Starting the first game of your career as a freshman on the road in the Big 12 Conference is not an ideal situation. Actually, it's probably one of the worst possible.
But for Nebraska quarterback Cody Green, Baylor's house was a lot like home on Saturday, and Cornhusker fans couldn't have asked for a better situation for their coveted new quarterback.
The Dayton, Texas, native played in front of family and friends and one unusually red half of the east side of Baylor's Floyd Casey Stadium. They all cheered for him as he trotted onto the field for the first time. With that, Green began his test-drive behind the wheel of the Cornhusker offense.
Like many anxious youngsters, Green started out fast and then sputtered. But fortunately for Nebraska, offensive coordinator Shawn Watson was there to keep the offense from veering too far off course during the 20-10 Husker victory.
"We have some training wheels that we put on there for (Green) to try and help him out a little bit," Watson said. "He's got to grow into a lot of things, but he has a lot of talent. We just have to keep finding the things that he does well — what he's comfortable with — and put him in those situations."
Watson described the offensive scheme he implemented for Green as "very simple." He said his freshman wasn't asked to look at more than two passing options on any play before he could revert to a check-down pass as a third progression. Or, as was the case several times Saturday, Green could always just tuck the football close to his chest and make something up on the ground.
Watson said he wanted to call between eight and 12 designed run plays for the freshman over the course of the game so he could gain his bearings at the helm and also help the struggling Husker running game. Nebraska's leading rusher this season, Roy Helu Jr., has been struggling with a shoulder injury in recent weeks, and Watson said one of the reasons Green started was because of his ability to make plays on the ground.
With two freshmen, including I-back Dontrayevous Robinson, in the NU backfield for the majority of the game, Watson said he scaled back the offense. After attempting more than 32 passes per game on average through the first seven games of the season, Nebraska ran the ball 38 times and went to the air just 21 times.
"It was just something (Green) could manage and we felt that he was comfortable with," Watson said.
Green praised Watson's plan after the game, saying he was comfortable with it and that it allowed him to show off his diverse skill set. Green finished 12-of-21 for 128 passing yards and averaged 5.4 yards per carry.
He said it didn't hurt to have the mastermind behind it all beside him. Watson, who called every game last year from the skybox, moved down to the sideline for Green on Saturday. The freshman said his coach's presence on the field gave him a boost of confidence.
"It was pretty much a direct line from me to him this game," Green said. "I could go right to him and see what I messed up on and get his feedback instead of having to go through other people."
Green also benefited from receiving direct feedback from the Husker faithful who invaded Floyd Casey Stadium on the day of his first career start. They were there to cheer for him on every big play and to chant "Husker" and "Power" on each side of the stadium during breaks in play. Green said the Memorial Stadium-like atmosphere helped him a great deal, and the whole experience was like a homecoming of sorts for him and the other Texas natives on the team.
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