HOPPEN: Despite victory, NU football team has work to do

It's hard to complain any time a team wins by 21 points.

Or rushes for 360 yards.

Or forces six turnovers.

But, as Nebraska coach Bo Pelini expressed after Saturday's game, there is plenty of room for improvement after Nebraska's 38-17 win over Idaho. If one word could describe NU's offensive performance, it was sloppy.

"You saw it; it was pretty obvious," Pelini said at his postgame press conference. "We were careless with the ball, and we were undisciplined and made too many penalties."

For all the things NU did well (averaging almost nine yards per carry and Taylor Martinez's high completion percentage top the list), mental mistakes were far too common Saturday afternoon. The Cornhuskers fumbled eight times and lost three — including two inside Idaho's 10-yard line. Martinez threw an interception, and his teammates committed seven offensive penalties for 83 yards.

Many of the mistakes came in the second half, after NU had built a 31-3 halftime lead. Most were committed by the offense, which hadn't been on the field for the final 8:22 of the second quarter thanks to two defensive touchdowns.

"That first half, I think, we were a little sloppy, but we obviously executed a lot better than we did in the second half," said tight end Ben Cotton. "We have to focus in on that tape of the second half and execute."

Many of the mistakes were absolute drive-killers. Down to Idaho's 22 late in the second quarter, a false start by Ricky Henry and a clipping call on Cotton pushed the offense back into a first-and-30, which led to a punt.

In the third quarter, there were two holding calls on receivers three plays apart, although the Huskers did eventually score when Martinez dove into the end zone to recover his own fumble.

This brings us to the freshman quarterback. Martinez fumbled four times — he lost just one — and was intercepted on a throw he admits he never should've tried. Those numbers won't fly against Washington next week.

At the same time, it's important to preach patience. A lot has been thrown at Martinez in the last couple of months, and the hype monster surrounding him has grown to a ridiculous size. He has the expectations of an entire fan base riding on his young shoulders, and his explosive play has done nothing to calm them.

Martinez is obviously a spectacular athlete. Put him in a footrace with most defensive backs, and he wins, as he did Saturday on his 67-yard dash.

At times, he might try to be a little too spectacular and cough up the ball. As time goes on and he gets more starts under his belt, those mistakes will dwindle.

As for the rest of the team? Judging by Pelini's attitude in the press conference, he wasn't handing out juice boxes after the game. The Huskers got an earful in the locker room.

Pelini hasn't allowed for these kinds of mistakes in the past. Give the Huskers a week of practice, and they should be fine and ready to go at Washington next Saturday.

"We looked like an undisciplined football team and a careless football team," Pelini said. "That wasn't to our standard. We'll get that fixed."

Dan Hoppen is a junior news-editorial major. Reach him at danhoppen@

dailynebraskan.com