JD PicKell: Week 0 loss could create trouble, distractions for Scott Frost and Nebraska

Nebraska knows better than anyone how a Week 0 game can set the tone for the entire season. Last year, a one-score loss against Illinois became the theme of the year, having eight of them. 2022 will present new opportunities, with another Week 0 matchup against Northwestern.

On3’d J.D. PicKell thinks the Cornhuskers need to get off to a positive start and for more than just the purposes of wins and losses. With head coach Scott Frost already flirting with the hot seat, PicKell says a loss against Northwestern would get the rumors flying around even more. Those types of distractions can ruin seasons even before they begin.

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“If you drop this game to a team you beat soundly a year ago, with all the things you did in the offseason,” PicKell began. “All the new players in your program. All the talk, all the buzz. If you drop this game, how much of the storylines nationally then shift from expectations, optimism, what could they do to ‘is Scott Frost going to get fired? How long does Scott Frost have? They lost to Northwestern. They were favored by 14.5. How’d they lose that game?’

“That becomes the conversation. And what that does is — it trickles into your locker room, it trickles into your psyche. Slowly and surely, you start to say ‘what are you talking about my coach for? Is he going to be here next week? Is he going to get fired?’ It creates a distraction around your program.”

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With Nebraska being Nebraska, the questions will always pop up

Frost and his staff have and will continue to downplay the possibility of coaching changes coming to Nebraska. But with a college football program such as Nebraska, questions are always going to pop up when things are going south. PicKell says Cornhusker fans “live and breathe” the football team.

There is a chance of “spiraling” according to PicKell if players begin to see those headlines. The next game should always be the focus but for Nebraska, coaching rumors could take over.

“That’s not something Scott Frost will bring upon himself or something the players would immediately start thinking about,” PicKell. You start to drift when you see those headlines of ‘Scott Frost on the hot seat after the loss to Northwestern.’ It has a chance to start spiraling into that frame of mind. I’m not saying that’s where Nebraska’s team or lockerroom would go immediately but it’s something that doesn’t have anything to do with your next game and it becomes a topic of conversation.

“It’s unavoidable, especially being in Lincoln, Nebraska. A place that is a Cornhusker town. They live and breathe Nebraska football there. So, it’s hard for that storyline to somehow not be in front of you as a player. If you drop that game, how much of that becomes a distraction?

Week 0 will not define season, even with loss

Even if Nebraska loses on Saturday, there will be 11 more games for the Cornhuskers to prove themselves and make positive progress under Frost. However, PicKell realizes getting a win would be a real confidence booster for the program, being a stepping stone toward their season goals.

“They’re not going to win or lose seven games based on the Northwestern games, that’s not how football works. But to win this game, it would be enormous for morale, for confidence, for belief, and for a place to build off of going forward.”