4-8 overall, 3-6 Big Ten (5th West Division) Final 2017 Ranking: Unranked Returning Starters: 15 (6 offense, 8 defense, 1 specialist) Last Bowl Appearance: 2016 (Music City, vs. Ten - nessee, L 38-24) Big Ten Championships (last): 0 (Have won 43 con- ference titles since 1894, with the last coming in the Big 12 in 1999) RETURNING LEADERS Passing: None Rushing: Devine Ozigbo (493 yards, 3 TD) Receiving: Stanley Morgan Jr. (986 yards, 10 TD) Tackles: Dedrick Young (80) Sacks: Ben Stille (3.5) Interceptions: Aaron Williams (2)