I am I
All-Conference
Special-teams standout Martin brings it all
BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL / Lincoln Journal Star
Thursday, Nov 05, 2009 - 12:15:29 am CST
Eric Martin became a starter on special teams because as a scout-team member, he was “a little too aggressive with our starters,” he said.
Nebraska assistant coach John Papuchis rolled his eyes and smiled.
“I don’t know about that,” Papuchis said. “But, yeah, he made a great name by giving a great effort on the scout units.”
Sometimes, a little too much effort.
“Like I’d be on punt block and I’ll rush and just block all the punts Alex (Henery) kicks,” said Martin, a true freshman from Moreno Valley, Calif.
“I’m supposed to let him kick it, but I don’t. I’m just violently aggressive. I’ll hit the starter when there’s really no need to, but I will anyway, just because. Who knows? There might be somebody out there like me.”
The good news for Martin: All that effort, however misguided at times, helped earn him playing time this season.
“He made us confident that he could be a guy who could help us out on Saturdays,” Papuchis said.
Like last Saturday, when Martin’s punt block helped Nebraska score an early touchdown in a 20-10 victory at Baylor.
“He’s a great competitor,” said teammate Justin Blatchford, who returned the blocked punt 25 yards for a touchdown. “It doesn’t matter who it is. He’ll go up and hit him in the mouth, and it’s great to see from a true freshman.”
Martin doesn’t play scout team anymore. He’s a starter on punt block and kickoff.
“I’m pretty sure nobody on scout likes me,” Martin said.
Papuchis admits coaches still “rein him in a little bit” when the punt block team is going against the scout team. Nobody’s getting work on punt returns if some go-getter is blocking all the punts.
Oh, Martin has other stories of when he’s been too disruptive.
“Like one time, I was on punt block,” he said, “and it was the starting punt (unit). Our long snapper, I was supposed to rush him and then let him go and start blocking him down the field. I didn’t. I kind of peeled off and waited ’til he came around, and kind of blindsided him.
“And he was the starting long snapper, and he was kind of hurt a little bit and dizzy.”
Martin said Papuchis yelled at him.
“He told me not to hit him no more,” Martin said. “He just said he doesn’t want me taking out the starters. We don’t have that many long snappers.”
Martin, who began making a name for himself with his vicious hits in fall camp, said his hard-hitting nature is the result of mental toughness.
“When I’m on the field I just put myself out there like me being bigger than anybody and me being tougher than anybody,” he said. “When I feel my opponent is trying to be better than me, I just use physicality as a mind-set.”
So when does Martin take all this physicality to linebacker?
Maybe in the bowl game, he said, if Nebraska plays a run-heavy team. Martin plays BUCK linebacker, a position in the base 4-3 defense coaches seldom use against the many spread-type offenses in the Big 12 Conference.
“I haven’t really picked up the schemes of the pass defense yet,” Martin said. “I’ve just picked up the schemes of the run.”
For now, Martin will channel all of his energy on special teams.
“Special teams is not on the field as much as offense and defense,” he said. “So the couple seconds I do have out there, I’m going to make it last, make it worth something instead of being another player out there. Just be the best special-teams player you can.
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This is kind of what we were talking about in another thread the other day...just guys going out and hitting each other and making each other tougher...I just really love watching Martin, especially when I'm at the games, he just absolutely rocks people...
Now, I know what the coaches are saying about getting done in practice a certain amount of reps for punts and returns and stuff, but when we had guys like this on our college team, the coaches wouldn't rein them in, they would get pissed at the starters and curse and yell at them telling them to keep the friggin true freshman out of the backfield, that he was giving a great look, and we were sucking, and just to f'ing block him like a game situation....
we all hated guys who went balls to the wall on every stinking play in practice, but after a couple reps of us getting chewed, we just went harder too and it ended up making us all really tough and competitive...we need more guys like this not giving starters A FREE PASS in practices...hell, that's what scout players are there for--to give a realistic look!! I love this guy!
BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL / Lincoln Journal Star
Thursday, Nov 05, 2009 - 12:15:29 am CST
Eric Martin became a starter on special teams because as a scout-team member, he was “a little too aggressive with our starters,” he said.
Nebraska assistant coach John Papuchis rolled his eyes and smiled.
“I don’t know about that,” Papuchis said. “But, yeah, he made a great name by giving a great effort on the scout units.”
Sometimes, a little too much effort.
“Like I’d be on punt block and I’ll rush and just block all the punts Alex (Henery) kicks,” said Martin, a true freshman from Moreno Valley, Calif.
“I’m supposed to let him kick it, but I don’t. I’m just violently aggressive. I’ll hit the starter when there’s really no need to, but I will anyway, just because. Who knows? There might be somebody out there like me.”
The good news for Martin: All that effort, however misguided at times, helped earn him playing time this season.
“He made us confident that he could be a guy who could help us out on Saturdays,” Papuchis said.
Like last Saturday, when Martin’s punt block helped Nebraska score an early touchdown in a 20-10 victory at Baylor.
“He’s a great competitor,” said teammate Justin Blatchford, who returned the blocked punt 25 yards for a touchdown. “It doesn’t matter who it is. He’ll go up and hit him in the mouth, and it’s great to see from a true freshman.”
Martin doesn’t play scout team anymore. He’s a starter on punt block and kickoff.
“I’m pretty sure nobody on scout likes me,” Martin said.
Papuchis admits coaches still “rein him in a little bit” when the punt block team is going against the scout team. Nobody’s getting work on punt returns if some go-getter is blocking all the punts.
Oh, Martin has other stories of when he’s been too disruptive.
“Like one time, I was on punt block,” he said, “and it was the starting punt (unit). Our long snapper, I was supposed to rush him and then let him go and start blocking him down the field. I didn’t. I kind of peeled off and waited ’til he came around, and kind of blindsided him.
“And he was the starting long snapper, and he was kind of hurt a little bit and dizzy.”
Martin said Papuchis yelled at him.
“He told me not to hit him no more,” Martin said. “He just said he doesn’t want me taking out the starters. We don’t have that many long snappers.”
Martin, who began making a name for himself with his vicious hits in fall camp, said his hard-hitting nature is the result of mental toughness.
“When I’m on the field I just put myself out there like me being bigger than anybody and me being tougher than anybody,” he said. “When I feel my opponent is trying to be better than me, I just use physicality as a mind-set.”
So when does Martin take all this physicality to linebacker?
Maybe in the bowl game, he said, if Nebraska plays a run-heavy team. Martin plays BUCK linebacker, a position in the base 4-3 defense coaches seldom use against the many spread-type offenses in the Big 12 Conference.
“I haven’t really picked up the schemes of the pass defense yet,” Martin said. “I’ve just picked up the schemes of the run.”
For now, Martin will channel all of his energy on special teams.
“Special teams is not on the field as much as offense and defense,” he said. “So the couple seconds I do have out there, I’m going to make it last, make it worth something instead of being another player out there. Just be the best special-teams player you can.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is kind of what we were talking about in another thread the other day...just guys going out and hitting each other and making each other tougher...I just really love watching Martin, especially when I'm at the games, he just absolutely rocks people...
Now, I know what the coaches are saying about getting done in practice a certain amount of reps for punts and returns and stuff, but when we had guys like this on our college team, the coaches wouldn't rein them in, they would get pissed at the starters and curse and yell at them telling them to keep the friggin true freshman out of the backfield, that he was giving a great look, and we were sucking, and just to f'ing block him like a game situation....
we all hated guys who went balls to the wall on every stinking play in practice, but after a couple reps of us getting chewed, we just went harder too and it ended up making us all really tough and competitive...we need more guys like this not giving starters A FREE PASS in practices...hell, that's what scout players are there for--to give a realistic look!! I love this guy!
