Evwaraye making transition to OL

[Blackshirt]

Is this guy finally gonna live up to his potential or what??

 

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Evwaraye comfortable on O-Line

 

LINCOLN -- The white of his helmet was scuffed with red, the red stripe shredded. Near the back, the stripe was worn away completely, evidence of constant collisions during practice.

 

Also, the familiar red N's on the sides were missing, as they were from everyone's helmet.

 

The equipment managers "didn't put them on for now because they'd just get scratched off and bumped up," Seppo Evwaraye said of the N's. "They're going to re-do the helmets."

 

The N's will be there by Saturday, when Nebraska opens against Western Illinois.

 

This will be Evwaraye's fourth season at Nebraska, but his first as an offensive tackle. He was a defensive tackle prior to the sweeping changes that followed last season. He hasn't played in the offensive line during a game since his senior season at Laurel-Concord High School.

 

He has jitters, "a little bit," but he's mostly excited, he said, "definitely excited."

 

Evwaraye is thankful, too. He missed a week of practice because of an ankle injury, suffered during a goal-line drill.

 

A linebacker blitzed, the fullback knocked him down, and "he kind of rolled on my ankle," Evwaraye said. "It looked pretty violent, but it didn't end up being that bad."

 

Initially, there was concern that the ankle, his right, might be broken, "so I was like, 'Oh my gosh, not again,' " he said. "I've had enough of these injuries."

 

The worst was two seasons ago, with foot and shoulder problems.

 

Even though the ankle injury wasn't as serious as it first seemed, it caused Evwaraye, who went into fall camp atop the depth chart at right tackle, to miss practice time. Since he's still new to offense, repetitions are particularly important. Plus, it was a conditioning setback.

 

Prior to the injury, the first- and second-team linemen were rotating, three plays and out, he said. When he returned, however, they were working on longer drives.

 

By the time he finished a 12-play sequence, "I was kind of sucking air," he said. "It wasn't a great feeling right away.

 

"But now I'm pretty much back to full strength."

 

He "practiced well the last couple of days," offensive coordinator Jay Norvell said following Saturday's practice. "He's coming back pretty good. He's fighting through it."

 

Evwaraye said he has been working "primarily" with the first line, rotating with senior Nick Povendo on the right side, while Mike Erickson and Darren DeLone are rotating on the left.

 

Coach Bill Callahan has yet to post an official depth chart, Evwaraye said, "so I guess you'll probably know the day before the game, or a couple of days before the game, who's starting. I hope they (the coaches) have enough confidence in me just to get it done."

 

Playing in the offensive line is "definitely different" from playing in the defensive line, beyond the obvious: instead of keeping backs out of the end zone, his job is getting them in. An offensive lineman's mentality is different, said the 6-foot-5, 315-pound Evwaraye.

 

"You get a little nastier, in a different sense. You're nasty on defense, but you get that offense nastiness to you," he said. "I'm still learning it. I'm just learning it from the guys."

 

An offensive lineman's nastiness is "a little more calculated, a little more calm than on defense," he said. A defensive lineman can "just let loose," at times. But given the complexity of the Cornhuskers' new offense, "you have so much stuff to check and so many different assignments."

 

In addition to the physical demands, Evwaraye is becoming more comfortable with the communication necessary to play in the offensive line.

 

He is relying less on right guard Jake Andersen.

 

"In the spring, I needed him to make some of the calls because I just didn't know and I didn't have the experience," Evwaraye said. When the defensive line does stunts now, for example, "he's warning me and I'm warning him. The chemistry is really coming together. We have this week to fine-tune it. By game time, we'll be right."

 

By game time, the red N's will be on their helmets.

 

"I hope so," he said. "I don't want that tradition to go away."

 

 

http://www.theindependent.com/stories/0830...s_babcock.shtml

[Armistead]

He is just holding a spot for Murtha...who will be a star very soon

[fasteddie]

this fat pile of crap will nver be worth even mr hankeys crap.