Nebraska fans turned out in record numbers for the Red-White Spring Game, with over 80,000 in attendance to see Bo Pelini's first Husker football team.
Nebraska's team is going to be an improved bunch, if Saturday's efforts were any indication. Joe Ganz looks solid at quarterback and the offensive line is going to be good and deep, which is something Husker fans have grown accustomed to over the years.
What Husker fans have NOT grown accustomed to, though, is a shoddy defensive effort. Calling last year's defense shoddy would have been a compliment. The team set school records for first downs, points and yards allowed, and with the hiring of Pelini -- a defensive guru -- as head coach, one would have to expect the defense to be better than it was last year. Since they ranked near the bottom in just about every major statistical category, they can't get much worse.
The end analysis is that the Huskers will be a BETTER team in 2008 than they were last year, but Husker fans need to realize that the road back to the top is a long one. This team is not going to be playing for the national championship at the end of the coming season. In fact, it may be 2010 before we can start putting this team in that conversation.
One thing we will see, though, is that this team will play with the kind of fire and intensity that top-shelf programs exhibit week in and week out. Pelini will expect nothing less from this bunch, and you could see from Saturday's effort that these players -- at least those that want to suit up and play on Saturdays this fall -- will bring that fire and drive on every play for 60 minutes.
With a tough midseason schedule that includes road games at Texas Tech and Oklahoma and back-to-back home dates with top 10 teams like Virginia Tech and Missouri, the coming season is not going to be an easy one. But it should be a lot of fun and Husker fans are going to get their money's worth watching these guys in 2008.
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