Nebraska Spring Football: Five Things To Watch

A rehaped defense and a more balanced offense should emerge during camp

During most years, spring football is about as fresh as a dog's old bone.

Practices fixate on technique and "offense installation." More time is devoted to marginal, backup players and "potential" position changes. Stars - especially quarterbacks - are generally protected and unchallenged. Starting jobs that are supposed to be up for grabs are inevitably held over to fall practice.

It’s lab time for a college football coach, and as intriguing as that sounds from a macro perspective, it's a little less so at the ground level.

But, at Nebraska, this is the first…well, we all know what it is, and who it involves.

Out with Bill, in with Bo.

Unlike some other news outlets, we're not going to pretend the first spring of Bo Pelini's tenure is akin to, say, Patton's initial maneuvers in North Africa. To paraphrase culture's latest, utterly meaningless phrase - it is what it is. A controlled environment. A get-to-know-us session.

Pelini advocates a system that fits itself to the talent, so he and NU staff will now get a closer look at just how much molding they've got to do. There's an effort-based ethos to instill, an offense to toughen up, and a defense to reinvent. And it won't all get done in three weeks, either. This will just be a taste of Pelini-as-CEO, and although we may have some impressions by the end of spring camp, there won't be any proclamations.

Everybody understood how dangerous that activity became under Bill Callahan, right?

With that disclaimer set firmly in place - here's five items to follow through spring camp.

Bo's Imprint: It's been a trademark of Pelini's since he became Nebraska's defensive coordinator in 2003: Strong linebacker and secondary play. While Pelini has enjoyed some studs in his front fours, most notably LSU's Glenn Dorsey, his track record is getting the back seven to play smarter and harder, creating turnovers and timely sacks.

Expect Pelini to go to work on NU's units, which were abysmal in 2007.

At linebacker, last year's flops have graduated, leaving a crop of athletic underclassmen and Phillip Dillard, who's a little short and stocky, but a tough natural in the middle. Unlike the departed Corey McKeon, who enjoyed swooping in for dramatic plays, Dillard will actually file a hole, attack a blocker, and wrap up an opposing runner. How he warms to Pelini's style and teaching is crucial to this group's development. Pelini also has to look at the clay of Blake Lawrence, LaTravis Washington, Austin Stafford and Thomas Grove and like what he sees.

Ditto for the secondary. Pelini has a wealth of options for the cornerback starting opposite senior Armando Murillo, a solid tackler and an improving pass defender. Will it be Anthony Blue, who started as a true freshman and held his own against decent Kansas State receivers? Will it be nickel blitz specialist Anthony West? The intriguing Prince Amukamara, who has the ideal best size and speed?

Pelini will have incumbent Larry Asante at strong safety. Asante locates ball carriers fine. Not afraid to lay them out, either. But Asante routinely let receivers catch passes in front of him - especially near the goal line - and was fooled by play action, too. Will he be moved to linebacker? He has the body for it. If so - who takes his place? Eric Hagg? One of the newbies in the fall? Major Culbert, who may also become a full-time linebacker?

Ricky Thenarse probably starts at free safety. A year too late, some believe. Well, we'll see. Thenarse the emotional octane of a leader. Does he have the discipline and field sense? If not, can Pelini instill them? Thenarse can't blow any more blitzes by leaping through the air and whizzing by the quarterback. It's not punt coverage.

What Pelini does with these guys will determine whether NU's defense bends or breaks in 2008. Because let's be honest: The front four lacks experienced depth and a great pass rusher. It just does, and that probably won't change. So the skill players will have to flip the field, defend the red zone and create the havoc on Pelini's well-timed blitzes.

Joe's a Go: No special insight here on whether Joe Ganz is necessarily the best fit for offensive coordinator Shawn Watson's revamped offense (expect bootlegs and rollouts) but it will benefit the Cornhuskers if he is throughout spring. Ganz is well-liked, he's a competitor, and he has a lot invested in the success of this team. He takes his leadership role seriously and personally. Patrick Witt or Zac Lee would need to have one whale of a spring or fall camp to supplant him.

Reviewing Ganz's three starts last fall, it's fairly clear that he's not Colt Brennan. If Ganz passes 40-50 times a game, he'll throw interceptions. But, in an offense that limits his choices yet buys him time with his feet, Ganz can be an effective college quarterback.

No special insight on Witt or Lee, either, considering Callahan's practices were mostly under wraps, and neither of those guys have taken game snaps. Witt has one spring game performance of dodging first and second-team defenders. Lee doesn't have a body of work, other than the scout team.

The Specials: Special teams were mediocre and uninspiring under Bill Callahan; whatever good came of them were almost solely due to the individual efforts of guys like Ricky Thenarse and Cortney Grixby. Callahan never displayed a vision for these units aside from an embrace of trick plays in 2006. He had little-to-no confidence in his kickers and there seemed to be very little teaching; freshman Adi Kunalic couldn't execute a squib kick in the Kansas game. It may be hard to tell what, exactly, Pelini's take on these units are until fall, when he's had time to figure out if Kunalic's teachable, or just a booming leg.

More importantly: How does Nebraska improve its kickoff and punt return games? Is there a dynamic returner that Callahan habitually overlooked for the same old faces? Is Pelini willing to take the chance on a guy like Prince Amukamara? Or Marcus Mendoza? Or will be more of Nate Swift's signature fair catches?

You can either play to win with these units, or simply try to avoid a disaster. With the exception of 2006, Callahan embraced the latter approach. What will Pelini do?

Barney's Boys: To me, this is the most interesting subplot of the spring. Nebraska's offensive line has the potential to be great. Maybe not during the non-conference season. By October? Watch out.

If he did nothing else, Callahan stocked his recruiting classes with large, gifted "uglies." Provided the Huskers stay healthy - a big "if," granted - NU is, arguably, two deep at every spot in the trench. Three seniors, one junior, four super sophomores, one redshirt freshman. Now that's a problem to have if you're offensive line coach Barney Cotton, whose first job is to reverse the softer techniques of the Callahan Era with a nastiness that befits "The Pipeline."

Only tackle Lydon Murtha (presuming he's recovered from a foot injury) and center Jacob Hickman are on solid starting ground. The rest of the positions are, to some extent, up for grabs. Guard Matt Slauson has started a lot of games and gets a lot of face time with the media, but he'll be challenged. Sophomore Jaivorio Burkes would seem to have the inside track at the tackle opposite Murtha. Keith Williams, Mike Smith, D.J Jones and Marcel Jones are all giant men (all at least 6-foot-5, 300 pounds) vying for exposure; Williams and Smith saw significant time last year. Guard Andy Christensen is an unknown; he's indefinitely suspended after being charged with first degree sexual assault.

Cotton should help these guys rediscover their mash-n-maul roots. Their toughness will be necessary to establish a balanced running game that takes some pressure off a so-so crop of quarterbacks. Cotton, and offensive coordinator Shawn Watson have to reorient NU back to a team that wins the line of scrimmage, allowing the quarterback (probably Joe Ganz) to stick to his strengths.

Find a No. 1 receiver: Nebraska fans aren't too accustomed to worrying about this position, but, with Maurice Purify departing, the Cornhuskers lack that outside, big-bodied, big-play presence that most good passing offenses enjoy. Heck, Nebraska wasted Purify in 2007 until Sam Keller got hurt, Ganz stepped in and opened Nebraska's eyes on how to properly use him.

So who fills Purify's role in 2008? Is it incumbent and captain-candidate Nate Swift, who has the requisite speed, but suffered a case of the drops last year? Is it junior Menelik Holt, well-liked by coaches and whom, at 6-foot-4, has the prototypical size? Is it Niles Paul? Todd Peterson? Will Henry?

If it is Holt - and indications are he'll be given the chance - then Offensive Coordinator Shawn Watson should consider moving Swift inside, where he flourished in the Texas game. Watson should also scratch out those dinky crossing patterns Bill Callahan loved to use for Terrence Nunn, and cost the Huskers a win over the Longhorns in 2006.

Email Samuel McKewon at sam@ne.statepaper.com

Dining Guide

• Lincoln
• Omaha
• Greater NE

Calendar

• Lincoln
• Omaha
• Greater NE