Young Huskers to Defeat Good South Dakota State Club

Fifty years ago today on the day I was born, Nebraska defeated South Dakota State by a score of 45-0. Today the Huskers and the Jackrabbits meet for just the third time in history. The Huskers and the Jacks kickoff at 2:42 p.m. CDT in a game that will be televised on the Big Ten Network. South Dakota State is 3-0 on the year and ranked in the top five in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS, formerly Division I-AA). This is a good football team that Nebraska will have to be ready to play. John Stiegelmeier is 105-76 in his career as the coach of SDSU. His teams are disciplined and fundamentally sound. The offensive and overall team leader is tailback Zach Zenner 6-feet, 220 pounds, Junior). Zenner ran for over 2000 yards last season and has 540 yards and eight touchdowns rushing in 2013. He is a solid back that runs very well between the tackles. Zenner is the focus of the running game as the Jacks average 215 yards rushing per game as a team. The Husker defense will want to keep Zenner in check. Quarterback Austin Sumner, (6-5, 225, Jr.) is a good decision maker that does not turn the ball over. He is not a running threat and the Blackshirts will be able to put pressure on Sumner. He has completed 46 of 78 passes (59 percent) for five touchdowns with no interceptions. He averages over 223 yards passing per game.His favorite receivers are Jason Schneider, (6-5, 220, Jr.) who leads the team with 18 catches for 292 yards and three touchdowns this season and Brandon Hubert, (5-11, 185, Sr.) with eight grabs this season. Both wide receivers will have a tough time getting open against Stanley Jean Baptiste and Ciante Evans and the rest of the Big Red secondary. The SDSU offensive line has great size. From tackle to tackle. the Jacks average over 6-5 and 307 pounds. Center Taylor Suess 6-3, 295, Sr.) is a Scotus Central Catholic graduate and a very solid leader up front. This group blocks for the running game extremely well. Defensively, SDSU will utilize a 4-3 look. As a team the Jacks allow just over 100 yards on the ground per game and 311 per contest through the air. The defensive leader is middle linebacker T. J. Lally (6-0, 230, So.) with 19 total tackles this season. The secondary even though it gives up over 300 yards passing per game has nine interceptions in only three games. On special teams, the Jacks have done very little return wise on punts and kickoffs. Punter Ethan Sawyer (6-2, 205, Jr.) averages only 37.2 yards per punt. Kicker Justin Syrovatka, (5-9, 200, Jr.) is perfect on only two field goal attempts in 2013. Nebraska has a major edge in the passing game over SDSU. However, playing Tommy Armstrong or Ron Kellogg negates that advantage due to lack of game experience for the Huskers. A quick pace could wear down the Jacks, especially after halftime.The Nebraska running game may be held down by an overloaded defense ready to stop the Big Red running attack. This is a tougher game than many fans will be prepared for. I look for Tommy Armstrong to play well in leading Nebraska to a 31-20 win over South Dakota State. Thanks for reading Going Deep With Doze.