(The above photo is from OU Daily)

As Nebraska’s 2010 spring football season is over, Husker Locker takes a glance at what NU’s opponents – as well as the Big 12 and the nation as a whole - are doing this spring.

Team: Texas A&M (6-7 overall, lost to Georgia in the Independence Bowl)
Coach: Mike Sherman (10-15 overall at A&M)
Plays Nebraska: Nov. 20, 2010
Spring Game: April 17

Summary: A&M runs its spring a bit differently, holding its spring game before the end of practice itself. Shortly after the end of spring, head coach Mike Sherman hopped on a plane for a college coaches’ tour of Iraq. It’s been a busy spring for a guy who needs to win perhaps nine games in 2010 to keep his job. With athletic director Bill Byrne hovering over the situation - and A&M’s athletic department in debt to the university for a loan - the Aggies badly crave football success. It’s been more than a decade since A&M’s last Big 12 Championship appearance, and this year stands as the Aggies’ best chance to win the Big 12 South since 1999.

Why? The offense. While inconsistent, it lit up Texas’ vaunted defense like no other team did last year, and A&M may have the league’s best running game in 2010 with Cyrus Gray (757) and Christine Michael (844) at running back. Quarterback Jarrod Johnson (3,579 yards passing, 30 touchdowns) makes his share of bad decisions, but he’ll push Missouri’s Blaine Gabbert for all-conference honors. The receiving corps, featuring Jeff Fuller, Uzoma Nwachukwu and Ryan Tannehill, is experienced and steady. The offensive line should be improved and infused with a major talent in true freshman left tackle Luke Joeckel.

The defense is a tougher nut to crack. A&M is trying a new defensive coordinator - Tim DeRuyter - who led Air Force to the nation’s 11th-best defense in 2009. He’s a 3-4 guy, which A&M has history in, so while the style won’t change, the execution perhaps might.

Fortunately, the Aggies got back “Joker” hybrid defensive end Von Miller (17 sacks) for his senior season. He’ll be the odds-on favorite for Preseason Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.

Much like NU under Bill Callahan, A&M has a solid, balanced pro-style offense that struggles in a pinch. Also like the Callahan-era NU teams, the defense seems slow to adjust and make plays. Unlike Callahan, Sherman is willing to plug in different solutions at defensive coordinator. We’ll see if it works in 2010. DeRuyter, despite coaching at Air Force, was a pretty hot name as a defensive coordinator.

Progress so far: Doctors scoped Johnson’s throwing shoulder in the winter, but he still practiced and played sparingly in the spring game. The receiving corps, according to Sherman’s final press conference, grew quite a bit in the spring, while the defense appears to like DeRuyter’s tempo and style. The offense nipped the defense 102-94 in the spring game, played before 15,000 fans. The modified scoring system awarded points for first downs, sacks, punts, etc.

The secondary seems to be improving, which is must after A&M got roasted in certain games last year. Lionel Smith, a junior, appears to be spearheading that charge.

Breakout player: Joeckel, who could be Sherman’s best recruit thus far. To come out of spring as the starting left tackle screams “franchise.” If he’s good from the jump, and Johnson has good protection for his blind side, that makes Johnson all the more effective.

What You May Not Know: A&M was second in the Big 12 in rushing offense, first in third-down conversion, and tops in first downs. But the hidden culprit was a red zone offense ranked 10th in the Big 12.

Keep an eye on: Expectation level in Aggieland. A&M has every reason, frankly, to contend for the Big 12 South title. Oklahoma and Texas aren’t invincible, and A&M has upgraded its recruiting. Can Callahan, The Sequel work in College Station? It hasn’t thus far - but it might.

Spring Opponent Reports: Oklahoma State, Iowa State, Texas, Kansas State, Kansas, Western Kentucky, Colorado

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