Out of the Blog, 10/8: Iowa State

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BY CURT McKEEVER / Lincoln Journal Star

1. What was the mood like in the locker room at halftime following Maurice Purify’s touchdown catch? Was that the turning point?

Answers: happy and yes.

“It really gave us momentum and it was a huge play in the game,” coach Bill Callahan said. “It was an excellent pass and read by Zac (Taylor). He found what the defense was giving him and made it work.”

2. Did Nebraska hold some things back in the offensive game plan against Kansas in order to unveil them against Iowa State? There wasn’t a lot of throwing to the tight ends or running backs last week.

Holding back? Maybe the game plan against Iowa State was different, but the Huskers did amass 511 yards against the Jayhawks. Maybe it was NU’s defense that held back last week. Kansas had 574 yards and on Saturday Iowa State managed 315.

3. Why waste the challenge on Zac Taylor’s third-quarter fumble?

Whoever was Bill Callahan’s eyes on the play must have thought they’d seen something conclusive that differed from the on-field ruling. Then again, who’s to say the Huskers, guarding a 21-7 lead, weren’t merely just hoping for a reversal so they wouldn’t give the Cyclones possession at the NU 14-yard line? What if you didn’t challenge and you wished you had?

4. Did Nebraska pull back on its offensive game plan at the end of the third quarter? It seemed like the Huskers missed a chance to put the game away.

If you mean conservative as in handing the ball off to Brandon Jackson, consider that Jackson had 99 yards on his first 16 carries before the Cyclones held him to 7 yards on a three-and-out possession. With the way its defense was playing, Nebraska had to have thought it had pretty good command of the game.