OWH: Huskers Camp Countdown

Mavric

Mavric

Yoda
Staff member
During the next month-and-a-half, The World-Herald’s football staff of me, Rich Kaipust and Jon Nyatawa will cover the 60 players — a top 50 and 10 honorable mentions — who we think will have the biggest impact on the Husker football season. This year, we’ll add online video segments discussing each player in depth with “The Bottom Line” host Mike’l Severe.
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Husker Camp Countdown Honorable Mentions



[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Lavan Alston:[/SIZE] Recruited to play the slot and serve as a “jet sweep” runner, Alston’s chances of playing this year improved when NU dropped Glenn Irons from the program. There’s still a decent chance he redshirts.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Mohamed Barry:[/SIZE] A hit-you-hard-and-let-you-hear-about-it LB from near Atlanta,Barry will be the last player to arrive this summer. He still has a chance to play immediately, and Barry may have the persona that is better suited to playing early — whether on the defense or special teams — instead of redshirting.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Ross Dzuris:[/SIZE] The junior walk-on from Plattsmouth has a handlebar mustache that would make Rollie Fingers proud. He’s also in the mix at defensive end. Don’t count him out because he hasn’t played a game yet. Jack Gangwish hadn’t either before last year.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Ryker Fyfe:[/SIZE] The No. 2 QB last season, the Grand Island native may struggle to hold onto the job with the push of redshirt freshmen Zack Darlington and AJ Bush. Still, it would be unwise to count out Fyfe, who will have a summer of seasoning in the new offense.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]David Knevel:[/SIZE] One more year of waiting for the giant Canadian, who will back up senior Alex Lewis at left tackle. Knevel had a learning curve to run upon his arrival at Nebraska, and he’s coming along well, entering his sophomore season.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Jordan Ober:[/SIZE] True freshman scholarship long snapper, Ober was hand-picked by new special teams coordinator Bruce Read to take over snapping duties. Two Huskers split that last year, with varying results. It takes Ober’s snap .61-.63 seconds to reach the punter. That’s fast.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]DaiShon Neal:[/SIZE] The 6-foot-7, 250-pound frame on this Omaha Central star screams college football ready. If Neal can grasp the playbook and techniques quickly, he’ll have a chance to help at defensive end. His dad, Abe Hoskins, played college football at Purdue.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Peyton Newell:[/SIZE] A change in position coaches was a good thing for Newell, who moved to defensive tackle in spring camp and showed well there. Newell has natural quickness and strength and could push for playing time.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]Matt Snyder:[/SIZE] One of the nation’s top tight end recruits, this football-rugby star could be Nebraska’s most natural pass-catching tight end the minute he steps on campus. It’s just a question of where he can fit into the offense by understanding the playbook and his role.
[SIZE=15.0015001296997px]David Sutton:[/SIZE] The Lincoln Southeast graduate is a senior backup tight end who had a better-than-average spring camp and fits better into an offense that embraces tight ends more than the previous system did.
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Obviously Ober will play early and often. Hopefully we don't hear much about him.
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Barry and Snyder are likely to play early.

Sutton and Dzuris may be in the rotation but probably not big contributors.

Alston could play but is behind several guys.

I'm not sure the rest will get a lot of run.

 
Nice! Some of those first ten names I'm barely familiar with. Some I've not heard at all. Looking forward to seeing the whole list.
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No. 50 Stanley Morgan

6-0 | 185 | Fr. | WR

The sure-handed, highlight-producing pass catcher out of New Orleans has every intention to work his way into the receiver rotation this fall. And a guy talented enough to make Louisiana’s Class 5A all-state first team (despite missing the end of the season with a shoulder injury) certainly has a chance.

His biggest hurdle? Grasping the playbook and embracing the position’s nuances — all while matching the urgency of hungry veterans like Jamal Turner, Sam Burtch, Taariq Allen and Alonzo Moore. Nebraska’s offense could use a possession-type target on the outside. Morgan will compete for that role.
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I like Morgan but I hope we don't need him this year. Too many options ahead of him. After we lose Turner, Burtch and Allen following this year - not to mention giving him a year to learn the system and hit the weights - he'll have every chance to get on the field.

 
No. 49 Aaron Williams

5-11 | 185 | Fr. | Safety

Williams, an early enrollee from Atlanta, was essentially a third-team safety to start the spring. But with the way Nebraska split up its practices, the third-stringers shared the same field with the first-stringers — and Williams ended up working his way into the top group every now and then.

He didn’t disappoint. Maybe he’s a safety. Maybe he helps at nickel. Maybe he just contributes on special teams. But the two-time first-team all-state player in Georgia’s Class 5A likely has a place in the Huskers’ 2015 plans.
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Goodbye Alexander. Hello Mr. Williams.

Not sure how the a two-time all-stater from a state that cranks out talent - albeit he played in the second-biggest class - was somewhat under-recruited. Good for us as it seems like the coaches really like him.

 
No. 48 Andy Janovich

6-1 | 230 | Sr. | Fullback

On paper, he’s one of the team’s most experienced players, stepping onto the field in 37 games during his Husker career. It’s just that Janovich’s offensive reps have come sparingly, most often dictated by the week’s matchups.

What is the fullback’s role in Nebraska’s new system? Hard to tell. But usually a skilled blocker and a versatile athlete (Janovich could be an H-back option) can compete for playing time somewhere. He will most certainly carry an expansive special teams role.
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No. 47 Tanner Farmer

6-4 | 310 | RFr. | OG

He has the frame, the strength and the agility to be a future force in the trenches. But is he mentally equipped to surpass some seasoned veterans on a crowded depth chart? The position, particularly in the high-stress moments surrounding the snap, puts a strain on a player’s cognitive ability to break down the game.

Reading blitzes, executing blocking assignments, mastering technique — those things are enough, sometimes, to drain young players as they focus on avoiding mistakes. Farmer will face that challenge, but he will certainly be in the mix.
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Been looking forward to Farmer getting on the field since he committed. Extremely strong and a wrestler makes for great potential. I think he'll at least be in the rotation this year.

 
No. 46 Zach Hannon

6-6 | 305 | So. | G

Hannon has dropped 50 pounds since arriving on campus in 2013, so he understands the off-field sacrifice it takes to maximize potential. The next step for Hannon is simple: Apply commitment to playbook study, film room binges and drillwork sessions.

A year on the Huskers’ punt team as a shield blocker has given Hannon a taste of the action, enough to perhaps motivate him to work for more. Hannon likely is a guard — that’s where he worked this spring — but he could get a chance at center.
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No. 45 Kevin Maurice

6-3 | 280 | Jr. | DT

Although Maurice has played in 16 games and was used as a true freshman in 2013, it has been a fairly quiet two seasons because of the two returnees in front of him.

Lacks the speed and athleticism of Maliek Collins and the power and size of Vincent Valentine, but Huskers could definitely use some good snaps out of Maurice (and Kevin Williams).
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IIRC, Maurice actually got on the field before Collins, or at least I remember him a little bit more early.

Definitely not the game changer that Collins and VV are but can still be a solid contributor.

 
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