As we get closer to the start of fall practice, now is a good time to start looking at the Nebraska Cornhuskers football roster and depth chart to get a better idea of what we might see this season. There’s no more important position on the field than quarterback, so it makes sense to start with the signal-caller.
New head coach Mike Riley will be bringing a different offensive philosophy to Lincoln, so it’s still a little difficult to guess what Nebraska will look like on that side of the ball. But given what we know so far, here is what Nebraska’s depth chart should look like—and why.
Starter: Tommy Armstrong Jr.
Tommy Armstrong Jr.’s experience makes him the clear choice to start the season under center for Nebraska. After the spring game, according to the Omaha World-Herald, Riley had this to say about Armstrong: “The thing that never wavered about Tommy was, and is a separator for him right now, and that's his confidence. He's a confident guy and he plays like it.”
As a starter for Nebraska, Armstrong is 15-5. His underlying statistics, though, do not inspire confidence. He has a 52.9 completion percentage and a 31-20 touchdown-to-interception ratio. It's hard to construct a scenario where Nebraska wins a conference title when its quarterback has those statistics.
Riley has a history of producing quarterbacks, though. His most recent protege, Sean Mannion, broke the Pac-12’s all-time passing record at Oregon State and was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the third round of the 2015 NFL draft. Riley will need to work that magic on Armstrong’s efficiency numbers to get Nebraska where it wants to go this year.
No. 2: AJ Bush or Zack Darlington
At the spring game, it was clear that AJ Bush and Zack Darlington are next in line at quarterback for Nebraska. The two quarterbacks have different skill sets. Bush, at 6'3" and 220 pounds, is more imposing and capable of moving the ball with his legs. Darlington, while able to move, looks to be more effective in the pocket, throwing the ball.
The spring game is a terribly small sample size and, as such, should be used with caution to make any judgments. But from that limited data set, Darlington was the only quarterback on Nebraska’s roster who appeared to have the accuracy and arm strength to make the throws NU will need to be successful next season:
Player | COMP | ATT | Yards | TD | INT |
Tommy Armstrong Jr. | 6 | 12 | 77 | 1 | 0 |
AJ Bush | 12 | 22 | 124 | 0 | 2 |
Zack Darlington | 7 | 11 | 70 | 1 | 0 |
RykerFyfe | 2 | 6 | 57 | 1 | 0 |
Again, it's a small sample size. Darlington isn’t going to win the starting job just because of a good spring-game performance. But it was the type of performance Nebraska will need from its quarterback to be successful going forward.
No. 4: RykerFyfe
RykerFyfe’s standout performance as a walk-on freshman earned him a scholarship and playing time in a live game against Michigan State last season. He has the size (6'2", 210 lbs) and physical ability to compete as a Nebraska quarterback, an impressive accomplishment for a walk-on. And he played well enough to keep an Elite 11 participant in Johnny Stanton behind him on the depth chart, ultimately causing him to transfer.
But while Fyfe’s accomplishments are impressive, he is behind the other three on the depth chart. Armstrong’s experience gives him an advantage over all the quarterbacks on the roster. And the athleticism and potential of both Bush and Darlington give them the advantage over Fyfe.
This column first appeared at the Double Extra Point, which you can follow on Twitter @DblExtraPoint.
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