Steven M. Sipple: Huskers need more like Ganz, Suh to be elite again
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Regard this as a correction of sorts.
A few weeks ago, I wrote Nebraska had no sure-fire first-team All-Big 12 picks. That was before nose tackle Ndamukong Suh began flinging around ball carriers as if he were playing Frisbee golf. He recorded 12 tackles against Kansas, the most by a Husker defensive lineman since 2005, and five more last weekend at Kansas State. Voila! A sure-fire first-team All-Big 12 choice. More on Suh in a minute.
I raise the All-Big 12 issue because Nebraska won’t start winning conference titles again until it can produce multiple all-league players, as the Huskers did in 2006. Big Red had five first-team All-Big 12 picks that year on their North Division championship squad. In 2003, when Nebraska won 10 games, it also had five first-teamers. In 1999, the last time NU captured the Big 12 crown, it had eight first-teamers.
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It had three in 1998, six in 1997, seven in 1996, and so on.
It had none in 2007.
Guess having one such player — the big Suh — is a start.
If not for a few otherworldly Big 12 quarterbacks, Nebraska would have two such players. Indeed, NU senior quarterback Joe Ganz’s overall performance this year would be worthy of first-team status in many seasons.
“I’ve been privileged to coach a lot of good kids,” said Nebraska offensive coordinator Shawn Watson. “But Joe Ganz is the best manager I’ve been around. He can manage our offense. He makes really good decisions both underneath the center and when it comes time for the play to begin. We’ve played at a real high level because he’s managed excellent games since the Missouri game, when we moved to this (spread-oriented) style of offense.”
Watson was Nebraska’s recruiting coordinator and tight ends coach in 2006 when Zac Taylor was named Big 12 offensive player of the year. Taylor had a pass-efficiency rating of 146.1 that season to rank 20th nationally. Ganz, a senior, currently has a rating of 155.6 to rank 14th nationally — but only sixth in the Big 12.
Asked to compare Ganz and Taylor, Watson made a rather illuminating comment illustrating the evolution of Nebraska’s offense since Taylor’s days under center.
“Joe manages a different game than Zac did — we’re in a different offense in terms of how we’re running the football,” Watson said. “Joe’s got a lot more flexibility to make a defense be wrong. He’s really taken advantage of it. He’s been lights out. He was 27-of-27 this past week in his (audibles). He’s had a couple rough spots this season, but he’s really done an excellent job.”
Watson and Ganz seem to have an excellent relationship.
“Last week I took Joe in the film room with me,”Watson said. “I wanted to make sure he and I see the same things. I want to make sure we not only see the same things, but when the bullets are flying, that we can manage those things.
“I listen to him because I really trust him. I listen to him because he’s got to do it on the field. We came up with some pretty good things between the two of us, and we went with them last week and they were huge in that (K-State) game.”
A wise coach told me years ago the first three items on a quarterback’s priority list ought to be:
1. Commanding the huddle.
2. Making good decisions.
3. Completing the football.
Ganz clearly is proficient at the latter two items. I imagine he commands the heck out of the huddle.
Does Joe have a coach’s mind?
“Absolutely,” Watson said. “He’ll make a great coach if he chooses to go that direction.”
Nebraska fans get to enjoy Ganz for a couple more games. We should absolutely savor the kid. The Huskers obviously will need more and more players with Ganz’s ability and character as they work to return to the nation’s elite.
The same could be said about Suh. The 6-foot-4, 300-pound junior leads Big 12 linemen (ends as well as interior players) with 65 tackles — 26 more than the No. 2 interior lineman on the list (talented George Hypolite of Colorado). In short, Suh’s become a force.
At season’s end, you might see Matt Slauson, Nate Swift, Zach Potter and Alex Henery on a second-team All-Big 12 squad, or perhaps an honorable mention list. For now, however, Nebraska probably will have to settle for one first-teamer.
It’s a start.
Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.
