Coaches, Players See Pontential in First-Year LInebacker

[kansas husker]

Lavonte David knows football.

 

 

Bring up his name to a teammate or coach and they call the junior linebacker fast, smart and instinctive.

 

 

But they don’t stop there. They laud his development, his eagerness to learn and his uncanny ability to be in the right place at the right time.

 

 

And while David can’t yet speak to the media since he hasn’t played in a game, there’s no shortage of people ready to vouch for his talents.

 

 

Just ask Nebraska coach Bo Pelini, defensive coordinator Carl Pelini, fellow linebacker Eric Martin or even receiver Brandon Kinnie.

 

 

The response is invariably the same: David is special and will make an impact for the Cornhuskers sooner rather than later.

 

 

“I think he’s a very natural football player,” Carl Pelini said. “He really gets the game. He understands it. He has an instinct for it.”

 

 

David learned the Husker defense in just a handful of fall practices and vaulted to the top of a long list of linebackers. Will Compton suffered a foot injury Thursday that will keep him out for “some time,” Bo Pelini said, and Sean Fisher is out for the season with a leg injury, so Nebraska needs David more than ever.

 

 

Carl Pelini said he won’t hesitate to put David in the lineup Saturday against Western Kentucky, something that can’t be said for most other first-year Huskers.

 

 

“He has progressed very quickly and he’s going to be on the field,” he said. “He’s going to be a major (contributor) for us and he’s going to get a lot of playing time.”

 

 

Bo Pelini said that he has been pleasantly surprised with David’s unusually fast learning curve and is excited to watch him continue to develop.

 

 

“Believe me, he’s got a long way to go,” Pelini said. “But he’s shown some things. He does some things very naturally.”

 

 

Kinnie, who played with David two years ago at Fort Scott Community College in Kansas before reuniting with him this fall in Lincoln, said other Huskers ask him about David.

 

 

Though he’s not the hardest hitter or the flashiest player, Kinnie admits David is a unique defensive talent.

 

 

“Everybody asks me to explain him,” Kinnie said. “He’s a football player. He’s just got a knack for the football — he’s always around the football.”

 

 

Martin, a sophomore also vying for a starting spot at linebacker, said he’s been impressed with David’s “freakish” talents and raw skills. He said David is the fastest runner and has the best reaction time of any of the linebackers.

 

 

“That’s what I mean by freakish,” Martin said. “When we’re doing one-on-ones and stuff, running back tries to make a move, he’s usually the one to stick with him like more than all of us.”

 

 

David is one of only a few first-year Huskers expected to play a significant role this fall. Offensive line coach Barney Cotton said Jermarcus “Yoshi” Hardrick — also a Fort Scott transfer — is a starting candidate at tackle, and true freshman Andrew Rodriguez of Aurora, Neb., could see time as a reserve guard.

 

 

Bo Pelini has also pointed to true freshman defensive tackle Chase Rome as a candidate to play this fall.

 

 

But the coach has been especially impressed with David. And those instincts and smarts that have already drawn so much praise will continue to serve him well, Pelini said.

 

 

“I see a bright future for Lavonte, I really do,” Bo Pelini said. “I think he’s really come a long way in a short period of time and I think he’s only scratched the surface of his knowledge and where he can go as a player.”

 

 

Link

[HuskerJosh]

Thanks KSHusker. I really liked Compton this year, I hope our boys can pick up the slack.

[n.e.husker]

Hopefully WKU and Idaho will give Lavonte and the LB corp time to develop on the playing feild before we are tested at Washington and in confrence play.

[I am I]

well, maybe David can get some valuable minutes while Compton is hurt and get some live action to go with his budding skill set. then, when compton returns, we'll have some depth heading into B12 play

[Igetbored216]

I'm pretty sure Fisher is out for the season, but any word on the severity of Compton?

[suh_fan93]

Some pretty nice words of praise from Pelini. It sounds like once he gets some experience and learns how things work more or less he's got the instict and talent to be a really good linebacker for us. I can't wait to see this guy.