Red for Octavian

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Eric the Red

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NU Notes: Byford to play center Saturday

BY ROBIN WASHUT

WORLD-HERALD CORRESPONDENT

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LINCOLN - Nebraska center Kurt Mann will miss Saturday's Nicholls State game because of a viral infection and junior Brett Byford will make his first start, coach Bill Callahan announced Thursday.

Junior Jordan Picou and sophomore Andy Christensen will move up to second and third string, respectively, at center, Callahan said.

Byford, from Hartselle, Ala., played in last week's season opener against Louisiana Tech. It was his first action since the 2004 season opener against Western Illinois.

"I'm confident he'll do a good job," Callahan said. "He's a guy who we know will step up for us. He's got all the physical tools to do it, it's just a matter of executing under pressure."

Saturday's game will snap Mann's streak of 23 consecutive starts at center. He took over the spot as a sophomore in 2004 and has held it ever since.

After practice on Thursday, Byford, Picou and Christensen all took extra reps with NU quarterbacks for roughly 10 minutes, working on cadences and snapping the ball out of the shotgun formation while offensive coordinator Jay Norvell and offensive line coach Dennis Wagner looked on.

Peter visits

As the rest of the team walked off the field at the end of practice, Nebraska's defensive line and linebacker units stayed at midfield for a speech by someone who knows all about defense.

Former co-captain and defensive tackle Christian Peter was in attendance Thursday, and while he declined to say what he talked about, he apparently walked away with some fairly good impressions.

"I think we've got something special here with this team," he said. "I can see it in their eyes."

Peter said he spent time with the defensive line in practice and offered some words of advice in the huddle.

He went as far as to compare this year's line with his lines of the mid-1990s.

"They've got the ability to potentially be even better," he said. "That's a crazy crew they've got there. I got in the huddle with them a little bit today, and I got a little scared."

Former defensive coordinator Charlie McBride was also in attendance Thursday. Both he and Peter are expected to take part in Saturday's pregame festivities, though Peter declined to comment on any specifics.

[SIZE=14pt]Octavien in red [/SIZE]

 

Senior linebacker Steve Octavien, who started the season listed as a Blackshirt, wore a normal red jersey on Thursday. After missing all but one quarter of his first season in 2005, Octavien had two tackles while backing up junior Bo Ruud against Louisiana Tech.

 
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Maybe BC thinks Steve-O needs a bit of motivation? That would be my guess.

Anyway... I love this quote: "That's a crazy crew they've got there. I got in the huddle with them a little bit today, and I got a little scared."

That's some HIGH praise man from a guy who was part of one of the best d-lines in school history.

 
What the hell are they doing? Are they watching the same players I am?!?!??! Octavien is the best LB we have and he should be on the field as much as possible. He's fast, he hits hard, he reads well, and he has great hands. WHAT ARE THEY DOING? START HIM ALREADY! :WTH

 
I'll go with the coaches on this one Aim. No doubt that Octavian has the tools to be the best defensive player on the field, but he is coming off of sugery, and right now he may be lacking the push that he needs to right the ship! I think that is what the coaches are doing here. Get him back to the level he was at Spring.

 
What the hell are they doing? Are they watching the same players I am?!?!??! Octavien is the best LB we have and he should be on the field as much as possible. He's fast, he hits hard, he reads well, and he has great hands. WHAT ARE THEY DOING? START HIM ALREADY! :WTH
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Just wondering whta exactly has Octavien done in the 5 quarters he has played to prove he is the best LB on the team? Don't get me wrong I think he COULD end up being a good player but until he shows it on the field the jury is still out. With Ruud you know what you are going to get and with Octavien it is a complete unknown. In my opinion only the starters should get Blackshirts and if you fall from the starting lineup you should have to give it back.

 
What the hell are they doing?  Are they watching the same players I am?!?!??!  Octavien is the best LB we have and he should be on the field as much as possible.  He's fast, he hits hard, he reads well, and he has great hands.  WHAT ARE THEY DOING?  START HIM ALREADY! :WTH
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Just wondering whta exactly has Octavien done in the 5 quarters he has played to prove he is the best LB on the team? Don't get me wrong I think he COULD end up being a good player but until he shows it on the field the jury is still out. With Ruud you know what you are going to get and with Octavien it is a complete unknown. In my opinion only the starters should get Blackshirts and if you fall from the starting lineup you should have to give it back.
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:yeah

 
Let the boy rest a couple more...if they aren't giving him his shirt then there is a good reason for it.

We're not at the practices and maybe he's the one that doesn't feel up to speed yet.

Give it time boys.

 
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I agree about it being a motivating tool. By all means we need this guy to step up and deliver.

SOME people take a demotion and run home to mama. I dont think Steve O. will go that rout.

 
What the hell are they doing? Are they watching the same players I am?!?!??! Octavien is the best LB we have and he should be on the field as much as possible. He's fast, he hits hard, he reads well, and he has great hands. WHAT ARE THEY DOING? START HIM ALREADY! :WTH
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Don't you think if he was the best LB on the team he would be starting. Sean Callahan has said that Octavien is quite possibly the best athelete we have at LB and could be the best one, however he tends to free range when he is on defense and that he will make big plays, but misses out on some routine ones. Rudd is starting because he is much more technically sound and keeps to his assignements. I hope to see lots of Octavien this year and agree he is a talent we need to use, but I won't discount Rudd... he obviously earned the spot and as we saw him play last year, he deserves it.

 
The game on Saturday will all be about assignment football for the defense. I've heard that Steve O wasn't the best at that, and that might have lead to his demotion. If he plays well this week, who knows, he may have his blackshirt back.

 
I had my appendix removed while going to NU. I missed about a week of class and felt really weak for about a month. Everyone recovers from surgery differently, I just Steve recovers to the point where he helps us win the Big 12 North and Conference Championship.

 
Hopefully this is just some motivation tacticts to get him to play better. Maybe he is doing something different behing closed doors though.

 
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