Skip to content

Ad Disclosure

Nebraska’s short passing game might be the answer to Tanner Lee’s interception woes

Dustin Schutte

By Dustin Schutte

Published:

This was the type of performance Tanner Lee was expected to deliver every weekend. The quarterback who had been heralded as a future first-round pick before taking a single snap in the Cornhusker red finally showed up.

Lee completed 17-of-24 passes for 246 yards and three touchdowns, but most importantly, he didn’t throw a single interception in Nebraska’s 28-6 win over Illinois on Friday night. That was the most important statistic for the junior gunslinger this weekend. After throwing nine interceptions in the first four games this season — including three pick-sixes — Lee needed somewhat of a restart.

He got it in Champaign. And he may have discovered a remedy for his turnover issues.

Credit Mike Riley and Danny Langsdorf for that. Friday’s game plan was for Lee to make some quick hits in the passing game, getting the ball to the receivers and letting them make plays in space.

It worked beautifully.

Stanley Morgan, Jr. finished with eight catches for 96 yards and a touchdown and De’Mornay Pierson-El caught four passes for 94 yards and a score, with most of the yardage coming after the catch. Lee wasn’t stuck coddling the ball and didn’t force passes into tight spaces — a few bad habits he’s developed early this season. Sure, he still made a few poor decisions and threw some questionable passes, but those nuances weren’t as frequent.

That style of play could be the answer moving forward.

Of course it’s hard to really assess how effective Nebraska’s receivers can be as the Huskers plunge into the thick of its conference schedule. Illinois is one of the youngest, most inexperienced teams in the country. Exploiting a weak secondary doesn’t necessarily translate when Wisconsin, Ohio State and Penn State are on the docket. But little things can be taken away from every game, and maybe this unique style is something Riley and Lagnsdorf can try to perfect in the coming weeks.

Morgan and Pierson-El proved they’re capable of making plays in space, turning short-to-intermediate passes into big gains. Having those weapons takes quite a bit of pressure off Lee. The Huskers can take advantage of those weapons in the passing game. Maybe that combination won’t be as effective as it was against the Illini, but it adds another dimension to the passing attack.

A good screen game and connecting on some of those quick-hitting passes doesn’t cure everything. Lee still needs to improve his decision-making and prove he can stretch the field with his big arm. And the Huskers still have to develop some consistency on the offensive line and establish a presence on the ground — they rushed for 165 Friday night. There are still a lot of concerns on that side of the ball in Lincoln.

But Lee looked comfortable in Champaign, as comfortable as he’s looked all season. Friday’s game may have been the confidence booster the junior quarterback needed to flush his mind from the nine interceptions and refocus on being a leader under center.

The B1G schedule gets a lot tougher for the Huskers in the coming weeks. Nebraska hosts No. 10 Wisconsin and No. 11 Ohio State respectively in back-to-back weeks.

The Tanner Lee everyone was expecting finally showed up in Week 5. Maybe that quick-hitting passing attack is what keeps him around for the rest of the season.

Dustin Schutte

Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB