As the saying goes, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. That certainly applies to a pair of Big Ten West Division football teams that likely wouldn't mind at least cosmetic mulligans for the first glimpses they've shown.
Nebraska and Iowa slow starts lead to anger, boos from fans
College Football Insider: At 1-1, Nebraska hasn't cooled Scott Frost's hot seat, and Iowa's offense had a painstaking debut in a 7-3 win over South Dakota State.
September 8, 2022 at 10:57PM
Nebraska is 1-1 after an error-filled 31-28 loss to Northwestern in Dublin, Ireland, and a closer-than-the-score-indicates 38-17 win over North Dakota, an FCS program. Iowa opened its season by edging perennial FCS playoff contender South Dakota State 7-3, the winning total produced by two safeties and a field goal.
Let's begin with the Cornhuskers and their embattled coach Scott Frost. In his fifth year in Lincoln, the former Huskers national title-winning quarterback has yet to guide his team to a bowl game. This shapes up as a make-or-break season for Frost, brought in after a rebuild from 0-12 to 13-0 in two years at Central Florida. Frost, however, already has made a couple of missteps this summer that won't help his job status.
- During training camp, he boasted that Huskers offensive linemen were vomiting 15-20 times per practice under new line coach Dominic Raiola. In this era of player safety, comments like that ring as Neanderthalian.
- In Dublin, the Huskers took a 28-17, third-quarter lead over Northwestern, and Frost immediately ordered an onside kick. The move blew up in his face as the Wildcats recovered the ball and promptly drove for a touchdown. Nebraska did not score again, and Frost was roasted over the social media fire.
The good news for the Huskers: They still have time to right the ship, beginning Saturday against Georgia Southern, a tuneup for next week when they play host to old rival Oklahoma. There have been signs of improvement, including the closing surge last week when the Huskers scored the final three touchdowns. The running game was productive, with Anthony Grant rushing for 189 yards and two TDs.
Nebraska will need quarterback Casey Thompson to find consistency. Against Northwestern, the Texas transfer passed for 355 yards but threw an interception that Northwestern cashed in for the go-ahead TD early in the fourth quarter and another that ended the Huskers' comeback bid. His third-quarter pick against UND helped the Fighting Hawks tie the score 17-17.
"This team can be a great team, but it's not right now,'' Frost said after the win over UND.
Reaching greatness will require the Huskers to start piling up wins. The October stretch of games against Indiana, Rutgers, Purdue and Illinois gives them the best chance. After that, November brings matchups with the Gophers, Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa.
Some 300 miles to the east of Lincoln, Iowa at least could fall back on a victory that came from the rock fight against South Dakota State. Missing top wide receivers Keegan Johnson and Nico Ragaini, the Hawkeyes mustered only 2.7 yards per play as embattled QB Spencer Petras went 11-for-25 for 109 yards with an interception.
The boos at Kinnick Stadium were noticeable, and one of their targets was offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, whose father, Kirk, is Iowa's coach. The elder Ferentz didn't like what he heard, but he understood it.
"Everybody on the team is human, so I'm sure they hear it,'' Kirk Ferentz said. "I'm going to say it's unfortunate, but it is what it is. Quite frankly, my bigger fear is social media.''
The Hawkeyes, notorious slow starters, can silence those Kinnick critics with a victory Saturday over rival Iowa State. Doing so with some offensive flair wouldn't hurt, either.
"It's a big game for everybody in the state,'' Kirk Ferentz said.
Two offensive linemen from Lakeville, Bryce Benhart and Riley Mahlman, are standouts for Big Ten rivals of Minnesota.
