NoPlaceLikeNebraskaPKoch

Hey Eric the Red, you are right! I'm working through a few software issues concerning some photos and then I'll be receiving my galley copy for final proofs a few days later. If I were a betting man I'd say that this time next week I'll only be hours away from making it available. In the meantime, HuskerBoard members are the FIRST to see this......check out the front cover artwork for Volume 1, buddy. I'd be interesting in yours and anyone else's thoughts: Cool? Lame? Inspiring? Show you more?

I'm watching a replay of last year's MSU game on ESPNU. Terrible officiating plus terrible tackling by our DB's made that game closer than it ever had to be. I hope our Def. backfield has more of a nasty streak this fall.

Nope. Think 1990's Pipeline, because that's what the book is about: What created those awesome National Champ teams. As to who it might be, think of a walk-on who had to prove to his teammates, his coaches...himself even, that he was worthy of being a starter. I won't say the name and spoil it for everyone, so you'll have to read about it in the book. Needless to say, his is an uplifting story about guts, gusto & glory with a few giggles mixed in. GBR!!

Sorry Dude. Good guess, but it was actually a certain offensive lineman. I hope you enjoy the book when it comes out...there is a whole lot of really neat insider info contained throughout.

I just came up with a few marketing questions that I think might make people sit up and take notice of my book. Do any of these sound interesting to you? If so, which one/s? I'd love to hear everybodys' opinion: 1) What member of the coaching staff fell asleep on a prospect’s living room couch…in the middle of the recruiting visit? 2) What position group was very nearly lost to mutiny just before the season began? What coach changed his methods as a result? 3) What piece of artwork inspired the Offensive line –known as the Pipeline- to dominate their opponents? 4) What player notoriously got into the most fights in Husker practices? 5) What were the infamous Ones vs. Ones scrimmages like? Who won most of those battles? 6) Which two teammates actually saved a Lincoln family’s house from burning down? 7) Unbeknownst to them at the time, two Husker fans played an extremely valuable role in the makeup of the championships…in what ways did they contribute? 8) What Blackshirt almost got kicked off the team for signing a professional baseball contract? 9) What was it like to be in the coaches’ meeting rooms and game-planning the next opponent? What was it like to take part in a player’s only meeting? To have to appear before the Unity Council? 10) What strict rule was implemented by the Unity Council in ’95 where being booted from the team was the penalty for failing to follow it? 11) What key walk-ons were major contributors and actually served as inspiration for the starters? 12) What recruiting methods were employed and what two NFL Hall of Fame running backs wanted to be Cornhuskers but were turned away? 13) Which eventual Super Bowl MVP said that he didn’t think he was good enough to play at Nebraska? 14) What bowl game routine was altered to win the National Championships? 15) What happened both in an elevator in Tokyo, Japan and a UNL dormitory parking lot that forever sealed the teams’ bonds of brotherhood? 16) Which offensive lineman talked the most smack to opposing defenders? 17) What Miami U. coach was instrumental in aiding Nebraska ‘s landing an All-American? 18) Which Big Ten team was notorious for verbally agreeing to play the Cornhuskers but always backed out when it came time to sign the contract? 19) Which player infamously snuck training table food to his mobile home throughout his college career to feed his pet lizard, named Phil? 20) What two players drove home to Chicago in a winter blizzard without working brakes on their car? 21) Who really invented Gatorade? Why should its proper be name be HuskerAde? How did the University of Florida gets its hands on the recipe? 22) Who first came up with the inspirational motto “We Refuse To Lose”? What other heretofore unknown inspirational mantras played a part in the championship years? 23) Who discovered the weak link in the team’s psyche? What stumbling block was finally overcome? 24) What role did technology play in the championship years? How was Nebraska a pioneer in its use? 25) What alterations in the famed Husker Power strength & conditioning program begat a more dominating athlete? What role did a simple change in nutrition play? 26) What was Lawrence Phillips’ like in the lockerroom, practice field & study hall, and how did his legal issues affect the 1995 team’s championship run? What other insider info reveals that uniquely troubling time in the Nebraska Football organization? 27) Which games, practices & assorted events left the most lasting impression most on the champion players from that great era? 28) How were varied players from different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds melded into one unbreakable unit? What methods were key? Who played the lead role in building unity as well as the groundbreaking assemblage named the Unity Council? *These questions and more are answered in the upcoming “No Place Like Nebraska: Anatomy of an Era” Vols. 1 & 2 by former University of Nebraska Coach Paul Koch…. Soon to be released! You won’t be able to put it down.

The book is so close to arrival. Waiting to hear from the publisher in case any last minute tweaks are necessary (and they usually are). I even acquired some personal behind-the-scenes photographs from former players to add to the fun. I'm hoping Husker Nation has a fun winter reading the whole thing when all is said and done...the two volumes should be a great way to pass the offseason. GBR!

Great news! After a long period of thought & prayer, I had a heart-to-heart talk with myself and chose to reach out to the Team Jack Foundation a la Andy Hoffman. Even before Jack's inspiring TD run last April it's been weighing heavily on me to somehow bless as many people as possible with my soon-to-be-released book(s) "No Place Like Nebraska: Anatomy of an Era, Volumes 1 & 2". Well, after short phone conversation and a few e-mails later, today I proudly announce that a portion of the proceeds will go toward helping find a cure for pediatric brain cancer via the Team Jack Foundation. It heartens me to know that Husker fans far & wide will someday be able to say that they played a part in finding a cure to a malady that so many children should not have to suffer through. There is no place like Nebraska. GBR!!

Another little tidbit from former LB Ed Stewart, talking about some offense/defense leadership and personalities: "Q: So what did Tommie bring to the team? ES: I remember Tommie, it was the game in ‘92 at Washington. It was a competitive game and I think we were down 3 or seven points and Mike Grant was hurt and we were backed up at our own 10 yard line and thinking, ‘Oh crap, we’re in this situation playing a true freshman.’ And Tommie played like a stalwart. And I remember thinking, ‘You know what, this guy might be okay.’ I used to joke with him and call him ‘The Trash Man.’(laughs) Tommie wasn’t always the most graceful runner, but he was effective and you couldn’t bring him down. I used to give him a hard time all the time. Q: Did he have a unique attitude or mindset? ES: Tommie was a winner. He was a winner, now. And as a young guy, I remember my senior year -and this was something a senior would go and say to a young guy, but I remember Tommie- and the first couple games of the year I was getting four or five tackles and I didn’t get off to a blazing start in those first couple games- and I remember Tommie walking up to me and -one thing, a quarterback?- (laughs) and kind of calling me on the carpet and saying, “I’ve been looking at the stats and what’s this? You only had five tackles?” And I’m looking at him and thinking, ‘A freaking quarterback giving me hell?!’ But that was the type of leadership that he had, even as an underclassman, was to be confident enough and comfortable enough to walk up to a starting guy to kind of say, “Hey, what’s up, man?” He and I have joked about it since then, but it was a good, little, extra spark. (laughs) I think I went off and rattled off a few ten tackle games after that. Q: Anything to shut him up, huh? ES: That’s it. (laughs) Because you know about those Florida guys… they like to talk, now."

I awoke at 4:15 a.m. and JUST FINISHED the placement of all photos in "No Place Like Nebraska: Anatomy of an Era" Volumes 1 & 2. What a relief! Sooooo close to having this book ready for publication.... Here's a little snippet talking about the old Cornhusker practices/war games from DBack Mike "Biff" Roberts: "One of Coach Solich’s fullbacks went at it with a middle linebacker and the fullback lost the fight. Well, Solich grabbed his helmet - which was torn off during the fight- and said to the player, “If you’re gonna go...GO!” Then he took the guy’s helmet and tossed it over to the sideline. (laughs) I was like, ‘Man!’ The practices, that’s where I think we became great, and the chemistry was so good. It was just blood, sweat and tears in those practices. But it got us all closer when it came to the games."

An Independence Day teaser from the book where I asked Tom Osborne about game-planning: "T.O.: Because of the style of offense we ran, we’d come out and first series we’d find out they were lined up on defense with something they’d never shown all year, that we hadn’t worked on at all that week, because there was no way to anticipate it. But we had enough experience as a staff and had enough institutional knowledge to draw on that we could think about maybe what we had done when something like that had happened four years before, five years before. So I think we were a staff that was able to adjust during a game quite well. Sometimes people get locked into a game plan and they’re gonna stick with that game plan no matter what; sometimes the game plan goes out the window that first two or three minutes and you’re gonna adjust. Q: Any particular games come to mind as far as that happening? TO: Well, I can remember one time we played Kansas up here and they basically came up in an 8-man front and they essentially were challenging us to run wide, and so we did some things and eventually we figured out some ways to pick it apart: some trap plays and a few passes. And when we played Tennessee that last game I coached, I think they had eleven people within 3 or 4 yards of the line of scrimmage that first series and just stuffed the run. I think we threw four straight passes the next series and completed every one of them, and they backed off and we ate ‘em up. We might have had close to six hundred yards that game. My feeling is if they’d stayed with what they had originally lined up in they’d have given us a harder time, but they got taken out of it when we hit the passes. So that’s just the way it was. There were times when people played pretty vanilla and played the way you had practiced & what you had expected, and there were times when they just felt we were so good on offense or defense they figured they might as well roll the dice and come up with something that we’d never seen before."

I'm getting extremely close to completing the pre-publishing work on my "No Place Like Nebraska" Husker Football book! A lot of great behind-the-scenes news to share, too. But for now, here is a quick Tuesday snippet from OLineman Brenden Stai, talking about the first national championship & Miami's Warren Sapp: "...it’s something I’ll never forget. I can close my eyes and remember everything. Just the smell and the air of competition. It was just tremendous. Q: Somebody else just the other day, they remembered the smell of that night… BS: The smell. That, I remember, it was not only that humidity, but if you remember they had a circus, with elephants out there on the field. There was the smell of elephant poop out on the field, too. It was weird. Q: (laughs) Did you ever get the chance to talk to Warren Sapp about that game? BS: All the time. I shouldn’t say ‘all’ the time. You know, when I was playing against him he’d always jab at me here and I’d jab at him there. Funny, it was about 4 years ago and I was sitting outside the L.A. Convention Center while taking my real estate licensing exam right after I retired, and I was sitting at a little Starbucks Coffee stand, and he was actually standing in line. Somebody goes, “Isn’t that Warren Sapp?” And I turned around and said, ‘No way.’ So I get up and go over and started talking to him, and turns out he was there for some adult entertainment convention or something (laughs) giving autographs, and I say ‘What!?’ And it was about the time Nebraska baseball was in the College World Series the year we were playing Miami, so I basically told him, ‘You know, it’s Miami versus Nebraska. And you know what’s gonna happen?’ And he says, ”What does that mean?” And I say, ‘Well, of course, Nebraska is gonna win,’ and he says, “Only if they cheat!” or something like that, and then he says, “Stai, you hold!” I said, ‘Hey, did I ever get called holding on you? No! It’s only holding if you get called for it.’ (laughs)"

So many of the conversations in this upcoming book reveal the motives behind the men. In this case, here is just a little something from the Head Blackshirt himself, D Coordinator Charlie McBride: Q: You were never averse to a challenge, were you Charlie? CM: No, that’s the whole thing. You’re challenged every day because you’re teaching, and that’s a challenge in itself. I think the whole thing, when I look back on it? My whole pay was the kids in the locker room when you won. And I have so many different stories of kids that I’ve had. I had one kid who basically brought himself up, one of the first kids I coached at Wisconsin when I was coaching on the offensive line. I had Dennis Lick, who was the fifth player picked in the draft, and then I had Terry Steve and Mike Webster. And of course, Mike, they said he was too short and he played 18 years in the NFL and is in the Hall of Fame. And Terry Steve was the captain of the Cardinals and played like 10 or 12 years. And Dennis Lick, the first rounder, he only lasted like five, broke his leg and he was done. But Mike Webster was a special guy. His mom had left, his dad was an alcoholic, his brother was in prison, and he lived way up in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. He was a self-made guy and what a competitor! When I go back and look at the players I’ve had, he’s in that one group where you talk about guys: their motors were running a million miles an hour all the time. And when you’re coaching and teaching, your whole thing is to make them the best you can make them. And sometimes it takes a little tough love, sometimes it takes some patience. A lot of kids are different. Some kids it takes two years to really learn the stuff you’re trying to teach and some kids pick it up in two seconds. It’s just that way.

Hey everybody, today's little tidbit is from a "Zeke" Cisco, a walk-on DBack form Michigan. Pretty revealing stuff about the culture of the Nebraska Football Walk-on: "Q: What was your main contribution? MC: Boy, I don’t know. I was lucky enough to hang around and letter for three years. The guy I ended up living with was Troy Branch -who had no white guys in his high school- living with a white guy who had no black guys in his high school, from opposite ends of the world. But the one thing he used to say -and we’ve talked about this many times- it was just that you couldn’t ever take a break from going hard, because there was always somebody standing there waiting. And I took a lot of pride in always being the guy standing there waiting. There was Tyrone Byrd and Reggie and Steve Carmer, and we were there and we were ready and we were treated great. And the things you guys did for us in the weight room? You took time with us. That’s how I knew I could compete, that’s how I knew I could get out on the field. So I got a chance to return punts, a guy who could do this or that. I was always waving my hand to go out there, even if it was just to be in a tackle on the field. And you know, maybe that was the coach’s son in me, but I knew my role. I knew where I belonged. I wasn’t bitter about it. I was really happy with the opportunity I got. I was pretty happy, to be honest with you. Q: What would you say you were the most proud of? MC: Surviving? (laughs) Lettering. You know, when I first got the notice that I’d lettered I about cried, to be honest with you. It just blew me away. There was just so many good people there athletically. I remember walking from the athletic office over to the bookstore, thinking, “Geez, I can’t believe this. This is really something.” To be able to do that for three years was huge for me, to step across that big, fat, white line on the field. Like most people inside the Berlin Wall at that time, you had to get across that sucker, you had to find a way to get out. And I just absolutely refused to give in. And it never went my way, but that was okay. All these people were just, ”Hey, just keep doing this, keep doing that,” and that was awesome. I participated in three championship teams, I went to bowl games, I traveled to Japan, I made 150 great friends that if something happened to me and I picked up the phone? I could call anyone and they‘d pick up the phone and they’d say, “What can I do to help?”"

Here's a little tidbit from former NU Nutritionist Dave Ellis, who's trained Super Bowl Champs, Navy SEALs and more.... Dave Ellis on team culture: “There’s no ‘chance happening.’ This is why teams succeed: You always have guys who take control in that locker room, and then have a presence on the field or the court that eliminates the most selfish, self-centered, ‘what’s-in-it-for-me’ guys, and makes them champions.”

Back home again. My Dad starts chemotherapy in two weeks. Please with him well and pray that all goes well. In the meantime, the book will soon be available...I'm guessing 3 weeks or so. Here is a little snippet about summer conditioning and how things went down back in the day: "Christian Peter was a motivator. There was a role everyone had. When you get to that phase where there’s leaders and there’s followers, I don’t think any of us were followers. Every one of us were leaders, but you had to allow someone to be a motivator. Christian was really good at yelling and psyching us up and coming out like a crazy man, who just took us to the next level… There were quiet guys on the team and then there were really nasty, a-hole football players, too. Everybody had their role and everybody came together, and that’s why we played so well… We all had that special bond and everyone had certain roles. And when certain people spoke, you shut up and you listened and you gave each other respect. And it worked." – Brian Nunns, Walk-on OLineman

It's been a busy week putting in some finishing touches before the book goes to final layout before release. Been getting some really great photos from the former players to insert into the book also...behind-the-scenes shots that nobody's ever seen before. Now I'm flying back home to Nebraska this weekend, as my dad is in poor health. Wish me and my family well, will you? Here is a little snippet until I return.... This one is from former place-kicker Tom Seiler who was from Las Vegas and now teaches back there in a pretty rough school. I thought it was kind of cool how the Husker Brotherhood is still alive and well: "I had a kid in math who was a huge Angels fan and I asked the kid, “Who’s your favorite player?” He goes, “Oh, you wouldn’t know him. He doesn’t play there anymore.” I said ‘Who is it?’ he said, “Darin Erstad.” And I go, ‘I know Darin Erstad.’ And the kid absolutely, he had no clue that I played football at the University of Nebraska, and I tell him, ‘I played with Erstad.’ And he was, “No you didn’t.” So I told Erstad about it. And the kid’s pretty poor -real poor- and Erstad actually sent him a bat with his autograph on it and saying, “To Edgar, Go hard!” "

This little snippet from former NU Safety Toby Wright (a true warrior) brings with it some incredible insight into the team dynamic and competition for playing time back in the 1990's. It also has a very funny twist. You just can't make this kind of stuff up: "TW: And I came to find out, even Mike Minter… at the last game of the season I find out he’s my cousin, did you know that? And we were rivals. We were rivals at the position and I rarely talked to him and glared at him, and you know how it goes. We went through all that stuff, because, “You’re the young Model T and I’m the old one, and your time will come when I’m leaving.” That’s another funny story, Paul, how my Dad was visiting and looked at him one time and told me, “That’s your cousin.” Q: Tell me about it… TW: What happened was, during the season Coach Darlington was switching me and Mike off, and I’d get really steamed and mad. I wanted to play every down. I mean every down. And what happened was, I made a hit on Kordell Stewart on the sideline which was kind of close to being a late hit out of bounds. (And we didn’t get flagged for it, Paul, but I know Coach Darlington was pissed off at me) He told me, “There you go, being reckless again.” And I go, ‘Hey, I didn’t even get a penalty for it.’ So I was taken out. Then something happened and Coach Osborne looked over at Coach McBride on the sidelines and said, “Where’s Toby?!” And I’m standing right next to Coach McBride and he goes, “Get back in there!” So I’m like, ‘Okay. Beautiful!’ And then I see Coach McBride and Coach Darlington going back and forth… and then he sends Mike Minter in. I’m like, ‘Are you crazy!? I am not getting out of the game right now!’ So me and Mike kind of get into it right out there on the field. They had to almost call a timeout, you know? Guess who got the brunt of that one? Q: I’m guessing it was you…(laughs) TW: And Mike Minter, he’s only trying to do what the coaches are telling him to do. And the coach is trying to push him in there, of course, because he has like three more years, you know? So I come out and they call timeout, and Coach is just ripping me to pieces. So at halftime I’m sitting there -and I remember leaning over to Mike Minter- I told him, I said, ‘After the season, you know… I’m going to kick your ass. We’re gonna deal with this after the season. But I’m not going to mess with you now, don’t worry about it.’ We made it official that we were going to have it out after the season. (And this was like the third game of the year or whatever it was, I forget) So we go the whole year and are working through things as a team and I’m talking to Mike Minter; we just know we’re going to address things in that fashion, right? Well, we’re playing Oklahoma (and my Dad is from Oklahoma. Born and raised in Lawton, Oklahoma) and I had like an interception and like 8 tackles, I had a pretty good game. And I bring my Dad into the locker room after the game and I’m introducing my Dad to everybody, going from locker to locker: ‘This is my Dad. This is my Dad.’ and I get to Mike Minter’s and I didn’t even bother to introduce him: I just skipped to the next locker. So when that happened my Dad kind of looked at him and kept going. So later on I’m sitting there in my jockstrap and my Dad is still looking over at Mike Minter. And I go, ‘Why are you looking at him over there like that?’ And it’s the last game of the season, you know, and I’m already going, ‘I’m gonna get him anyway.’ Now listen to this, Paul: my Dad turns to Mike and says, “Hey boy, what’s your momma’s name?” And Mike looks up to him and says something like, “Ophelia” or something like that, and my Dad turns to me and says, “Boy, that’s your cousin.” And I’m looking at him and am like, ‘No way!’ (exasperated) And I look at my Daddy and I tell him, ‘No way! I was gonna tear his ass apart, Dad.’ And he was like, “No boy, that’s your cousin.” And needless to say, me and Mike became real good friends. And we talked after that and everything was good and he had a stellar career. He was my Dad’s cousin. Incredible."

Finishing off the workweek with a great quote by Brenden Stai from the book: Notable quote #2: Brenden Stai on the Pipeline’s role, “…we all put a lot of effort into trying to establish a different culture as far as a team, Nebraska dominating. Wearing them out and dominating. And every time you walk out and line up on that line and those other guys are just, “Oh no, here they come again.” That’s the mindset that we wanted…”

He continued on with this: "Q: Do you recall the first person on the team you befriended? BS: Yeah, I have good memories. The first was walking into the training room, the south endzone training room where the varsity would get taped, where the varsity locker room was. I didn’t know anybody except Jerry Weber and Jack Nickolite and Doak, as far as trainers go. I didn’t know anybody, and I look over and here’s this guy up on the tables getting his ankles taped, and I hear “Brenden!” And I turned around and look at this guy, and he said “How are you doing?” My first, intial thought was, ‘This guy,.. this guy is gigantic! I can’t believe how big he is!’ And for whatever reason I just blurted out, ‘Hey, are you Mike Petko?’ He says, “No, I’m Rob Zatechka. I’m a freshman like you. I’m playing in the All-Star game here at the stadium.” I was like, ‘What?! Are you kidding me?!’ I’m looking at this guy and he’s 285 lbs. –and I’m 240 lbs. soaking wet. Wet behind the ears coming in -and I look at Rob and he’s got a full-on beard, looks like he’s been in the program 4 to 5 years. So that was really my first memory, was meeting Rob."

A lot of young kids will be going through this in a few months. From "No Place Like Nebraska", a little snippet from OLineman Brenden Stai about arriving on campus in the fall for the very first time: "...when (my family) left, I remember feeling this overwhelming feeling of being abandoned. All of a sudden I didn’t know if I was in the wrong place, not knowing anybody, ‘Did I make the wrong decision?’ And it didn’t take long once I transferred from George’s house to down at the University to get ready for fall camp. I think it was about two weeks before the varsity squad, and obviously, at this time they had the freshman football squad. I think I stayed in Schramm dorm for camp and ended up transferring to Abel Hall. You had that feeling of being abandoned and being lonely and missing everything, literally. But the coaches, the trainers -I didn’t really know a whole lot of players- but the sense of family when I first got there to Nebraska was amazing. Not only that, but outside of that, the people instantly gave me a feeling of, ‘Hey, I’m in the right place.’ It was a huge turning point in my life. So here I was, 18 years old, I had direction and knew what I wanted to do -but had to make a commitment to actually going about it on my own, and not a lot of people do that- and not a lot of people understand what goes into that, there’s a psychological rollercoaster ride when you do that. There’s a the feeling of loneliness and wanting to go back to what you’re used to, and I remember thinking about when I made my decision and what I wanted to do: and I wanted to get away. I wanted to experience something completely different than my whole life previous to that, and Nebraska was definitely the road to take. And looking back on it now, it was the best decision I ever made."

I loved reading these comments directly above. I was a staffer and was crushed just the same, as these people were my friends, my "kids", my co-workers, my mentee's...we were family. What I can't/won't share on this board is my book's introductory chapter, which begins the whole tale by piecing together the final 1 minute & 16 seconds of that game in real time. Sorry to say, but you'll relive it all over again...and even see yourself in the story. Better days were on the horizon, though. GBR!

From backup Pipeline member Bryan Pruitt, a walk-on O-Lineman from Chicago talking about the Florida State/'93 Natl Champ Orange Bowl game's final field goal try by Byron Bennett: "BP: Oh, I’ll be honest with you: I’ve seen the kick, but I don’t think I’ve watched the game. Ever. I have the game downstairs, but I’ve never watched it. If you break that tape out again, I was the left tackle on the kick. I remember that field, planting my left foot against one of those Alexanders for FSU. He played a few years for the Minnesota Vikings, that’s who I wound up blocking. I stepped and my feet gave out on me, and you can see I end up on the ground. And he got a pretty good push and someone comes up, over the left side of him and gets really high. I don’t know the kid’s name. I always wondered, because I gave up a little ground on my block, ‘Did that screw up Byron and affect him and his kick?’, you know? I always wonder if that may have contributed at all, you know? I sure hope not, but you think about it sometimes."

Late Summer, most likely. I'll give everyone a heads up on this thread when it's ready.

From the guy who intercepted Miami U's Frank Costa to seal the deal on the '94 Natl. Championship...talking about entering Memorial Stadium via the tunnel walk for the first time: Notable quote #2: Kareem Moss on fan support in Memorial Stadium: “Nothing was comparable to that first time walking out of the tunnel. In fact, me and Toby were walking next to each other, walking two by two, it was me and Toby Wright. He said, “Hey, this is what we’re here for.” And we both even started crying a little bit.”

Former Defensive ends coach Tony Samuel talking about the talent he had to work with: "TS: The only guy that came close to being ready to play in my career there was (Grant) Wistrom, as far as being ready to play from the start. Trev was a guy that played every single spot on the football field in high school, so he was never able to lock in on any position. You know, a lot of great teams do that, and Trev and Travis were in that same boat. Travis Hill, I remember watching his high school film: he was returning kickoffs, he was playing linebacker one minute, he was playing defensive line the next, he was all over the place, you know? Q: I bet that was interesting… watching some of that film. TS: We had the benefit of doing that at Nebraska. We had the opportunity to look at them and determine the type of motor they had. And if they could play hard every play in the game, they stood out to me. It was only a matter of teaching them."