We can put a number on it. Two of them, in fact: 40 sacks and 20 takeaways. Those are two of the primary goals for Nebraska football and its defense in Year 2 under Tony White’s leadership.

Ty Robinson said at last week’s Big Ten Media Days that, in general, the Blackshirts’ key emphasis was “getting off the field on third down in pass rushing,” but he also revealed that 40 sacks was the ultimate number they were striving to hit.

Jimari Butler on Tuesday doubled down on the 40-sack benchmark for last season and acknowledged that notching 40 is once again the goal in 2024, in addition to echoing Matt Rhule’s divulgence yesterday that Nebraska has set the bar at 20 forced turnovers.

“Last year, we had (32 sacks) so we kind of failed at that,” Butler said. “So we’re gonna try to get that 40 this year.”

Butler will no doubt be front and center as one of the lead dogs in that fight to rack up the pressure and takedowns both inside and outside the pocket.

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