Nebraska's 2022 Red-White Spring Game has finally arrived, and there will be plenty to watch when the Huskers take the Memorial Stadium field this afternoon.
The scrimmage itself might be pretty toned down, but that doesn't mean there aren't several other intriguing storylines to follow...
1. New quarterbacks make their debuts
One of the most significant changes Nebraska made to its roster this offseason was at quarterback. For the first time in five years, someone besides Adrian Martinez will go into the season as the presumed starter.
The Huskers added two players from the NCAA transfer portal in Texas' Casey Thompson and Florida State's Chubba Purdy.
Thompson entered the spring as the projected front runner for the job. Because an injury limited Purdy, the only real competition Thompson got was from returning sophomore Logan Smothers.
It's expected that NU will run about as vanilla of an offense as possible to keep anyone from getting a sneak peek at its new wrinkles with the revamped staff and personnel.
So what will guys like Thompson, Purdy, Smothers, and even redshirt freshman Heinrich Haarberg be able to show in today's scrimmage?
Thompson will likely only play 3-4 series, and it's unclear how much work Purdy will get coming off an injured foot that kept him out for half the spring.
The one to watch might be Haarberg, as there's talk that he might not even wear the typical QB green no-contact jersey today so the coaches can get a complete evaluation of him.
2. What differences will we see on offense?
Head coach Scott Frost kicked off a critical offseason by completely overhauling his offensive coaching staff and replacing four of his five full-time assistants on that side of the ball.
Maybe the most significant move was bringing in new offensive coordinator Mark Whipple, who boasts more than 40 years of experience and just came off a stellar season of calling the plays at Pittsburgh.
There's also new associate head coach/receivers coach Mickey Joseph, offensive line coach Donovan Raiola, and running backs coach Bryan Applewhite.
Word out of spring practices was that the new additions had provided a much-needed boost in energy within the program. Whipple's presence has also allowed Frost to take on more of a CEO role and oversee all three phases instead of putting so much focus on the offense.
How many of those reported changes will we actually be able to see today?
Because of injuries, Nebraska will use an offense vs. defense format for the spring game rather than break the roster into two entire teams.
Running backs and receivers might be open for live tackling instead of the "thud" rules NU used in the first half of last year's game.
Keeping in mind that Frost and Co. will keep as much of their new offense and personnel as close to the vest as possible, it will be interesting to see how different the offense looks.
3. How will the offensive line be configured?
It was difficult for Nebraska's coaches to get a good read on what they had to work with on the offensive line because a few important pieces in that group missed spring ball with injuries.
However, the positive was that Frost, Whipple, and Raiola got extensive looks at the available players, including several at multiple positions.
As the Huskers look to find their "best five" upfront, what type of personnel groupings could we see on the o-line this afternoon?
Some of the most interesting spots will be left guard, center, and right tackle. At left guard, who will get the majority of the snaps between Nouredin Nouili and Kevin Williams? And at center between Trent Hixson and Ethan Piper?
It will also be interesting to see how Bryce Benhart looks at right tackle after a disappointing 2021 season. If he continues to struggle, what kind of shakeups might happen to replace him?
4. Is the defensive line as big of a problem as we think?
Because of offseason roster attrition and injuries, Nebraska had to essentially work with a seven-man rotation on its defensive line this spring.
As expected, some concern started to build about just how much of a step back the Huskers might take upfront this season?
There are still talented pieces to work with on the d-line, led by the return of Ty Robinson and Casey Rogers, who missed the spring with an injury. Nebraska also used outside linebackers like Garrett Nelson and Caleb Tannor more on the line this spring.
After that, though, are a whole bunch of question marks.
Can guys like Mosai Newsom, Nash Hutmacher, Ru'Quan Buckley, Marquis Black, and others provide viable depth this season? If not, there will be a lot of work to do in the transfer portal this summer.
It was already assumed that NU's top post-spring priority would be adding some pass rush help through the portal. But will it need to bring in even more pieces? If so, how many?
5. The most important storyline won't take place on the field
Nebraska knows it has to upgrade its depth at edge rusher this offseason. It certainly works out that arguably the best transfer available at that position is officially visiting Lincoln this weekend.
TCU transfer Ochaun Mathis, regarded as one of the top pass rushers in the portal, will be on campus with around 10 family members and friends, and he'll be the most important visitor of the Huskers' offseason.
The 6-foot-5, 260-pound Mathis was a second-team All-Big 12 selection in 2020 and 2021. He led the Big 12 in 2020 with nine sacks over 10 games to go along with 14 tackles for loss.
In 2021, Mathis had four sacks and seven tackles for loss. He played in 38 total games for the Horned Frogs, compiling 15.5 sacks, 30.5 tackles for loss, and 135 total tackles.
Mathis has two years of eligibility remaining, as he redshirted in 2018, playing in just four games.
Altogether, 30 prospects from the 2023, '24, and '25 classes with Husker offers will be in town today, marking by far the most offered recruits NU has ever hosted in one weekend.
Nebraska will host 10 2023 and '24 recruits currently ranked four stars or higher by Rivals. During the entire 2022 cycle, they only had seven official visits from four- and five-star players.
