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Steve Marik • InsideNebraska
Staff Writer
@Steve_Marik
The Nebraska football team kicked off its spring ball bright and early on Monday, holding its first practice at 6 a.m.
In case you missed it, Inside Nebraska took a stab at projecting the Huskers' 2023 spring depth chart.
Head coach Matt Rhule met with the local media inside Memorial Stadium following practice. Here are the quick hits:
>> Rhule said he thought the quarterbacks threw the ball well today. He called it as talented of a quarterback room as he's ever had.
"It was windy. We're not going to throw very often in the indoor," the coach said. "We're going to learn to throw the ball through the wind."
Rhule was anxious to watch the practice film to see if some of the throws that were off were the quarterback's fault, or the receivers not getting the correct depth on their routes.
As for Casey Thompson and Logan Smothers, neither are allowed to throw at practice yet.
>> Rhule said the 6 a.m. start to the practice "is not my cup of tea" and that he held the practice that early because he wanted to give the players Easter Saturday off.
"I think Easter is a time that everyone should have off to go and be with their family, and guys from far away can hopefully get with their local family," he said.
The other practices will start at about 7:45 a.m. or 8 a.m. Saturday's practice will start at 9 a.m. The team will practice in the mornings during the fall, too.
Monday's practice was a mix of inside the indoor facility and outside. North Platte native and former Chadron State Eagle, Danny Woodhead, was at practice to watch, along with several high school coaches from Kansas.
>> Rhule said there's not a lot of "defensiveness" with the players, who are very coachable.
"There's not a lot of palms up. I think great players listen with their eyes. These guys will turn and listen to you," Rhule said. "And we're talking a lot about it. This generation of player, of young people, is under so much pressure. You drop one pass and you can become a meme pretty quickly, so there's a lot of pressure. We're trying to reduce the idea of good and bad."
>> What was it like for Rhule to coach with defensive coordinator Tony White for the first time? Rhule said White needs to get adjusted to how Rhule wants to do things, and vice versa — Rhule needs to adjust to White.
"I think there will be a melding. Everyone always focuses on the scheme," Rhule said. "There's been 3-4 teams that win the national championship, there's been 4-3 teams, 4-2-5 teams. To me, it's really about how you do what you do. So the standards of, the way we do practice, the way we strip the ball, the way we move from drill to drill, those are the ones that are important to me."
>> Rhule mentioned he took notes on his phone during practice.
"To me, he can hopefully be that battering ram that puts games away," Rhule said. "To me, we're always going to preach fourth-quarter shutout, and fourth-quarter shutouts are helped by the offense when you can have 75 yards rushing in the fourth quarter. Those are things we believe in. Gabe has had a sensational camp."
>> Rhule said running back Ajay Allen "has a ton of talent."
>> Rahmir Johnson was brought up in the discussion with the running backs. Rhule said he's gone back and watched the past two seasons of film, and Johnson is someone "who consistently flashed." The coach said Johnson is healthy and doing well.
"Just working on academics and just general things with him. Nothing bad other than sort of just our standards as a program," Rhule said of Grant. "That'll be day by day. Good kid, just gotta get him going in the good direction."
>> Brodie Tagaloa, who originally came to Nebraska as a defensive linemen but was moved to tight end, was moved back to the D-line this spring, according to Rhule. Tagaloa will be limited for spring practices with an injury.
>> Jake Appleget, the second-year player from Lincoln Southeast, was moved to tight end after being asked to by Rhule. He spent last season on the defensive side as an EDGE.
"I just went back and watched the tape from high school, he was a receiver, so we're looking for tight ends," Rhule said of Appleget, "and we like to play with multiple guys at the tight end position."
Rhule said the 6-4 Appleget is up to 236 pounds, but is coming off surgery so he's wearing a green "no contact" jersey. Rhule also liked Appleget's GPS numbers.
>> Janiran Bonner isn't working at receiver anymore, and is playing more of a "hybrid F tight end," Rhule said. "I think Janiran is a guy who can do a lot of different things."
Rhule said Bonner is at 217 pounds right now, and the goal is to get him up to 222.
"He's completely healthy, but I'm going to limit him all spring," Rhule said of Fidone. "We have to get him to the season. I always believe it takes a long time for an ACL to truly heal, so I'm picking my spots. He's mad, but that's what I love about him. He's competitive."
>> Arik Gilbert, the transfer from LSU and Georgia, is "learning" Rhule said.
"He's a big, physical kid," Rhule added.
Staff Writer
@Steve_Marik
The Nebraska football team kicked off its spring ball bright and early on Monday, holding its first practice at 6 a.m.
In case you missed it, Inside Nebraska took a stab at projecting the Huskers' 2023 spring depth chart.
Head coach Matt Rhule met with the local media inside Memorial Stadium following practice. Here are the quick hits:
>> Rhule said he thought the quarterbacks threw the ball well today. He called it as talented of a quarterback room as he's ever had.
"It was windy. We're not going to throw very often in the indoor," the coach said. "We're going to learn to throw the ball through the wind."
Rhule was anxious to watch the practice film to see if some of the throws that were off were the quarterback's fault, or the receivers not getting the correct depth on their routes.
As for Casey Thompson and Logan Smothers, neither are allowed to throw at practice yet.
>> Rhule said the 6 a.m. start to the practice "is not my cup of tea" and that he held the practice that early because he wanted to give the players Easter Saturday off.
"I think Easter is a time that everyone should have off to go and be with their family, and guys from far away can hopefully get with their local family," he said.
The other practices will start at about 7:45 a.m. or 8 a.m. Saturday's practice will start at 9 a.m. The team will practice in the mornings during the fall, too.
Monday's practice was a mix of inside the indoor facility and outside. North Platte native and former Chadron State Eagle, Danny Woodhead, was at practice to watch, along with several high school coaches from Kansas.
>> Rhule said there's not a lot of "defensiveness" with the players, who are very coachable.
"There's not a lot of palms up. I think great players listen with their eyes. These guys will turn and listen to you," Rhule said. "And we're talking a lot about it. This generation of player, of young people, is under so much pressure. You drop one pass and you can become a meme pretty quickly, so there's a lot of pressure. We're trying to reduce the idea of good and bad."
>> What was it like for Rhule to coach with defensive coordinator Tony White for the first time? Rhule said White needs to get adjusted to how Rhule wants to do things, and vice versa — Rhule needs to adjust to White.
"I think there will be a melding. Everyone always focuses on the scheme," Rhule said. "There's been 3-4 teams that win the national championship, there's been 4-3 teams, 4-2-5 teams. To me, it's really about how you do what you do. So the standards of, the way we do practice, the way we strip the ball, the way we move from drill to drill, those are the ones that are important to me."
>> Rhule mentioned he took notes on his phone during practice.
Gabe Ervin Jr. has been one of the "stars" of the offseason
>> Rhule mentioned the the 6-foot running back was one of the stars of the offseason and is one of the fastest players on the team at around 222 pounds."To me, he can hopefully be that battering ram that puts games away," Rhule said. "To me, we're always going to preach fourth-quarter shutout, and fourth-quarter shutouts are helped by the offense when you can have 75 yards rushing in the fourth quarter. Those are things we believe in. Gabe has had a sensational camp."
>> Rhule said running back Ajay Allen "has a ton of talent."
>> Rahmir Johnson was brought up in the discussion with the running backs. Rhule said he's gone back and watched the past two seasons of film, and Johnson is someone "who consistently flashed." The coach said Johnson is healthy and doing well.
Anthony Grant and Tommi Hill suspended, not practicing
>> Rhule said he suspended both running back Anthony Grant and defensive back Tommi Hill. Neither practiced on Monday."Just working on academics and just general things with him. Nothing bad other than sort of just our standards as a program," Rhule said of Grant. "That'll be day by day. Good kid, just gotta get him going in the good direction."
Roster updates and position changes
>> Tight end Chris Hickman and James Carnie, as well as defensive back Tyreke Johnson, are no longer on the team, Rhule confirmed.>> Brodie Tagaloa, who originally came to Nebraska as a defensive linemen but was moved to tight end, was moved back to the D-line this spring, according to Rhule. Tagaloa will be limited for spring practices with an injury.
>> Jake Appleget, the second-year player from Lincoln Southeast, was moved to tight end after being asked to by Rhule. He spent last season on the defensive side as an EDGE.
"I just went back and watched the tape from high school, he was a receiver, so we're looking for tight ends," Rhule said of Appleget, "and we like to play with multiple guys at the tight end position."
Rhule said the 6-4 Appleget is up to 236 pounds, but is coming off surgery so he's wearing a green "no contact" jersey. Rhule also liked Appleget's GPS numbers.
>> Janiran Bonner isn't working at receiver anymore, and is playing more of a "hybrid F tight end," Rhule said. "I think Janiran is a guy who can do a lot of different things."
Rhule said Bonner is at 217 pounds right now, and the goal is to get him up to 222.
Thomas Fidone II being limited at practice, and more on the TEs
>> Rhule joked that Thomas Fidone II is "mad" at him for holding him back at practice."He's completely healthy, but I'm going to limit him all spring," Rhule said of Fidone. "We have to get him to the season. I always believe it takes a long time for an ACL to truly heal, so I'm picking my spots. He's mad, but that's what I love about him. He's competitive."
>> Arik Gilbert, the transfer from LSU and Georgia, is "learning" Rhule said.
"He's a big, physical kid," Rhule added.
