practice report

[np_husker]

Huskers keep it short, but crisp

 

By the Lincoln Journal Star

What Nebraska’s practice lacked in length it apparently made up for in effort.

 

With six coaches out recruiting, the Huskers worked out for only an hour Tuesday inside the Hawks Championship Center.

 

"It was a good, sharp, crisp practice,” Husker coach Bo Pelini said. “We got a lot of situations —some first-and-10s, some third-down. We had a good practice.”

 

The Huskers went “good on good” — pitting the top units against each other in their first practice since Saturday’s 56-28 win against Kansas State.

 

Pelini said coaches would start introducing the game plan for Colorado today.

 

With a bye week, coaches will be cautious with any players coming into the week dinged up.

 

Running back Marlon Lucky didn’t practice Tuesday, trying to get over a toe injury. "He could have gone today but now is the time to get him some rest if we can," Pelini said.

 

Back on the field were offensive linemen Lydon Murtha and Jaivorio Burkes.

 

"We feel pretty good about where we are health-wise ... but I think this is just a time to get our guys back a little bit, and get their legs and make sure they're ready to roll next week," Pelini said.

 

This and that: Safety Major Culbert was not on the travel roster for the K-State game. Pelini said it was because Culbert violated team rules, but that Culbert is practicing and available for the CU game. "It's something we talked about. We got it fixed," Pelini said. ... Offensive lineman Andy Christensen ran onto the field Saturday for a play late in the game, but a timeout was called before the snap. He didn’t end up playing. The senior could play this year and still hope to be granted a sixth year of eligibility because of a medical hardship from an injury earlier in his career. ... Former Husker running back Cory Ross, who was a star in the 2003 Alamo Bowl coached by Pelini, was at Tuesday’s practice.

 

Scouting report: WR, Menelik Holt

 

Wide receiver Menelik Holt, who has missed most of the last three games with a sprained MCL in his right knee, said Tuesday he's feeling a lot better.

 

"I tweaked it a little bit today, but it's fine," he said. "I should be back in the starting rotation next week. But it all depends on how (receivers) coach (Ted Gilmore) feels and how well I practice."

 

The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Holt, a junior from San Diego, sat out the Oklahoma game and played sparingly in the following two games.

 

“Coach wants to save me and make sure I’m all right," Holt said. "This is an injury that can keep happening over and over to receivers. We cut a lot at the receiver position. I'm just getting to the point now where I'm real confident in it. I'm not really thinking about it that much.”

 

Despite his diminished playing time, Holt still is NU’s fourth-leading receiver with 25 catches for 278 yards and a touchdown. He had built a head of steam before suffering the injury.

 

“I’d been waiting to finally get my time,” said Holt, who entered the season with only four career catches. “It's really frustrating. But you can’t go back and change it. You just have to move on and do what you can. That's what I've been trying to do.”

 

Opponent watch: Colorado

 

CU coach Dan Hawkins dismissed outside linebacker Nate Vaiomounga from the team Tuesday for violating team rules.

 

Vaiomounga was academically ineligible this season and now is gone for good.

 

“We have been consistent in showing no tolerance for poor decision-making,” Hawkins said in a statement. “We constantly tell these young men that once is a mistake, twice is a behavior.”

 

Vaiomounga’s situation isn’t the only off-field issue Hawkins has had to worry about recently.

 

Campus police are investigating reports by five players that personal items were taken from their lockers during Saturday’s loss to Oklahoma State.

 

Just asking: What are the chances linebacker Phillip Dillard, out for the past three games with an ankle injury, plays against CU?

 

“I really anticipate having Phil back, but you never know,” Pelini said. “He’s running straight ahead good. He’s getting better every day. I would anticipate he’s going to be back. We’re probably not going to do anything with him until Sunday, but I think he'll be practicing on Sunday. That's what we hope.”