Husker in WI

3 minutes ago, MyBloodIsRed16 said:

How much is he getting paid?  I think I'ld rather get paid a little less and be a starting QB in the USFL than a practice squad QB in the NFL

You can do both, there's a reason the USFL is in the Spring. I can't find official numbers, but looks like they were expecting the general USFL salaries to be ~60k. QBs are probably making more than that. But NFL practice squad comes out to ~200k for the season, and really doesn't affect your USFL status - so I'm sure he'd take the opportunity, even if he ends up back in the USFL next Spring.

25 minutes ago, JJ Husker said:

My sportsbook (MGM) kinda sucks. They don’t have game lines yet. All they have now is o/u win totals and odds to win it all.

 

Doesn’t make much sense either. CU’s o/u is 5.5, Nebraska is 7.5 but odds to win it all CU is +12500 and NU is +20000. How can we be expected to win 2 more games yet our odds are longer for winning a natty?

Neither of those are good odds, so Colorado just has more variance and more people randomly betting on them. Both of the natty odds are really "no chance," so the difference is just based on interest. More people will throw away money on Deion, especially if they can get "better" odds than other longshots.

36 minutes ago, BigRedBuster said:

Is that the Canadian Football league?  He was the number one draft pick in the entire draft?

Yeah - if I remember correctly, they have a limited number of roster spots for non-Canadian players and most of those are already filled. Not to downplay the honor for EMC, but there were only 18 total picks and 7 of those were kickers or punters. It's like a supplemental draft. 

There's also no guarantee these players will sign - Tory Taylor was picked in the 2nd round, but I imagine he'll go with the Chicago Bears who picked him in the 4th round of the NFL draft. But if he randomly gets cut (he won't), the B.C. Lions would have his rights for the CFL. Nouri Nouili was selected in the CFL draft as well, last pick to the Montreal Alouettes.

For James Williams, I agree he looked great. But he was mostly rushing against Jacob Hood and Gunnar Gottula, who I think are a ways behind Prochazka/Benhart and even Knaak.

Bizarre with Doss, I was wondering who 12 was - he was even playing some corner it looked like. There are already a lot of bodies in the DB room, but seems like maybe he had been passed by Barney and Bell in the slot. 

I'm excited about the receivers - didn't see much from Banks, but Neyor, Bonner, Lloyd, and Barney looked good. Add in Coleman and Bell if he's healthy by the fall (plus IGC and Bullock as competent depth) and I like that room a lot. 

53 minutes ago, ECisGod said:

Maryland thinks they have too much offense?

Helpful to have a sanity check on ideas.

"Hey Brian, we're thinking about trying this package out on offense. What do you think?"

"Wow, that looks great!"

"Alright, scrap that package."

Does this mean anything for Loftin/Zebert? I know Satt loves his TEs, but how many do we need? This guy looks more like a true inline TE unlike those two so I'm sure we'd still take Loftin, but for all the talk of this being a small class I didn't figure we would be taking multiple TEs and definitely not 3.

3 minutes ago, MyBloodIsRed16 said:

su'a Cravens was a 220 lb safety at USC.  Brian Urlacher was like 230 playing SS.  I'm sure there are more guys who have weighed at least 220 who played safety.  

Yeah I don't have a problem with a 220 lb safety as long as they are fast enough, and I think he is. The problem is anytime he's trying to cover a guy and they make a cut, I don't think he's sticking with them through the turn. But I'm sure the coaches will figure out what he can and can't do.

14 hours ago, MyBloodIsRed16 said:

Move him to safety.  You are telling me with his numbers he's not a better fit at safety than Hartzog?

I think he's more of a straight-line guy which makes it tough to play DB. He'll lose some speed as he puts on LB weight, but he doesn't really need to run a 10.5 there to be fast.

11 minutes ago, BigRedBuster said:

 

They did just bring in an OSU transfer, but I don't think they're happy to lose Edwards. They'll get some dudes, but I don't think enough to outweigh the losses.

Just now, BigRedBuster said:

If that's the problem, then go find another school. 

Right, seems like that might be the plan. I think we can all agree he (and any player for that matter) would likely be better served to stick it out and be pushed, but it's his career.

8 minutes ago, BigRedBuster said:

I'll never understand some player's actions in the portal.  So, he's a senior with one year eligibility left.  He comes here in January.  It's most of the way through Spring practice and now we are hearing this?

So, what is he going to do, transfer to a lower level?  What major D1 program can bring him in, without being there in the spring.  Have him there just for fall and he's going to have a better chance playing there than the program you were with through spring practice?  Now, if you went through spring practice here and you don't think you're going to get much playing time.  What makes you think now you can go somewhere else and all of a sudden become a star?

He would be one of our best five linemen even without being in great shape, and there are other schools who would take that. It's almost easier in fall camp because there's less time to not meet expectations - spring ball is a grind. He's not going to Georgia or Ohio State, but there are P5 schools that would take him in the fall, let him use fall camp to get in shape, and play him week one.

Honestly we would probably let him do that at the end of the day, but maybe the constant pushing to do better than that isn't what he wants. But he's a proven P5 starter, lots of schools would take him and play him if he's better than what they currently have.

8 minutes ago, DGNU said:

Had some injury issues I know but terribly under-utilized at Wisco this year- would be a great fit. Portal is completely insane- over the last hour 2 guys from smaller conferences joined SEC teams to fall into obscurity... I like Fred's approach. I don't think he's bringing in guys just to add bodies to the bench. They fit the system/they play.

I don't follow basketball (especially non-Nebrasketball) closely enough to verify this, but the talk here is he was "under-utilized" because he doesn't play defense and the coach got frustrated with that.

14 minutes ago, Mavric said:

Perhaps I'm reading too much into it but it sure sounded like we are prepping Dvoracek to be DC next year if (when?) White leaves.

Sure sounded like it to me too - wasn't paying super close attention, but sounded like Dvoracek has been calling plays (maybe just for the scrimmage) and then getting feedback from White. What wasn't clear to me was if the other assistants were also doing that and we just heard about it from Dvoracek. Either way makes sense to me, there's clearly mutually interest between White and head coaching gigs and I'm sure Rhule would love to promote from within when he leaves. That's easier if they've at least practiced calling plays.

17 hours ago, SouthLincoln Husker said:

I'm talking scholarship players!

Right, but my point is just because somebody thinks we have 95 scholarship players doesn't mean we do. Several prominent players who were on scholarship at one point, either here or at another school, are not technically on scholarship now. The Athletic just had an article about it ($), some teams focus their NIL on their top players and others use it to add a few scholarship-caliber players over the 85 limit. We're in the latter group.

39 minutes ago, SouthLincoln Husker said:

On few, but not this many

You can pretty much assume anyone who started their career as a walk-on (even if they were on scholarship at one point) and most of the guys transferring in each year are not technically on scholarship. Also guys coming back for 5th/6th years - my understanding is guys who sign out of high school get that scholarship for 4 years, but after that they could be taken off. Several high school guys are not on scholarship either. There are a lot more than 10 guys in those buckets.

3 minutes ago, Huskerfollower4life said:

Do you think Nebraska is going to look at adding any qb's from the transfer portal to add more depth or is just fine with having only 3 scholarships qb's on the roster and hope none get hurt??

I don't think any QBs in the portal will be interested in coming here. Sure it's only 3 scholarship QBs, but we're clearly planning on Raiola winning the job so there's not a path to playing time. The portal QB ship sailed for this year when we didn't push for McCord. 

There are just some dudes with a natural feel for it - Dejuan Groce comes to mind, and then most recently Demornay Pierson-El. Haven't had one of those guys since.

Nation deserves more of a chance, but gotta say he didn't look 'different' than the other guys back there so I don't have super high hopes with those two options. I know there's more to a punt return than pure speed, but I don't understand why Lloyd, Charles, Barney, or even Brice Turner aren't in the mix. Can they not catch a punt or something?

7 minutes ago, Red Five said:

 

The vast majority of holds don't get called anymore, so I would basically be teaching how to get away with holding.  But I am also just a guy sitting on my couch.

I imagine it's like those DB drills where they aren't allowed to use their hands - you have to use the right footwork this way. And it's easier to work the hold in than it would be to take it out when you've been relying on it and get a ref who decides he's going to call it. Still kinda weird, but I'm sure the selling point for the next level is their technique must be phenomenal to have any degree of success at this level without holding. Should be easy to teach them to hold "correctly" if their footwork and hand placement is good.

On 4/5/2024 at 8:08 AM, Mavric said:

Word is Lutovsky and Mazzccua would be the starters at Guard today.  

Rhule dropped some moderately interesting nuggets today:

• Mazzccua working second team at the moment
• JEJ is starting at Guard and then working some at Center
• Lutovsky is starting at Guard but also repping some tackle
• Knaak is doing well

I don't think this contradicts the quoted statement either, I imagine Mazzccua is with the 2's right now due to a combination of deference to the guys who have been here and him not showing up in great shape, and potentially some motivation. You can afford to work guys in different spots when the first game is still months away.

Also really surprised by Lutovsky at tackle, but we don't have a lot of depth there and Rhule said some guys look like Guards and just play more naturally at Tackle and vice versa. Also said Brix is a Tackle, and basically they will keep guys at Tackle if there's a chance they can handle it because they're hard to find.

39 minutes ago, Xmas32 said:

Was reading through Dane Brugler's awesome 'The Beast' draft preview he does every year and it's looking pretty slim for Nebraska players to get drafted. Here's what I saw:

 

The top listed guy for NU was Marco Ortiz as the #2 Long Snapper--UDFA grade

 

Omar Brown #34 S--UDFA grade

 

SUMMARY: Omar Brown grew up in the Minneapolis area. He lettered in basketball and football at Minneapolis North High, helping the latterteamto the state title as a senior. A three-star recruit, he received just a few FCS scholarship offers and signed with Northern Iowa. He set the bar high with six interceptions as a true freshman corner, then entered the transfer portal after the 2021 season. He became Nebraska’s starting nickel in Tony White’s 3-3-5 scheme in 2023. Brown is a savvy cover man who plays on the balls of his feet and has the reactive athleticism to drive on throws. He tracks the ball well in the deep third of the field, but h e might not have ideal split-field range. He fills with a head of steam and looks to wrap-finish versus the run, but he needs to stay square at contact. Overall, Brown is smoother than he is explosive, but he has the eyes of a cornerback to quickly read and crowd receivers without drawing attent ion from officials.

 

Phalen Sanford in Best of The Rest--#68

 

Quentin Newsome in Best of The Rest CBs--#79

 

Luke Reimer in Best of The Rest LBs--#62

 

Billy Kemp in Best of The Rest WRs--#197

Marcus Washington #184 WRs

 

There were a few others buried in there - I'm pretty sure the numbers he lists are from the pro day as well, and it's clear why they aren't getting drafted:

Anthony Grant (#53 RB) - 4.71 40 with a 26" vert and an 8'11" broad - not exactly explosive. 

Josh Fleeks (#63 RB) - 4.63 40 at 205 lbs

Billy Kemp - 4.78 40 at 180 lbs

Nouredin Nouili (#45 G) 

Casey Rogers (#30 DT, transferred to Oregon) got a priority free agent grade

Isaiah Stalbird (#40 LB, transferred to SDSU) tested well - 4.49 40 - but is small

Luke Reimer (#62 LB) - 4.7 40, only ~220 lbs, short arms and lots of injuries

Quinton Newsome - 4.57 is pretty slow, at least for 6' 185 

2 hours ago, Mavric said:

Word is Lutovsky and Mazzccua would be the starters at Guard today.  

Would love to have two legitimate road-graders on the inside, I just hope Lutovsky has improved his mobility a lot. Curious if Buckley can make a move or if he's just going to be one of the culture guys but not a major on-field contributor. 

20 minutes ago, Fru said:

Just please get bowl eligible in this time frame. 

We absolutely should be, but I honestly expect like we'll be sitting at 5-2 and the season will be a real test of the teams ability to push through the "here we go again" collapse. Winning 1 (or more) out of UCLA, @USC, Wisconsin, and @Iowa is totally possible, but the added pressure of bowl eligibility is significant. Getting ahead of ourselves obviously, but getting to 6-1 or 7-0 seems too easy for us.

25 minutes ago, teachercd said:

Ugggg!

 

It just seems like a bad match up because they will just keep throwing and throwing and eventually catch a few deep ones.  Where I just don't see NU playing like that this year.  NU will need to get up two scores.

It's going to be interesting for sure. Shurmur will have them running the ball a little more (they went from 42% run to 46% after he took over), but they're still going to sling it. Shedeur was also whining about Lewis's offense having too many in-play adjustments, so he might be able to get the ball out quicker with Shurmur. But to my mind at least, the more static plays are easier to defend.

And they did not address the OL in a noticeable better way than last year. Jordan Seaton is probably going to be a stud, but LT as a true freshman is incredibly difficult. Proctor at Alabama last year at least had great size, and he got bullied for the first half of the year. He's definitely athletic enough that none of our edge guys are going to consistently beat him with speed, but I don't think he will be physically prepared to withstand bull rushes from 22-23 year old men. The rest are transfers from G5, Juco, or meh starters from Indiana and Houston. Probably an all new line with no continuity. I don't think we'll get 8 sacks again, but I think we're better equipped to turn some of the havoc into turnovers this year.

I don't doubt the coaches never explicitly asked him to move to WR, but I think that was because they promised he could play QB and they didn't know how to walk that back. I used to be a little bitter that he didn't move here, but thinking it through - why would he? And would it really have changed anything? Maybe the "greatest 3-9 team of all time" wins a few more games with another WR to pair with Toure, maybe they don't. But would that have been enough to turn around the Frost era? I doubt it.

Walters was fired in 2019, and Lubick would leave at the end of 2021. Then you get the 2022 MJ experience, and then everyone is fired. I don't blame him for looking for stability and playing time elsewhere - even if you knew we would fire Frost and hire Rhule, are you sticking around for the dumpster fires of 21/22 to get one year of that in '23? He would have been nice to have last year, but when he transferred he was still trying to play QB and a G5 school made sense for that. And I wouldn't wish the 21/22 seasons on anyone, as thankful as I am for the players that did stick around and give it their all here.