Nebraska Football: Five things to watch vs Minnesota Golden Gophers

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - NOVEMBER 11: Nebraska Cornhuskers running back Devine Ozigbo (22) is tackled in the 4th quarter during the Big Ten Conference game between the Nebraska Cornhuskers and the Minnesota Golden Gophers on November 11, 2017 at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Gophers defeated the Cornhuskers 54-21. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

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Place kicker Barret Pickering #32 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images) /

FIVE THINGS TO WATCH VS MINNESOTA

NUMBER 2 -PICKERING HAS TO DO BETTER AT KICK(ER)ING

Being a kicker must be a really tough job, as no one cares about you until you screw up. Freshman kicker Barret Pickering has had his fair share of kicking woes so far this season and that has to change.

Pickering has gone just five of nine on field goal attempts this season (though he has only missed one extra point, so yay progress!) and the lack of confidence has clearly shone through with the rest of the team. Had Pickering not missed an earlier field goal against Northwestern, the Huskers probably go for the field goal in overtime.

Instead, they didn’t have faith in their kicker and went for the touchdown. We all know how that ended and it wasn’t good.

Being a freshman kicker isn’t easy, but Pickering has to do a better job at getting these kicks through the uprights. Drew Brown wasn’t great as a freshman either and he ended up doing okay for himself through the coming years, so there’s the silver lining, Husker fans.

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