The Huskers had plenty of ups and downs in Mike Riley's inaugural campaign, but they finished strong with a 38-29 victory over UCLA in the Foster Farms Bowl. Even before Nebraska's offseason began, fans began looking more at the program's future and how the team can improve in Riley's second season.
But before looking too far ahead, HuskerOnline takes a glance back at the season that was in our positional recaps.
We conclude our season-in-review series today by looking at the special teams and how they performed under coordinator Bruce Read.
High point: Brown finds his groove
From Alex Henery to Brett Maher to Pat Smith, not to mention Kris Brown and Josh Brown back in the 1990s, few schools have been better stocked at kicker than Nebraska. Drew Brown figured to be the next in line, but he made just 14 of his 21 kicks last season and missed six of his first 16 kicks this year. But then Brown caught fire, making each of his 11 field-goal attempts, nine of which were 40 yards or longer. If Brown has truly turned the corner, he'll have two more years to establish his place in Nebraska's recent run of kickers.
Low point: Disappointing kickoff returns
Nebraska somewhat solved this problem late in the season with Stanley Morgan's emergence, but even with his late surge the Huskers averaged a paltry 17.6 yards per return this year - only six teams in the nation averaged fewer. Jordan Stevenson (14.2 average) was an abject disaster, and Terrell Newby (15.4) and Jordan Nelson (17.2) weren't much better. Morgan (23.1) helped prop up the unit somewhat, but there's no doubt Nebraska simply must improve in this area in 2016.
Memorable moments
Pierson-El goes down: De'Mornay Pierson-El entered the year as one of Nebraska's most dynamic threats after leading the nation in punt-return yards in 2014, but no Husker suffered more injury-related disappointment. The sophomore missed the first four games of the season due to a foot injury suffered in August. He returned for the Illinois game and appeared to be shaking off the rust when the Huskers traveled to Purdue. But Pierson-El suffered a torn knee ligament and a fractured leg against the Boilermakers, ending his season. It will be interesting to see how quickly Pierson-El can recover and if he can maintain his game-breaking ability post-injury.
Foltz gets his due: Despite missing one game and being significantly hampered in several others with an ankle injury, Sam Foltz was named the Big Ten's best punter in 2015. He averaged 44.2 yards on his 56 punts and placed 15 inside the opponent's 20-yard line (with just five touchbacks). Assuming he has a strong senior season, Foltz appears to have a very bright NFL future ahead of him.
Brown's big first half: Brown tied an NCAA record by knocking home five field goals in Nebraska's win over Southern Miss. The sophomore connected on boots of 29, 27, 40, 22 and 50 yards, helping stake the Huskers to a 22-0 edge at the half.
The failed Stevenson experiment: A very late addition to the 2015 class, an injury in fall camp further limited Stevenson's ability to learn Nebraska's offense and essentially assured he wouldn't be contributing on that side of the ball this year. Anxious to get the four-star running back on the field, the coaching staff tried him at kick return. The result - six returns for 85 yards and several boneheaded decisions to bring the ball out of the end zone. The coaches mercifully killed the experiment after a few games and Stevenson left the team midseason.
Position snapshot
Coming: K/P Caleb Lightbourn
Going: P Tyson Broekemeier; KR Jordan Stevenson
Returning: P Sam Foltz, Sr.; KR Jordan Nelson, Sr.; KR Terrell Newby, Sr.; PR Jordan Westerkamp, Sr.; K Drew Brown, Jr.; PR De'Mornay Pierson-El, Jr.; KR Stanley Morgan, Soph.
Looking ahead to spring
Pierson-El's health is the No. 1 question mark here - if he's ready to go from the outset and looks like the 2014 version of himself, Nebraska's special teams could be one of the squad's strengths. If not, the duties will fall to Westerkamp, a safe but rarely exciting option.
Morgan should assume the kick-return duties, though he'll also have an increased role in the offense. Maybe incoming freshman Tre Bryant could fill in. Whoever it is that lines up deep, this unit must be better in 2016.
Brown and Foltz are among the Big Ten's best at their respective positions, and both will also mentor Lightbourn, one of the nation's top kicking recruits who will redshirt this year.
