Running Game Wont Just Be Rex
BRN's own Darren Carlson pointed out recently that Rex Burkhead's workload a year ago was second only to Lawrence Phillips all-time for a single season. Burkhead had 284 carries, just shy of the 286 by Phillips. The highly touted trio of Ameer Abdullah, Aaron Green, and Braylon Heard combined for a mere 91 carries. Look for that to change in 2012.
Abdullah, Green, and Heard were all true freshmen a year ago. So they came in with no experience in a collegiate game and limited practice time to learn a college offense. Neither of those things will be true in 2012. Anyone who's watched Nebraska in 2012 saw how important Burkhead was to the offense. Late in the season, there were signs that he was banged up from the workload. Look for the coaching staff to find more opportunities to get the underclassmen into games to give Rex a breather.
There will also be some new blood. Fullback Mike Marrow was recruited by Nick Saban to play at Alabama where he redshirted. He transferred to Eastern Michigan University and then followed his father to NU a year ago. He'll now have two years of eligibility and at 250 lbs. could contribute in short-yardage situations. If needed, the Huskers could also burn a redshirt on true freshman I-back Imani Cross.
The freshman campaigns by Abdullah, Green, and Heard shouldn't be seen as a ceiling for these players by any means. Recall that Scout.com rated Green a five-star player. Heard was a four-star recruit out of high school. Abdullah, while a three-star prospect, had offers from Alabama and USC, among others. A modest first year should hardly be seen as an indication that these can't be big-time players. Burkhead averaged fewer yards per carry as a freshman than Green or Heard. Look at him now. Roy Helu had fewer carries than Abdullah as a freshman and didn't score a touchdown. All three backs brought in last year managed to score. Abdullah also managed more carries and touchdowns than Cory Ross did as a freshman. There are other star backs from the past that produced less as freshman. Roger Craig had a mere 7 carries for 31 yards.
With added experience and practice time though, things can improve dramatically. Craig rushed for over 700 yards as a sophomore. Burkhead had over 900 and Helu had over 800. Ross had over 500. Those aren't modest increases, those are huge increases. And the production only went up from there as the players became upperclassmen. The fact is, we really haven't seen anything yet when it comes to the young trio. History says, we can still expect quite a lot.
2/20/2012
Considering that Abdullah, Green and Heard are now Abdullah and Green the production will increase! Heard has been moved to CB. I think that Cross will play at FB. Burkhead should be rested this spring, giving Abdullah and Green a lot of practice time.
2/20/2012
Helu had more carries than Abdullah as a freshman
Papillion, NE
2/20/2012
Good…Abdullah fumbles the ball too often.
I’m not one to be pessimistic but I honestly think Abdullah will be one of those players who kind of just exploded onto the scene (so to speak) and doesn’t really do anything after that…I’m probably wrong…and I hope I am, but I think we have a better chance investing into Green.
2/20/2012
i thought they were moving heard to cornerback?
2/20/2012
Abdullah is going to be a keeper.Super speed and great vision of the field.
Grand Island,NE
2/20/2012
Abdullah was just a baby this year at the end of the year he was
getting thrown around like a rag doll by the Defenses once he
gets a few years in the wt room and grows into a man instead
of a punk straight out of high school he will be a stud…...I hope
2/20/2012
Why are we talking about recruiting stars after the players play a full year? These star ratings were mostly made when the players were Juniors. That’s going to be 3 seasons removed from where Abdullah, Green and Heard (4 in his case) will be this fall.
Good god. Enough of the stars. Such an inexact science. Green to me looked to have the least talent of the three last year. He was a 5 star guy. Mostly because he dominated a game as a Soph. But never improved in HS after that. He peaked.
Abdullah is trending up.
2/20/2012
People need to give Ameer a break. Kid had one heck of a “true” freshmen season and is only gonna get better!
Papillion, NE
2/20/2012
I’m not denying he had “one heck of a ‘true’ freshm(a)n season”.
I’m just saying that he doesn’t seem dependable enough because he fumbles the ball too often.
i.e. Wisconsin, South Carolina (inside the goal line on a drive that possibly lost us the game), and Michigan.
That’s way too many fumbles for a guy who had less than 40 carries, IMHO.
2/20/2012
Has anyone seen how Marrow is doing in practice? I think our running game is going to bowl everyone over this year. Don’t burn Cross’ redshirt. I think we’re loaded. Have Martinez throw, throw, throw for the next 6 months, get his % completions up, and we can be dominant on offense. With all the emphasis on defense with this year’s recruits, hopefully good things will follow there, too.
2/20/2012
Rex needs to stick to downhill running. He started to dance in the backfield last year despite much of his success coming from bursts between the tackles.
Ameer needs to bulk up. B1G ball is tough and he had a smaller frame than most running backs in the league, so a nice offseason will treat him will.
Green is who I look forward to the most. He showed some flashes catching the ball and with some speed off the edges as well.
Lastly is Taylor. If he can get his feet back under him and gain a little more confidence, he could be also change the pace quite a bit under center. A dual threat quarterback is very important nowadays, so some emphasis needs to be made on the passing side as well.
Papillion, NE
2/20/2012
I can’t find any video of Mike Marrow from high school (outside of rivals.com), so here is a video of him from rivals.com.
http://rivals.yahoo.com/video/recruiting-football/Mike-Marrow-Highlights-1-9096
I wonder how much time he will split with CJ Zimmerer…he’s been there longer than Mike Marrow and was a 3 star as well.
Here’s a video of him on youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glYhgv2cI3I
2/20/2012
As for Ameer fumbling the ball, I do believe there was a guy in the NFL that had a bad time with fumbling one year Adrian Peterson and what did he do the following year. None I do believe. Have Faith the the young man
2/21/2012
Pelini needs to get playmakers like Green on the field. There is a reason he was a 5-star recruit. Green has incredible speed and quickness, but we haven’t seen it because he is stuck in the logjam at RB.
2/21/2012
EG3 - Logjam at RB? All they had Burkhead and no one else last year. Let’s not act like this guy is a 5th year senior that is finally going to get his shot. Abdullah and Heard looked like DB’s playing RB so when it’s all said and done, Green should emerge as the best of the bunch.
2/22/2012
In the big picture “stars” are meaningless. Joe Ganz was a 2 star, Roy Helu, Jared Crick, Alfonzo Dennard were all 3 stars, while Curt Dukes, Frantz Hardy, and Kenny Wilson were all 4 stars, Andre Jones and Baker Steinkuhler 5 stars. I highly doubt anyone would say they would rather have Kenny Wilson over Roy Helu.
Heard moving to corner is a win-win. He requested to make the change, and actually was regarded in hs as a better db than rb. This move opens the door for Abdullah, Green, Cross and Marlow. I agree we need to geet Green on the field more, same with JTurner; however, I believe Abdullah is a legit #2 rb.
2/22/2012
TexasHusker: Rex danced in the back field last year. Please explain, Rex did an incredible job running down hill last year.
We have the tools to win a lot of games next season but I’m still concerned about our QB spot. If Bo allows a true competition for the starting QB spot and sticks with who ever wins then our Huskers may be 11-1 next season. If not then we will have problems.
Papillion, NE
2/22/2012
Baker Steinkuhler was a 5 Star Offensive Tackle…not Defensive Tackle…so that argument is invalid.
Jared Crick - 3 Star 5.6 rating - pretty good; great with N. Suh
Ndamukong Suh - 4 Star 6.0 rating - Amazing
So those supports the “star rating” argument
I will give you credit for Roy Helu and Joe Ganz
You also forgot Prince Amukamara…he was a 3 star 5.6 rating player
2/22/2012
Contrary to the title of this article, it could be just Rex next year. Rex was a beast last year and has a strong chance of being even better this fall.
Bo tends to play the starters a lot. He says he wants the best players at each position to play the most. Rex is quite a bit ahead of A&A. If there are a lot of close games this year Bo will keep Rex in.