Official Fall Practice Thread

[Pipe Line]

I agree.

I posted about #1 in a different thread yesterday, I've seen multiple media people refer to his knee braces. All lineman wear knee braces.

#2 That shit I see media and posters talk about it all the time. Thinking that full pads = 3 hours of tackle to the ground football. I've seen them go to the ground once, maybe twice in the Mike Riley and SF eras. Only time I recall 1s to the ground was the COVID year and that was leading into the season. Lines are live, and most over stuff is tag off or thud. The spring game's first half is what most of practice looks like.

Is that like prescribed safety or CFB camp rules or is CFB just full of pussies now? I guess I don't understand how not tackling during camp gets you ready to definitely tackle effectively for 12 weeks.

 

[Faux Sean Callahan]

1. Sipple and whoever this morning talking about Teddy and and his knee brace and confidence, and if he'll play stiffer or whatever else.......THEY WEAR BRACES ALL THE TIME....LIKE...EVERY SNAP.

Shit most HS OL wear them.

2. Sipple and whoever this morning on 93.7 the ticket talking about "They put on full pads" Multiple times and whatever stupid point they're trying to make....Very rarely do you see to the ground tackling...so anytime you're in half racks, you're pretty much full go, most teams are Thud temp with the exception of maybe...maybe 20 minutes of practice. Fuck this annoys me.

Yup, shit like this drives me up a wall. It is the reason why I can really only listen to Damon and Sharpe. They at least get enough about what actually happens to not drive me crazy.

My favorite is when Sipple is actively trying to comprehend football shit on the air. His silence/"lets take a minute here Jake" makes for great radio.

 

[Faux Sean Callahan]

Is that like prescribed safety or CFB camp rules or is CFB just full of pussies now? I guess I don't understand how not tackling during camp gets you ready to definitely tackle effectively for 12 weeks.

You just don't need to kill each other. You have 12 weeks of another team trying to kill you... You don't need 4 more of you killing yourself.

You go to thud you can get the right fit and know if you are in the right spot. Thud being basically a tackle without going to the ground. Now shit happens and you have a few times you go to the ground, but as a rule of thumb you want to stay up and off the legs.

 

[Pipe Line]

You just don't need to kill each other. You have 12 weeks of another team trying to kill you... You don't need 4 more of you killing yourself.

You go to thud you can get the right fit and know if you are in the right spot. Thud being basically a tackle without going to the ground. Now shit happens and you have a few times you go to the ground, but as a rule of thumb you want to stay up and off the legs.

I understand. Sounds soft, just my opinion, but I'm sure it's the smarter way to do it anymore.

 

[slattimer]

I agree.

I posted about #1 in a different thread yesterday, I've seen multiple media people refer to his knee braces. All lineman wear knee braces.

#2 That shit I see media and posters talk about it all the time. Thinking that full pads = 3 hours of tackle to the ground football. I've seen them go to the ground once, maybe twice in the Mike Riley and SF eras. Only time I recall 1s to the ground was the COVID year and that was leading into the season. Lines are live, and most over stuff is tag off or thud. The spring game's first half is what most of practice looks like.

Exactly. Thud tempo is the dominant tempo, and hell, anymore if teams go to the ground, its with a crash pad. Thud is live, just not to the ground.

 

[slattimer]

Is that like prescribed safety or CFB camp rules or is CFB just full of pussies now? I guess I don't understand how not tackling during camp gets you ready to definitely tackle effectively for 12 weeks.

You can still be extremely physical in thud tempo. The OL/DL battles are pretty much gamelike with the exception of if you have a chance you don't flatback the defender.

 

[Pipe Line]

You can still be extremely physical in thud tempo. The OL/DL battles are pretty much gamelike with the exception of if you have a chance you don't flatback the defender.

So basically don't do what Omar did in the video where he pancaked in a ST drill?

 

[slattimer]

So basically don't do what Omar did in the video where he pancaked in a ST drill?

Yeah, and that's why Mickey got after him...dominate the guy, just don't put them down. In the end, you're still teammates, and injuries to key guys can derail a season pretty quick it seems like these days.

 

[vailhusker]

Insideher Nugs Offense -

>> There were two quarterbacks that stood out on Monday during the open portion of practice: Casey Thompson and Chubba Purdy.

Thompson, the transfer from Texas, showed off his arm strength and had great zip and accuracy on his passes, especially on short and intermediate routes about 10-15 yards down the field. Purdy, the Florida State transfer, had a live arm as well, and it didn’t appear there was much of a dropoff from Thompson in terms of arm strength and accuracy.

>> Offensive coordinator Mark Whipple and analyst Mike Cassano were with the quarterbacks during the open portion of the practice. Head coach Scott Frost was moving around to all positions.

>> There was a clear order to the quarterbacks going through drills, and it never deviated: 1: Thompson 2: Purdy 3: Logan Smothers 4: Heinrich Haarberg 5: Richard Torres and 6: walk-on Matt Masker.

>> Smothers didn’t quite have the force behind his passes like Thompson and Purdy did. As for Haarberg, arm strength won’t ever be a problem for the 6-foot-5, 210-pounder from Kearney Catholic, but improving accuracy should be his top priority. Haarberg’s receivers and tight ends had to jump or bend for a few of his passes while that was rarely the case with Thompson and Purdy.

>> Torres has plenty of arm strength behind his 6-4, 210-pound frame. The true freshman from Texas looks very comfortable throwing on the run as well.

>> During most of the portion the media was able to watch, the quarterbacks were primarily throwing to tight ends. Travis Vokolek was obviously the first to go in each rep and was catching the passes from Thompson. Chris Hickman was catching passes from Purdy while Chancellor Brewington was third in line. Another tight end, AJ Rollins, wasn't in pads on Monday and didn't practice.

>> Others who weren’t in pads and competing at practice include safeties Omar Brown, Jalil Martin, Kaine Williams, nickels Gage Stenger and John Bullock.

>> Over at running back, Gabe Ervin Jr. seemed to be impressing position coach Bryan Applewhite during pass-blocking drills. The drill consisted of three teammates holding bags in front of Ervin and to his left and right. Each of the teammates would take turns running into Ervin, and Ervin held his ground against everyone, which earned him praise from Applewhite.

>> During another drill, the running backs were supposed to quickly sidestep past a bag that was laying on the ground, then spin past the second-level defender, or in this case a student manager holding another bag.

Jaquez Yant went first in the drill, but Applewhite wanted to see quicker feet from the big 235-pounder. Anthony Grant, the New Mexico Military Institute transfer, was next and gave Applewhite what he wanted — Grant’s footwork was one of the quickest and most fluid of the group. Ervin, Rahmir Johnson and true freshman Ajay Allen also did well in the drill and got praise from Applewhite.

>> Over at the offensive line, position coach Donovan Raiola seemed to have a full group at practice, with everyone in pads and going through drills. That included Turner Corcoran and Teddy Prochazka, who each missed spring ball while rehabbing prior injuries.

>> Prochazka had his left knee, the one he hurt against Michigan last season, wrapped underneath his knee brace, but was going through drills with his teammates and didn’t seem bothered.

>> LSU transfer receiver Trey Palmer was always first to go in every wideout drill. Isaiah Garcia-Castaneda, the New Mexico State transfer who missed all of spring with an injury, was back on the field and didn’t look hampered at all.

>> During one blocking drill with the receivers, wideout Omar Manning went up against Brewington. Manning went a bit too hard in the rep and planted Brewington to the ground. Receivers coach Mickey Joseph didn’t like that. The mild version of what Joseph told Manning was, “Don’t do that again.”

>> Nebraska Athletic Director Turd Alberts and Matt Davison, the Senior Associate AD for External Engagement, were taking in practice on Monday.

 

[vailhusker]

Insideher Nugs Defense -

Mostly status quo at EDGE, defensive line​

>> The Huskers’ positional groupings in the front seven in the spring were a stark contrast to how they were grouped last fall, and that philosophy is clearly here to stay:
It was a brief open viewing period on Monday, but throughout our time in the facility the EDGE players were never put with the linebackers. They were either combined with the defensive linemen during individual and one-on-one drills, or they were separated as a group by themselves. Just another observation to reinforce that the Huskers are trending toward full-time usage of an increasingly more utilized position as they try to evolve their defense.
>> We did not get to see any team periods, so we had to analyze any potential two-deep information from individual drills. The order in which players go during those drills can often mean everything and sometimes mean nothing: Either they can be a great predictor of where the two-deep currently stands or just a random fall camp drill in which the players line up in a random order.
At EDGE and at defensive line, it was mostly status quo in regard to the order that players competed and what we think the two-deep will be when the season kicks off with one exception as Caleb Tannor was last in line during both defensive line/EDGE drills and when the EDGE players were separated.
Garrett Nelson, to absolutely no one’s surprise, was first in line during every drill when the EDGE players and defensive linemen were grouped together.. He was going hard during every rep, as you would come to expect from him, and he was his normal vocal self. Whether it was from a two-point or three-point stance, Nelson looked smooth and flexible bending around the edges during rushing drills and using his hips to shuffle laterally during pass coverage drills.

Nebraska EDGE Ochaun Mathis (Greg Smith/Inside Nebraska)
Next in-line at EDGE behind Nelson were Simon Otte, Blaise Gunnerson, Jake Appleget, Ryan Schommer, Ochaun Mathis, Jimari Butler and Tannor, though Mathis went third when the defensive line and EDGE rushers were a combined group.
Tannor and Mathis looked the most physically impressive in terms of their individual athleticism and the fact that they look the part of what a team would want when thinking of the prototypical EDGE player: Long, lean, super athletic, bendy and look like they can likely explode out of a cannon out of a two-point stance – but also have the lateral movement to keep up in pass coverage.
The defensive line group is where there was nothing out of the ordinary at the top of the line. Ty Robinson went first, Nash Hutmacher went second, and Colton Feist went third. Those are the first three players who Steve Marik listed when he wrote his projection for the two-deep at interior defensive line on Sunday night.
Those three were followed by Marquis Black, Mosai Newsom and Stephon Wynn Jr., who is anticipated to have an important role on the defense but had to make some adjustments when he transferred from Alabama.

Potential second-team linebackers​

>> This is the position group that I purposely spent the least amount of time watching because it’s the least concerning group at the top of the rotation. Luke Reimer and Nick Henrich are the top-two linebackers and one of the Big Ten’s best duos at the position. They were first two in line during every drill I watched and looked smooth and aggressive – just like Nelson.
Eteva Mauga-Clements, Garrett Snodgrass, Grant Tagge, Randolph Kpai, Mikai Gbayor and Ernest Hausmann were the other linebackers doing drillwork. The order in which those eight went was more fluid and changing than the EDGE and defensive linemen. Mauga-Clements and Snodgrass, however, were the two who most often followed Reimer and Henrich.
Mauga-Clements, who I was impressed with from an energy and physicality standpoint, were already the most likely to see the most snaps behind Reimer and Henrich. So, Monday’s viewing period was just another reinforcement of that.

Defensive backs bring juice, physicality early​

>> Saving the group that I believe is the most intriguing this season for last. I see it as the most intriguing because of: 1) its critical importance to Erik Chinander’s unit as a whole 2) the fact that there are a ton of question marks as Travis Fisher replaces three of the four starters from last year and four out of five if you count the nickel spot 3) I wrote about this earlier on Monday: On paper, this defensive backs room has the potential and talent to be the best overall, top-to-bottom group that Fisher has had since he took over the room in 2018.
Quinton Newsome leads that brigade. Much has already been written and said — by yours truly and several others — about Newsome stepping up his game in leadership and energy as the face and voice of the room. If that’s true, then he was doing a good job of showing it on Monday.

>> During the first defensive back individual drill period, Newsome and Tamon Lynum were paired up for a one-on-one contact drill working on engaging a ball carrier, wrapping him up and stopping him in his tracks. Just a simple form-tackling drill to get some juices flowing early and get cranking on some physicality at practice. Newsome smacked his facemask and chest plate right into Lynum’s and used his strength to hold Lynum up, and Lynum brought the same type of physical effort and energy.
That drew some empathic praise from Fisher, who screamed “That’s the way to start this damn drill off! Both of you!”
>>The other most notable drill participant was Arizona State transfer Tommi Hill. The second-year player has drawn strong reviews this offseason from Fisher, who told me on Friday about how impressive Hill has been in that room. And during the press conference beforehand that day, Fisher had brought up Hill as probably the most passionate and vocal of his entire room on the field, and I saw a brief glimpse of that this morning.
It was a small item, but it was another one factoring into my thought that Hill is going to wind up earning the full-time starting job opposite Newsome as the defense’s No. 2 outside cornerback. But it would be unwise to count out Braxton Clark from that competition. I expect him to make that a fight as a fifth-year veteran in that room who is trying to hold off the new face and hard-charging younger player.
>> I did not see Marques Buford Jr. during the 35-minute window. I was hoping to see Buford up close again, but he was not on the practice field throughout that early-morning session.
>> Safeties Omar Brown, Jalil Martin, Kaine Williams and nickels Gage Stenger and John Bullock were at practice but were not wearing pads or competing.

 

[Bootleg11]

and analyst Mike Cassano

NCAA infraction incoming.

 

[Tsakoi]

Is it just me or has there been very little mention of LB Chris Kolarevic? Did he get injured and I forgot?

 

[Huskerbuck85]

Insideher Nugs Defense -

Mostly status quo at EDGE, defensive line​

>> The Huskers’ positional groupings in the front seven in the spring were a stark contrast to how they were grouped last fall, and that philosophy is clearly here to stay:
It was a brief open viewing period on Monday, but throughout our time in the facility the EDGE players were never put with the linebackers. They were either combined with the defensive linemen during individual and one-on-one drills, or they were separated as a group by themselves. Just another observation to reinforce that the Huskers are trending toward full-time usage of an increasingly more utilized position as they try to evolve their defense.
>> We did not get to see any team periods, so we had to analyze any potential two-deep information from individual drills. The order in which players go during those drills can often mean everything and sometimes mean nothing: Either they can be a great predictor of where the two-deep currently stands or just a random fall camp drill in which the players line up in a random order.
At EDGE and at defensive line, it was mostly status quo in regard to the order that players competed and what we think the two-deep will be when the season kicks off with one exception as Caleb Tannor was last in line during both defensive line/EDGE drills and when the EDGE players were separated.
Garrett Nelson, to absolutely no one’s surprise, was first in line during every drill when the EDGE players and defensive linemen were grouped together.. He was going hard during every rep, as you would come to expect from him, and he was his normal vocal self. Whether it was from a two-point or three-point stance, Nelson looked smooth and flexible bending around the edges during rushing drills and using his hips to shuffle laterally during pass coverage drills.

Nebraska EDGE Ochaun Mathis (Greg Smith/Inside Nebraska)
Next in-line at EDGE behind Nelson were Simon Otte, Blaise Gunnerson, Jake Appleget, Ryan Schommer, Ochaun Mathis, Jimari Butler and Tannor, though Mathis went third when the defensive line and EDGE rushers were a combined group.
Tannor and Mathis looked the most physically impressive in terms of their individual athleticism and the fact that they look the part of what a team would want when thinking of the prototypical EDGE player: Long, lean, super athletic, bendy and look like they can likely explode out of a cannon out of a two-point stance – but also have the lateral movement to keep up in pass coverage.
The defensive line group is where there was nothing out of the ordinary at the top of the line. Ty Robinson went first, Nash Hutmacher went second, and Colton Feist went third. Those are the first three players who Steve Marik listed when he wrote his projection for the two-deep at interior defensive line on Sunday night.
Those three were followed by Marquis Black, Mosai Newsom and Stephon Wynn Jr., who is anticipated to have an important role on the defense but had to make some adjustments when he transferred from Alabama.

Potential second-team linebackers​

>> This is the position group that I purposely spent the least amount of time watching because it’s the least concerning group at the top of the rotation. Luke Reimer and Nick Henrich are the top-two linebackers and one of the Big Ten’s best duos at the position. They were first two in line during every drill I watched and looked smooth and aggressive – just like Nelson.
Eteva Mauga-Clements, Garrett Snodgrass, Grant Tagge, Randolph Kpai, Mikai Gbayor and Ernest Hausmann were the other linebackers doing drillwork. The order in which those eight went was more fluid and changing than the EDGE and defensive linemen. Mauga-Clements and Snodgrass, however, were the two who most often followed Reimer and Henrich.
Mauga-Clements, who I was impressed with from an energy and physicality standpoint, were already the most likely to see the most snaps behind Reimer and Henrich. So, Monday’s viewing period was just another reinforcement of that.

Defensive backs bring juice, physicality early​

>> Saving the group that I believe is the most intriguing this season for last. I see it as the most intriguing because of: 1) its critical importance to Erik Chinander’s unit as a whole 2) the fact that there are a ton of question marks as Travis Fisher replaces three of the four starters from last year and four out of five if you count the nickel spot 3) I wrote about this earlier on Monday: On paper, this defensive backs room has the potential and talent to be the best overall, top-to-bottom group that Fisher has had since he took over the room in 2018.
Quinton Newsome leads that brigade. Much has already been written and said — by yours truly and several others — about Newsome stepping up his game in leadership and energy as the face and voice of the room. If that’s true, then he was doing a good job of showing it on Monday.

>> During the first defensive back individual drill period, Newsome and Tamon Lynum were paired up for a one-on-one contact drill working on engaging a ball carrier, wrapping him up and stopping him in his tracks. Just a simple form-tackling drill to get some juices flowing early and get cranking on some physicality at practice. Newsome smacked his facemask and chest plate right into Lynum’s and used his strength to hold Lynum up, and Lynum brought the same type of physical effort and energy.
That drew some empathic praise from Fisher, who screamed “That’s the way to start this damn drill off! Both of you!”
>>The other most notable drill participant was Arizona State transfer Tommi Hill. The second-year player has drawn strong reviews this offseason from Fisher, who told me on Friday about how impressive Hill has been in that room. And during the press conference beforehand that day, Fisher had brought up Hill as probably the most passionate and vocal of his entire room on the field, and I saw a brief glimpse of that this morning.
It was a small item, but it was another one factoring into my thought that Hill is going to wind up earning the full-time starting job opposite Newsome as the defense’s No. 2 outside cornerback. But it would be unwise to count out Braxton Clark from that competition. I expect him to make that a fight as a fifth-year veteran in that room who is trying to hold off the new face and hard-charging younger player.
>> I did not see Marques Buford Jr. during the 35-minute window. I was hoping to see Buford up close again, but he was not on the practice field throughout that early-morning session.
>> Safeties Omar Brown, Jalil Martin, Kaine Williams and nickels Gage Stenger and John Bullock were at practice but were not wearing pads or competing.

In all that has been written since yesterday I have not seen Tyreke Johnson mentioned of That Kalorevick (sp) dude at LB. At this point I’m more or less counting Johnson out but not sure about the LB mentioned.

 

[vailhusker]

In all that has been written since yesterday I have not seen Tyreke Johnson mentioned of That Kalorevick (sp) dude at LB. At this point I’m more or less counting Johnson out but not sure about the LB mentioned.

I did see Johnson in one of the DB clips, of course that doesn't mean he going to play though but I don't think I saw Kolarevic in any. Now that Wright is (hopefully) healthy Kolarevic seems like a guy without a position.

 

[alt f4]

NCAA infraction incoming.

They can be on the practice field, they just can't give any direct instruction to players.

 

[Tsakoi]

They can be on the practice field, they just can't give any direct instruction to players.

 

[LoudHogRider]

They can be on the practice field, they just can't give any direct instruction to players.

 

[vailhusker]

 

[Pipe Line]

"You really getting fired in October?"

 

[KidsSeeGhosts]

I did see Johnson in one of the DB clips, of course that doesn't mean he going to play though but I don't think I saw Kolarevic in any. Now that Wright is (hopefully) healthy Kolarevic seems like a guy without a position.

I could see Kolarevic playing big nickel or occupying that position when we play Cockeye and Wisco