Spring Practice - Offensive Line

One media guys flat out says Barnett is not going to be better that Forster, Farmer or Wilson.

At best the #4 OG so not very likely to play this year ..... if ever.

 
I'm really hoping we have a better option for 1st string RT then Knevel and Conrad. I was not impressed with that position last year at all.

 
admo said:
I'm really hoping we have a better option for 1st string RT then Knevel and Conrad. I was not impressed with that position last year at all.
Click to expand...
Knevel plays with ludicrously high pad level. I get that he's 6'7" but he's rarely going to be low man; and as ESPN announcer Chris Speilman often says, "In football, low man wins."

Not only does he play with terrible pad level, most snaps his effort 1/2 speed at best.

To your point, I think Knevel is the weakest link in the chain. That kid would never see the field if I had my say.

 
Knevel said he hurt his ankle in the Oregon game and couldn't do squats until after the Iowa game.

Mentioned that it hurt his strength but had to hurt mobility too.

 
Mavric said:
Knevel said he hurt his ankle in the Oregon game and couldn't do squats until after the Iowa game.

Mentioned that it hurt his strength but had to hurt mobility too.
Click to expand...
Yep. I'm hoping last years injuries are the primary reason for his relative poor play. If not, then we will be in trouble at that position. Depth is still is a concern at OT.

 
Norhusker said:
Mavric said:
Knevel said he hurt his ankle in the Oregon game and couldn't do squats until after the Iowa game.

Mentioned that it hurt his strength but had to hurt mobility too.
Click to expand...
Yep. I'm hoping last years injuries are the primary reason for his relative poor play. If not, then we will be in trouble at that position. Depth is still is a concern at OT.
Click to expand...
Same because he was flat out bad at times.

 
I kind of got the feeling that the injuries were more of an excuse last year - like he wasn't really that hurt but that was an easy thing to blame it on.

But either he's really selling it well or they were bothering him pretty bad. Kind of begs the question why he was even still out there if it was that bad but that's another discussion.

Hopefully he can finish strong.

 
The issues I saw with Knevel last year didnt' have to do with strength. Possibly mobility....but....it was more of lack of finishing plays.

 
Mavric said:
Knevel said he hurt his ankle in the Oregon game and couldn't do squats until after the Iowa game.

Mentioned that it hurt his strength but had to hurt mobility too.
Click to expand...
I think David Knevel, while a fine young man who has never been in trouble with the law or grades or anything like that to my knowledge, is a weak sauce liability along the OL.

I've watched Knevel play and he's (I'm sorry to say) weak as F. If I was the OL coach, I'd a benched his keyster for poor play a long time ago.

Sorry, I've just never seen anything from this kid that even remotely merits playing time much less a starting spot.

 
Going into the opener of last season, how much experience did Knevel and Conrad have? What about Decker? I remember Whitaker getting some PT due to injuries as well (he was a SR). Combined, I don't think any of them started before or got rotation work. Which is basically the same experience the newcomers have going into this year.

So, how far back in the depth can Wilson, Farniok and Raridon be? My thing is (to Coach Cav), they were rated high as recruits, you wanted them here, you got them here, and they sat down a year to redshirt. And while we hear how the defense is talking about moving players around to get the best players on the field, I see stubbornness with OL. Seriously, if two of the three newbies can't crack this OL as starters, then the coach isn't doing what he needs to do to help the best talent (raw or not) get on the field and succeed.

/rant + thinking out loud and wondering what the heck is going on here

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Farniok would be the only head scratcher for me. With Raridon it's already been stated it's a matter of working on his gun snaps. Not that I have any reason to believe Decker isn't a good player. LG, RG, and LT seem to be locked up for the foreseeable future.

Foster figures be a huge upgrade over Hahn who was as much of a weak link as Knevel, if not more so. Wilson wasn't rated particularly high. It would be a pleasant surprise if he can contribute this early in his career.

 
Last edited by a moderator:
admo said:
Going into the opener of last season, how much experience did Knevel and Conrad have? What about Decker? I remember Whitaker getting some PT due to injuries as well (he was a SR). Combined, I don't think any of them started before or got rotation work. Which is basically the same experience the newcomers have going into this year.

So, how far back in the depth can Wilson, Farniok and Raridon be? My thing is (to Coach Cav), they were rated high as recruits, you wanted them here, you got them here, and they sat down a year to redshirt. And while we hear how the defense is talking about moving players around to get the best players on the field, I see stubbornness with OL. Seriously, if two of the three newbies can't crack this OL as starters, then the coach isn't doing what he needs to do to help the best talent (raw or not) get on the field and succeed.

/rant + thinking out loud and wondering what the heck is going on here
Click to expand...
Maybe a couple years in a NU weight room and nutrition program carries more weight then having an extra 1/2 star in recruiting ranks.

 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top