Detailing biggest concern for Jeff Sims at Nebraska

Matt Rhule is kicking off a new era at Nebraska, about to enter his first season as head coach. He decided to bring in a fresh quarterback as well, grabbing Jeff Sims out of the NCAA transfer portal. Previously at Georgia Tech, Sims has plenty of Power Five experience and should be a veteran presence for the Cornhuskers.

On3’s J.D. PicKell broke down the biggest concern for Sims, comparing it to the situation he had while at Georgia Tech. PicKell wonders if there will be enough talent around the quarterback for him to succeed. The answer is yes, especially since there is a good balance of young guys and veteran pieces.

“The concern for Nebraska fans could be,” PicKell began. “‘Where is this roster at with him? Is he going to be able to be in a position to succeed?’ That was kind of the issue at Georgia Tech. ‘Is there enough around him to be successful?’

“The feeling at Nebraska is — while there is some new pieces, there are some guys that have benefitted from having that COVID year. There is a fair amount of maturity on this roster.”

At times when Sims has not had too much support, the quarterback has been able to make his own plays on the ground. Sims has 277 career rush attempts, averaging over 4.0 yards per carry and having 11 rushing touchdowns.

Nebraska plans to use his legs as a weapon but not too often according to PicKell. Sims is a talented passer and the hope is — with more targets around, the numbers will rise. Using his feet can be a good weapon in certain situations but offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield will not be dialing anything up.

“A big part of his game is what he can do with his legs,” PicKell said. “They want to make sure they utilize him in the run game but have it be meaningful runs. They don’t want Jeff Sims taking 15, 20 carries a game. They want to use his legs when it’s appropriate. But they’re not calling Quarterback Power on 2nd and 1… It’s going to be an asset for them but it’s not going to be Plan A.”

Sure, there are a few questions but everyone in Lincoln is excited for Sims. Expectations are going to be high, with the Nebraska program begging to get back into some kind of contention sooner rather than later.