Could Nebraska Have a Top 25 Offense This Season?

On the latest edition of the Saturday Morning Coffee Show, Josh Peterson and Jack Mitchell imagined a world where the Husker offense was able to hit its ceiling over the course of a season.

With a second-year quarterback, Dana Holgorsen, Emmett Johnson, an improved wide receiver room, and an offensive line that's a strength, could they be top 25 on that side of the ball?

Plus, what's the floor?

Below is a lightly edited transcript of their conversation.

What's the ceiling?

Josh: You got a year two quarterback who is a five-star, who has a very talented arm, even though he underthrew a lot of players last year for some reason, but he has a really good arm.

Jack: He was injured last year. He was not healthy last year.

Josh: Lost a little weight, can scoot a little bit more, can move in the pocket.

Jack: And the newness is gone. He’s not a freshman anymore, right?

Josh: Remember the arm angles, Jack, remember the arm angles? He can do all sorts of things. Maybe he'll do a left-handed pass this year, like Mahomes. How fun would that be?

If Nebraska is to take a step in 2025, Dylan Raiola will be a big reason why. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

Jack: He's not within his first few months of living in Lincoln. He's been here now. He knows the coaches. He knows the players. He's spent a lot of time. He's become more actually the leader he tried to portray himself as, which is difficult as a freshman. That's not a rip on him. It's just difficult as a freshman. But sometimes you try and manifest something, because you think you should. I've done this before in my own life. But then you start to get experience. You start to actually be that person. And you're like, “Oh, wow, I actually can do this. I don't have to just sort of put up the front that I can.”

Josh: So you start there. Oh, Jack, we also forgot; his play caller [Dana Holgorsen] is one of the best offensive minds in college football and has been a proven commodity at every stop that he's had. And he doesn't have to worry about being a head coach anymore. He is an offensive coordinator and play caller.

Jack: Also, he's been refreshed by traveling around the world.

Josh: The guy is a gallivanter. He loves gallivanting.

Jack: He's refreshed. He's living a new life. Like you said, not a head coach, doing what he wants to. WFH sometimes, you know, that kind of thing, living life, that sort of thing. And it's really refreshing.

Josh: Wow. What a life. All right. So that's the quarterback and the play caller. Oh, Jack, have you seen this? Have you heard about this? You know, Emmett Johnson averaged 20-plus touches per game in the final four games. Over 100 yards from scrimmage per game over the last four games when [Holgorsen] took over as his play caller. Interesting. Could he maybe be a force to reckon with for Nebraska's offense?

The sky is the limit for Emmett Johnson under Dana Holgorsen. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Jack: I think that'll do. I think that'll do. You haven't heard this a lot: Emmett Johnson could be good this year. Yes, working together, they've been great. If we're doing our best-case scenario, Emmett plus Dana equals heart, basically.

Josh: Perfect. And then, let's move to the wide receiver room, which is upgraded. No longer is the guy who was wide open against Iowa and could have maybe scored a touchdown and ended the game, and then dropped the pass; no longer is [Isaiah Neyor] on the roster. I love [Jahmal] Banks, but I like my dog [Banks] more. And that guy's not around.

Meanwhile, they upgraded. They got Dane Key. They got Nyziah Hunter. They have all these freshmen that are coming in. Oh, don't forget about Jacory Barney, who is like one of the few bright spots on the offense this year.

Jack: Also, maybe we learned as much from that practice that I was not at, but I read about, heard about, and watched some video of about Jacory Barney kind of taking a new position within this team as sort of a hype man leader that he wouldn't have had as a freshman. Perhaps there's a new generation that is kind of a new post-Groin Kick generation, you might say. That is starting to take the reins of the leadership and kind of the mental state of this team. I would say that if that were true, that would be important.

Josh: And then, Jack, there's the offensive line that people are saying would make the 1995 group look like a bunch of idiots.

Jack: No one said that.

Josh: But they could be good! Jack, the word that people are using to describe the offensive line lately is “strength.” Could they be a strength of the football team? A strength of the offensive side of the ball? If the offensive line, Jack, is a strength, then everything else that we just mentioned takes care of itself.

Jack: It even gets better. It even gets better. And the reason people think that obviously is because of the potential of the two transfers.

Rocco Spindler brings national championship game experience to Lincoln, Nebraska. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Josh: And all the experience.

Jack: You lost some guys who are part of that status quo, but you still have a weird amount of depth, honestly, of guys who have played. If you have injuries, which you will have injuries, you always do. And then whatever you build on that with the transfers.

And if those transfers both hit, here's what here's exactly what it looks like. Both of those guys are hits, right? You have some real development by a guy, by some of the young guys like [Gunnar] Gottula; Gottula takes a big step, because he kind of got thrown into action as a young guy last year. And then, the center, [Justin] Evans, right. I don't know if that feels like his natural position or not because he was playing guard before, but I've thought pretty well of him. The people who have know more about the offensive line than I've heard from, like him generally. If he moves to center and continues to go on that upward track, this is the scenario that you're talking about.

And I think those are the guys, too. It's the two transfers and maybe Gottula and Evans, then you're talking about the ceiling for me. But you still have [Teddy] Prochazka, [Turner] Corcoran, [Henry] Lutovsky, [Tyler] Knaak, and all those guys.

Josh: All right. We just did all of those things, Jack. Let's put it into a bowl and stir it around. What's the ceiling for the offense? Top 25?

Jack: I think that's about right. Yeah, top 25.

Josh: Can you imagine the equation of the season if Nebraska's offense is top 25? Can you imagine what that would mean? If you just want to go straight points? And again, not the fancy stuff. 25th last year would mean 33.5 points per game.

The floor of Nebraska's offense seems to be higher with Dana Holgorsen in charge. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

What's the floor?

Josh: If you say “I feel confident that they will be a top __ offense,” how low is that number for you?

Jack: I don't even know. What were they last year for instance?

Josh: If we just went straight points per game, which is the most basic of offensive stats that matter, 103 is where they ranked; 103rd. And by the way, when I ask this question… this is not to ask you, “how good can they be,” because I think that's a more fun discussion to have about the offense. What’s the floor that you're saying, “they will definitely be top __ on offense?”

Jack: I think there's more variation.

Josh: 100%, it's elevator, right?

Jack: Geez, you know, that's a really that's a really interesting question, Josh. That's the hardest question by far. I think I can feel more confident about telling you their ceiling, but what is their floor? I mean, a little better than last year, I guess, with Holgorsen another year of Raiola. I think it's better than last year, but I wouldn't go like way, way, way higher because you just don't know how much Raiola is going to develop. I would say top 75.

Josh: Is that a disappointment? Let's say that they’re 75 and they hit the floor. Is that a disappointment?

Jack: Yeah, for sure. If you hit a floor, it's always a disappointment, I would say.

Watch the entire episode below!

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