For those of you wondering or worrying how the Nebraska offensive line would adapt to an offense that features more passing this year, we present this near-midseason statistic:

In 182 passing attempts, Nebraska quarterbacks have been sacked a mere six times.

Surprised?

Jay Norvell isn't. In fact, the Nebraska offensive coordinator says the Husker offensive line has been the most consistent unit on offense this year.

"We expected them to execute," Norvell said, "and we expected them to do the things that we needed to do to win, or we wouldn't put them in a position where they'd have to protect as many times as we've thrown it.

"They've been our leaders, and we've challenged them to be our leaders. If you're any good, you have to be good up front, and they've really taken that to heart. We lean on those seniors. We lean on Jake (Andersen) and Mike Erickson, and we expect those guys to lead the way. They've done a good job, week to week, staying focused."

When first-year coach Bill Callahan announced plans to install the West Coast offense, many pundits questioned whether an offensive line that was used to run blocking could adequately protect the quarterback. That concern was founded partly on the fact NU allowed 17 sacks last season in 182 attempts n an average of a sack every 11 pass attempts.

This year, a sack occurs, on average, every 30 passing attempts.

"We never thought that we weren't going to be good, or that we weren't going to be able to perform," said Andersen, the starting right guard.

Andersen said the line had confidence entering the season. But to make matters seemingly worse, Nebraska lost perhaps its best offensive lineman when center Richie Incognito was suspended indefinitely from the team, then eventually left the program.

Coaches turned to inexperienced sophomore Kurt Mann to play in the middle.

"When we lost Richie, we knew we just needed Kurt to step up," Andersen said. "We had all the confidence that he would. We knew, probably, it would take a little time for him to get going. But he came out right out of the gate and played well, and he's gotten better."

So have players such as Nick Povendo, Greg Austin and Darren DeLone. Those are backups who've provided a little bit more depth than what the linemen were used to last season.

"This year, we've actually been rotating," Andersen said. "Last year, we didn't do much rotating. We had guys that would rotate but we didn't use it that much."

And not only are some backups playing, they're making major contributions. Norvell pointed out the block Austin made on the screen pass that helped Cory Ross break loose for a 74-yard touchdown Saturday against Baylor.

"(Offensive line coach) Dennis (Wagner) has done a great job getting both units in the game," Norvell said. "We really have a lot of success offensively when those guys get in the game. Some of our scoring drives are when our twos are in there, and we're able to keep our starters fresh."

Nebraska put together its most productive offensive outing of the season against Baylor in terms of points (59) and ball security (zero turnovers).

Never mind the third play of the game resulted in a blitzing Baylor defense sacking Joe Dailey.

"That was a miscommunication problem," Norvell said. "That wasn't a problem of getting beat."

Nebraska regrouped and handled a Baylor defense that pressured and blitzed throughout the game.

"We worked real hard on it this past week," Andersen said. "We knew they were going to have eight, nine-man boxes. For them, a normal play is bringing at least five. We knew we were going to have guys coming at us all day. We just really focused on that is practice."

Now, the offense must try to carry that momentum on the road, when Nebraska plays Saturday at Kansas State.

"We're going to have to execute," Andersen said. "We're going to have to run the offense well, because they have a good defense. We're going to have to take care of the football. Those are key things every game, but when you play a real quality team, those things get magnified even more.

"This last week shows if we take care of the football and do our assignments, this offense can be real explosive. Every guy needs to handle his own business on every play."

Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.