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Counters and traps are often the forgotten third of the NU attack. Media and fans alike label the Huskers as either an option or power team. The complexity of the Big Red attack, though, may be best seen through the pulling linemen and misdirecting backs of the counter and trap game. The counter and trap game is very power oriented in that it gets the maximum number of blockers to the point of attack. It is anything, though, other than straight ahead man-on-man blocking. There are linemen flying everywhere on counters and traps. All counter and trap plays involve linemen pulling behind other linemen to attack the defense from different blocking angles. Some pulls cover a few yards, while others take the huge Husker front men completely across the field. A common misconception among Husker fans is that this part of the offense is limited to the fullback. It is true that the most famous Nebraska trap is the inside fullback trap, but Nebraska can run traps and counters for the I-back, quarterback and wingback, as well. Tommie Frazier's 35-yard touchdown run in the third quarter of the 1996 Fiesta Bowl is a beautiful example of Nebraska integrating trapping action with an innovative formation. Nebraska lined up with an empty backfield and five wide receivers (perhaps a subtle Osborne jab at offensive genius Steve Spurrior) and executed a quarterback trap with Frazier taking one step back, following the pulling guard and striding untouched into the end zone. Florida's defense was so stretched by the formation that the trapping linemen had few Gators to block at the line-of-scrimmage. As you watch the tape, you can imagine the Pipeline laughing, as Frazier screams at them to get out of his way. |