Dailey's debut has a bit of everything
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BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL / Lincoln Journal Star
Joe Dailey did a little bit of everything in his debut as Nebraska's starting quarterback.
He tied a school record by accounting for six touchdowns. He avoided getting sacked.
He threw for 213 yards — in the first half.
Sounds like the sophomore has a pretty good grasp of this West Coast offense, huh?
Well, he also threw four interceptions.
While not everything went perfectly, Dailey's solid first-half performance boosted Nebraska to a 56-17 season-opening victory Saturday night against NCAA Division I-AA Western Illinois at Memorial Stadium.
Dailey said he rated his performance "about 60 percent."
He didn't seem satisfied.
"I played two games today," Dailey said. "I played a great first half and a not-even-mediocre second half."
First, the good.
Dailey threw four touchdown passes before halftime, and had a 65-yard TD bomb to Willie Amos called back because of a holding penalty. He's the first Husker quarterback to throw four TD passes in a game since Eric Crouch did it against Iowa in 2000.
"The offense is designed to go through your reads and hit the man wide-open every time, and that's exactly what happened tonight," Dailey said. "At times, we had a couple guys wide-open and couldn't hit them due to blitzes, but that's just a matter of repetition and picking the guys up next time we see it."
Dailey completed both of his passes on Nebraska's opening series, which he capped with a 6-yard TD run.
He completed five passes on the Huskers' second scoring drive.
He later hit Amos again from 36 yards out, this time counting for a score. He connected with Matt Herian for a 22-yard TD.
He looked sharp.
"We spread those guys out today very early," Dailey said. "They didn't know what to expect. They couldn't prepare for that. We spread those guys out easily."
Then, there's the second half.
Dailey said he was too excited, on too much of a high from the first half, and tried to do too much after halftime.
The result: Only 2-of-6 passing for 5 yards. He threw two interceptions, including one where he was nearly forced out of bounds. Instead of stepping out and taking a loss on the play, Dailey tried to throw the ball away down the sideline, and Western Illinois' Marion McLaughlin caught it.
"He learned some invaluable lessons," Nebraska coach Bill Callahan said of Dailey. "Until you get under the gun as quarterback in this system, you just don't know.
"I have to commend Joe. He came out very focused. His preparation was very thorough, and he managed this system very well. I will tell you there aren't very many quarterbacks in the National Football League that can handle what he handled tonight."
Dailey's 218 passing yards are the most ever by a Husker in a season opener. It's the first time a Nebraska quarterback has thrown for more than 200 yards in a game since Crouch's 204 yards passing at Texas in 1999.
And Dailey, who attempted 30 passes, completing 15, emerged from the game with few nicks, thanks to solid protection.
"I think the line did a great job," Dailey said. "A lot was asked of them, and I think they succeeded in what they were asked to do."
Dailey connected with six different receivers, proving what he'd been saying since spring ball: Nebraska has many weapons.
Grant Mulkey, who caught two balls, said he was impressed with Dailey's debut.
"Joe played great," Mulkey said. "I thought he was really poised back in the pocket, let the receivers get open. I thought he made great throws."
Mulkey said Nebraska's many shifts and motion early in the game caught Western Illinois off-guard and allowed Dailey and the offense to find an early groove.
But now that opponents have somewhat of an idea of what to expect from Nebraska, the challenge will become a little greater for the Husker offense.
"The difficult task is going to be the rest of the season," Dailey said. "They're going to be ready. It's just a matter of being prepared."
Dailey is certainly off to a good start. And he certainly made a good first impression on the boss.
"I know he's a little down for how he finished the game, but I'm very upbeat," Callahan said. "I'm very positive about where he can take us during the season."
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
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