LINCOLN — Perspective.
From Nebraska quarterback Taylor Martinez's vantage point — a Saturday-morning spot in front of a TV — Michigan State's defense didn't harass, bully and cajole Michigan's Denard Robinson into one of the worst games of his collegiate career two weeks ago.
The 40 mph wind gusting through Spartan Stadium did.
"I really don't think they slowed him down," Martinez said Monday. "I think the key factor was the wind kind of slowed him down. ... Hopefully we can exploit what Denard Robinson didn't do."
That riled up the usual suspects in East Lansing.
"We go out in the rain, sleet, snow or sun," MSU defensive tackle Jerel Worthy retorted Tuesday. "Hopefully there's no wind so he can make no excuses when we go out there and do our thing."
It's a simmering subplot to perhaps the biggest strategic story line in Saturday's NU-Michigan State game. The Spartans have a history of attacking mobile quarterbacks with a vicious blitz. But Martinez has a history of staring down heavy blitzing teams, compiling some of his best games.
Nearly every time Robinson went into the shotgun two weeks ago, defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi dialed up some kind of pressure. Double A-gap blitzes. Safety blitzes. Delayed blitzes based on the Wolverines keeping a back in to block for Robinson.
"They just see a gap and they shoot it," left tackle Yoshi Hardrick said.
Although Nebraska offensive coordinator Tim Beck said Michigan and Nebraska are different offenses, he's planning for pressure.
"Definitely," Worthy said in an interview with The World-Herald. "When you get a quarterback who never knows where we're going to come from, it causes havoc. It causes him to second-guess himself. It causes hesitation, which allows us to swarm the ball. We get after it."
Martinez does, too, when teams dial up the pressure:
• 2010 Washington: 287 total yards and four touchdowns.
• 2010 Oklahoma State: 435 total yards and five touchdowns.
• 2011 Fresno State: 388 total yards and three touchdowns.
The 51-41 win over the Cowboys remains Martinez's signature performance — arguably one of the best in NU quarterback history — but Fresno, said several Huskers, is the closest to what Michigan State does. The Spartans "gap out," Hardrick said, and get downhill fast. The goal: Move the quarterback off his landmark.
"We can't shy away from the pressure," Hardrick said. "When they're screaming downfield, you've got to match their intensity. ... You can be way more aggressive. You don't have to think a lot. I got this man — and I can maul him."
Nebraska initially struggled to slow down the Bulldogs' blitz. But the offensive line adjusted at halftime, Martinez hit several big passes in the second half and the option game — another effective way to bust the blitz — got untracked, too.
Worthy admitted that Martinez "will cause problems for us," especially in the option-zone read game.
"He holds onto the ball until the last second," Worthy said. "You can never get a permanent key on him. You have to attack both ends. Force him to do one or the other."
In its 48-17 win over the Huskers, Wisconsin took a different tack: rushing three or four linemen and dropping its linebackers into coverage. Ohio State mixed pressure and coverage, but got gassed in the second half when NU mounted its historic comeback.
Minnesota played aggressively against the run — and got burned by a 82-yard reverse from Kenny Bell. When the Gophers pressed NU's receivers in the second half and attacked Martinez with middle pressure, however, it worked; Martinez was unable to complete a series of deep passes.
"Our receivers have to hold onto the ball," Martinez said. "I think we dropped maybe three or four balls. Had they held onto the ball, it would have been a pretty good third quarter."
Martinez has also become adept at using a hard count to draw aggressive defensive linemen. He coaxed an offsides penalty out of the Gophers on NU's opening drive, which led to a field goal.
"I'll give them credit," UM coach Jerry Kill said. "Nebraska's quarterback got up there, hard counted it, used his head and our guy jumped."
That kind of cat-and-mouse exercise is what Beck expects from the Spartans.
"They may blitz us every play," Beck said. "They may not blitz us at all. We're preparing for it. It's been very successful for them so far. It's been a big momentum boost for them. They've made big plays when they've done it."
Martinez is more blunt: "Whatever they do, we pretty much just do the opposite and hopefully it works."
Contact the writer:
402-202-9766, sam.mckewon@owh.com
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