If you could sum up the 2007 season in the Big 12 Conference in one word, it would be –- offensive.
Last season was a red-letter year for offense in the Big 12 Conference. Pass-happy teams like Texas Tech, Kansas and Missouri had huge years in piling up numbers on offense. Scores of some games looked more like Arena Football League games than traditional college football.
Offense was so prevalent last year that there were 10 conference games last year in which the losing team scored at least 30 points. In three of those games, the losers put up 40 or more, highlighted by the season finale between Colorado and Nebraska when the Huskers racked up 51 points on the Buffaloes –- and still lost by two touchdowns.
Defense seemed more an afterthought than anything else during the past season as teams put up record-setting offensive numbers. Nebraska, in a scenario no Husker fan would have ever envisioned, set school record’s for defensive futility and was one of the worst in the nation. Kansas scored an astounding 76 points –- in three quarters –- to break Nebraska’s record for points allowed in a game, bettering the mark of 70 score by Texas Tech in 2003. The 65 given up to Colorado was the most the Buffaloes had scored in a game against Nebraska in the history of the rivalry, eclipsing the then-unthinkable 61 the Buffaloes scored in 2001.
The result was the sudden surge of programs like Missouri, Kansas and Texas Tech into the upper echelon of college football. The Big 12 had four teams ranked in the final Associated Press Top 10, led by the upstart Tigers and Jayhawks, who battled on the final weekend of the regular season for the Big 12 North Division title. Missouri was briefly ranked No. 1 in the country before losing to Oklahoma in the Big 12 Conference Championship. When all was said and done, the Big 12 won five of eight bowl games and saw the Tigers (4th), Jayhawks (7th), Sooners (8th), Texas (tied for 10th) and the Red Raiders (22nd) all ranked in the final AP poll.
So what’s ahead for 2008? If returning talent is any kind of indicator, we could very well see more prolific offensive efforts in the conference this season, putting a premium on solid defense.
Most notable is the return of Missouri senior quarterback Chase Daniel, who was the Heisman Trophy runner-up in 2007. Daniel leads a very talented and experienced offense that includes sophomore All-American touchdown threat Jeremy Maclin and a solid corps of returning receivers.
There is also the gunslinging Texas Tech offense that could very well obliterate all kinds of offensive records this season. Graham Harrell put up some amazing numbers at quarterback last year and has passed for over 10,000 yards in the past two seasons. He’ll have a stable full of gifted receivers to throw to, led by the amazing Michael Crabtree, who could very well be in the hunt for the Heisman Trophy before all is said and done.
Teams like Kansas, Texas and Oklahoma will once again be loaded, and Nebraska will look to reclaim lost glory with the hiring of Bo Pelini, the defensive guru that helped LSU win a national title last year. How Pelini resurrects a once-feared defense that fell on hard times last year is a story that will be worth watching as the season unfolds, particularly in a conference that has fully embraced the pinball-like scoring it saw in 2007.
In the days and weeks leading up to the 2008 season, you’ll see in-depth previews of the Huskers here, as well as looks at every team on the Nebraska schedule and the entire Big 12 Conference. Check back here for more information, and don’t forget to order your 2008 Husker Football tickets now at Ticket Express –- where no Husker home game is ever sold out.
Comments