• Video Below: See NU coach Bo Pelini and select players at the postgame press conference
• Photo Showcase: NU-Wisconsin (action)
• Photo Showcase: NU-Wisconsin (fans)
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MADISON, Wis. — Tim Beck had 20 minutes to think about it. Twenty. The entire halftime to reflect on what went wrong at the end of the first half.
And on the very first snap out of the locker room, he called ...
Well, you saw it. What did you think?
Nebraska got punked Saturday night. On the most anticipated night of the season, on the biggest stage in college football, on a historic night for the state and for the university, Nebraska staggered away from Camp Randall. Humiliated.
The hardest part? It didn't have to be that way. The Huskers were in this game late in the first half. Before Taylor Martinez threw three interceptions in a span of 10 offensive plays. Before a 14-13 lead turned into a 34-14 deficit.
Game over.
The biggest difference between Wisconsin and Nebraska is very simple: The Badgers have a quarterback who does it all. The Huskers do not.
Bo Pelini and Tim Beck want to build an offense around Martinez? Fine. But stick to what the kid does well. Know what he doesn't. If you lose play-calling discipline for a few minutes, Martinez burns you.
That's what happened when Beck lost his patience, abandoned the run game and called 14 passes in a 15-play span.
The last of those 15 play calls was most appalling. Beck had the entire halftime to recalculate and remember that Nebraska had scored 14 points with a balanced attack. He could've returned to the run game. Instead, he doubled down.
On first-and-10 from the NU 39, he asked Martinez to throw on the run. Big mistake. Asking Taylor to throw on the run is like asking Yoshi Hardrick to cover Nick Toon.
Martinez threw another pick.
"He was trying to make a play again, to be honest with you," Beck said. "We had a guy in the flat, that would've been his second option."
Beck had a good first month in his new job. His offense made significant strides. But he will want to forget this night. He foolishly asked Martinez to match Russell Wilson throw for throw.
Why harp on a few play calls? Because big games swing on small things.
And small things are keeping this program from getting over the hump. With Martinez at quarterback, I'm not sure Nebraska can ever make the leap to a conference-championship level. But Beck should at least give the kid a chance to succeed.
More than once afterward, he criticized Martinez's decision making. He also blamed himself.
"I did some bonehead things, too, tonight. Obviously. " Beck said. "We're not a drop-back-and-throw-the-ball-every-down team. That's not who we are. We did that for a little bit. That's as much me as anybody else."
Wisconsin safety Aaron Henry said the Badgers designed the simplest game plan they've ever had. They had only four play calls. The emphasis: Keep Martinez from running. Make him throw.
They sat back in a zone and waited for Martinez to misread the defense. To throw errant balls.
This was no surprise. This will be the blueprint every defense uses going forward. Can Nebraska handle it? Yes. But Beck must do better. And the Huskers must avoid long-yardage situations.
"We had penalties and turnovers," Beck said. "It falls on me. I'm the offensive coordinator. ... Apparently, we weren't ready. I thought we were. We weren't."
In the first 25 minutes of the game, the offensive line moved the Badgers. Martinez made plays with his arm — most of them were in favorable down-and-distance situations.
Then "we just fell apart," Beck said. "I don't know why."
The problems started with 9:40 left in the second quarter, when NU was flagged for an illegal formation on first down. That wiped out a 7-yard run by Rex Burkhead.
The next three plays, Martinez dropped back and tried to throw. He scrambled on first and second down (failing to see Rex Burkhead in the flat). This should've been an omen that Martinez wasn't seeing the field well.
The Huskers punted, forced a stop and got the ball back with 5:37 left. That's when the wheels came off.
Ben Cotton dropped a pass on second down. Kyler Reed followed it with a false start. That set up third-and-16 at the 46.
Third-and-long is a danger zone for even the best running quarterbacks. Tommie Frazier and Scott Frost weren't much good on third-and-long. And they won national titles.
But with Martinez, third-and-long is Russian Roulette. Always has been.
On third-and-eight on the opening drive, Taylor dropped to throw. He was sacked and fumbled — luckily, NU recovered.
This time, Martinez got flushed out of the pocket. He threw across his body. Right into the arms of Wisconsin linebacker Mike Taylor. Boom, momentum shift.
The Badgers scored in six plays to take a 20-14 lead.
Nebraska got the ball back at its 24 with 1:59 left. Beck should've been content with a six-point halftime deficit. You receive the ball to start the second half. You can stage a rally then.
Instead, Beck opted to air it out.
He put Martinez in the shotgun and threw four straight times. The fifth time — on third-and-long — Martinez threw another pick.
The Badgers needed only five plays to score again. Just like that, 27-14.
"We were trying to get down there, at least try to get some points," Beck said. "I think Taylor's just trying to do too much. Just trying to make plays. He just has to be smarter.
"The things he was doing in the first four ball games, making good decisions, he didn't do tonight."
The same could be said for Tim Beck.
Contact the writer:
402-649-1461, dirk.chatelain@owh.com
twitter.com/dirkchatelain
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• Video: NU coach Bo Pelini at the postgame press conference:
• Video: NU's Taylor Martinez at the postgame press conference:
• Video: NU's Alfonzo Dennard at the postgame press conference:
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