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LINCOLN - In Steve Octavien's running battle to understand his injury problems, the Nebraska linebacker has found the latest one to be most perplexing.
Octavien might not have been finishing the Texas game on Oct. 21 had he not asked to be on the field. Octavien wouldn't have been injured had he not asked to play.
It's enough to leave a guy talking to himself in the training room.
"It's made me think, 'Man, maybe if I didn't ask to go in . . . ' " Octavien said Wednesday. "But I was trying to make a play, so I really don't care. Things happen."
The past two seasons have taught us that they happen to Octavien at cruel times and places.
The broken leg vs. Maine to start 2005 and the subsequent lost season. The pulled hamstring at Southern Cal on Sept. 16 that laid him up the next four games. The ankle injury vs. Texas that sat him down the following two weeks.
"That gets frustrating," Octavien said. "You know how that goes. But I can only control what I can control. I'm just trying to stay healthy for the rest of the season, so I can help the team out."
The 6-foot, 235-pound junior from Naples, Fla., possesses the skills to really benefit NU in its final three games. But in his unintentional route to becoming one of this team's great enigmas, Octavien has yet to string together three games of note.
Indications were that it might have been ready to happen when Octavien was on a roll against Texas, making a team-high 10 tackles (two for losses), forcing a fumble and breaking up a pass in the 22-20 loss. When the Longhorns took possession with 2:17 left after a Husker turnover, Octavien went to defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove.
"I thought maybe I could create something," Octavien said.
Two plays before Texas kicked the winning field goal, Octavien was pivoting as taiback Jamaal Charles chop-blocked him on a short run by quarterback Colt McCoy. Octavien twisted his ankle, but said the damage spread to his shin.
"It's like an area they can't even pinpoint," he said. "They don't even know really what's wrong with it. It's just hard for me to get on my toes and run. But now that pain's gone."
Octavien, the backup weakside linebacker to Bo Ruud, hardly played at Oklahoma State and then was held out of the Missouri game with starting middle linebacker Corey McKeon. Octavien said he could have played against the Tigers, but with the extra rest was able to go at about 90 percent in the 28-27 win at Texas A&M.
Against the Aggies on Saturday, Octavien made one of his two solo tackles behind the line, and he also deflected a third-down pass on a blitz.
"My ankle still bothers me here and there, but it doesn't really affect me in the game," he said. "And my hamstring doesn't hurt any more at all."
Thus the optimism, especially with NU having a bye week before playing Colorado on Nov. 24. Octavien said he weighed in Tuesday at 236 pounds, good news considering his size was being questioned during the offseason and into training camp.
The injuries have aged him, he said. But he's plugged along as well as possible and kept believing that there's plenty left to salvage.
"We have this game, the Big 12 championship and also the bowl game," he said. "We'll see what I can do. Plus, I've got another year."
LINCOLN - In Steve Octavien's running battle to understand his injury problems, the Nebraska linebacker has found the latest one to be most perplexing.
Octavien might not have been finishing the Texas game on Oct. 21 had he not asked to be on the field. Octavien wouldn't have been injured had he not asked to play.
It's enough to leave a guy talking to himself in the training room.
"It's made me think, 'Man, maybe if I didn't ask to go in . . . ' " Octavien said Wednesday. "But I was trying to make a play, so I really don't care. Things happen."
The past two seasons have taught us that they happen to Octavien at cruel times and places.
The broken leg vs. Maine to start 2005 and the subsequent lost season. The pulled hamstring at Southern Cal on Sept. 16 that laid him up the next four games. The ankle injury vs. Texas that sat him down the following two weeks.
"That gets frustrating," Octavien said. "You know how that goes. But I can only control what I can control. I'm just trying to stay healthy for the rest of the season, so I can help the team out."
The 6-foot, 235-pound junior from Naples, Fla., possesses the skills to really benefit NU in its final three games. But in his unintentional route to becoming one of this team's great enigmas, Octavien has yet to string together three games of note.
Indications were that it might have been ready to happen when Octavien was on a roll against Texas, making a team-high 10 tackles (two for losses), forcing a fumble and breaking up a pass in the 22-20 loss. When the Longhorns took possession with 2:17 left after a Husker turnover, Octavien went to defensive coordinator Kevin Cosgrove.
"I thought maybe I could create something," Octavien said.
Two plays before Texas kicked the winning field goal, Octavien was pivoting as taiback Jamaal Charles chop-blocked him on a short run by quarterback Colt McCoy. Octavien twisted his ankle, but said the damage spread to his shin.
"It's like an area they can't even pinpoint," he said. "They don't even know really what's wrong with it. It's just hard for me to get on my toes and run. But now that pain's gone."
Octavien, the backup weakside linebacker to Bo Ruud, hardly played at Oklahoma State and then was held out of the Missouri game with starting middle linebacker Corey McKeon. Octavien said he could have played against the Tigers, but with the extra rest was able to go at about 90 percent in the 28-27 win at Texas A&M.
Against the Aggies on Saturday, Octavien made one of his two solo tackles behind the line, and he also deflected a third-down pass on a blitz.
"My ankle still bothers me here and there, but it doesn't really affect me in the game," he said. "And my hamstring doesn't hurt any more at all."
Thus the optimism, especially with NU having a bye week before playing Colorado on Nov. 24. Octavien said he weighed in Tuesday at 236 pounds, good news considering his size was being questioned during the offseason and into training camp.
The injuries have aged him, he said. But he's plugged along as well as possible and kept believing that there's plenty left to salvage.
"We have this game, the Big 12 championship and also the bowl game," he said. "We'll see what I can do. Plus, I've got another year."
