Beck Will Be On The Bench Unless Circumstances "Dictate" Otherwise
By JOE BONGE / Daily Nebraskan
November 17, 2005
Jay Norvell won’t make things too complicated.
Harrison Beck. File photo.
The second-year offensive coordinator fortified Wednesday the position he has taken since Harrison Beck arrived in fall camp. Beck will play – but on one condition. The situation must “dictate it.”
“Right now, Zac (Taylor)’s our No. 1 quarterback,” Norvell said. “He’s proven that all year. The guys have a lot of confidence in him, and I think our guys have confidence in Harrison.”
Since Beck arrived in fall camp, Norvell and the rest of the NU coaching staff have faced questions about when the right time to play Beck would be.
Saturday, they finally gave a straight answer.
Zac Taylor. File photo.
Beck, a true freshman, replaced Taylor after he went down with a head injury in the fourth quarter of Nebraska’s 27-25 win over Kansas State on Saturday.
Before that, Taylor had taken every snap under center in Nebraska’s 10 games.
Beck led NU on a 7-play 55-yard drive while down 25-24 to the Wildcats that ended with a 40-yard field goal with just over a minute left to play.
The first game of Beck’s career wasn’t anything to write home about though.
Beck went just 1-for-6 for 21 yards and threw one costly interception that led to a KSU field goal.
Despite losing the possibility to redshirt this season by playing Saturday, Beck said the most important thing is getting a win.
“If they put me in then I’ll go in there and do my thing,” Beck said. “But obviously, Zac’s our guy. He’s going to go in there and compete and hopefully, we’ll win the football game.”
Beck arrived in Lincoln as one of – if not the most – highly touted recruits in school history.
After Beck didn’t see any action in NU’s first nine games, many thought the coaches would hold him out for a redshirt season.
Those possibilities were thrown out after Beck’s role in the Kansas State game.
The decision to play Beck has been game-to-game, Norvell said.
“There’s only one guy that can play,” Norvell said. “You can’t use the games as a practice situation, so we use practice as a practice situation. He’s a young guy who needs to play and I wish we could play him more. We just don’t have that luxury.”
Taylor has had an up-and-down season, although he is now the leading single-season passer in NU history with 2,094 yards.
The junior has struggled at times though, throwing for less than 200 yards in five games.
Despite the waves surrounding Beck and Taylor’s playing time, Taylor said the two maintain a healthy relationship.
“It’s very good,” Taylor said. “We hang out all the time. We’re together with football every second we’re here. It’s tough to put up with him, but I have to do it every now and then.”
While he may not be getting the majority of reps in practice and he might not see any more playing time in 2005, Beck said improvement is his biggest goal.
And as Taylor gears up to lead the Cornhuskers against Colorado, improvement is about the only thing Beck can do.
“(Taylor) helps me with everything,” Beck said. “If I have a question, he’s there to answer it for me. It’s really good for him to be here this year to help us to win games. But not only that, to be here to help me and (freshman quarterback) Joe (Ganz) with some of the small things that we may not know yet that he may pick up the first time.”
