Huskers Begin Bye-Week Workouts

LINCOLN-The Nebraska football team donned helmets and shoulder pads for Tuesday’s two and one-half hour practice inside Memorial Stadium, taking advantage of a valuable bye week before the team plays IowaState at 2:30 p.m. on Oct. 1.

 

Coach Bill Callahan stressed the importance of a bye week for the team to build on what it has accomplished through its three wins this season, emphasizing today’s concentration on allowing younger players to see time on the field.

 

“We started today working on fundamental techniques,” Callahan said. “We’ve got this bye week where we’re just concentrating on getting better. We had a great practice today. A lot of hitting, a lot of contact, and a lot of young players seeing repetitions in the practice. It was very positive from that perspective, getting players on the field who haven’t had quite the repetition that the normal guys get during the season. So this is a good week to catch up from that aspect.”

 

Today’s practice highlighted some of the younger players in drills such as the Oklahoma drill, the 9-on-7, the 7-on-7 and special team drills, allowing the veterans on the team to rest after battling through three weeks of the season.

 

“We gave a lot of backups a lot of work,” Callahan said. “It’s good we’ve got this opportunity to utilize with those players. It allows you to keep your older players fresher and keep them sharp, and it allowed the younger players some repetition.”

 

Overall, the season’s first three games have featured some particular areas where Callahan has seen improvement.

 

“I think we’re getting better. I see a lot of things that are improving,” Callahan said. “Our pass protection improved. I saw an improvement in technique, and our running game, especially, got better. I was really proud of the fact that we ran the ball physically against a physical defense. We’ve tinkered with some things.

 

“We’re really focused in on improving fundamentally. That’s the focus right now in team practice. I talked about closing the gap between our older and our younger players, and that’s still a constant for us, that’s something that we focus on every day.”

 

With a 13-day break before it faces IowaState, the team has a chance to build on the success it has had through the first three games of the season.

 

“Anytime you get an opportunity to get better and you have some time between contests, it just allows you to get a little more confidence, especially when you’re riding a winning streak,” Callahan said. “Your players are believing, they have confidence, and they’re working harder to achieve the next goal. It helps them to sharpen their focus as far as their technique, pass coverage, just the small finite details as far as what we’re doing. I think this week is really beneficial for a lot of players and the team in general.”

Nebraska will continue its bye-week preparations Wednesday afternoon. Coordinators Kevin Cosgrove and Jay Norvell will address the media following the workout.

Notes: The Huskers hosted Nebraska governor Dave Heineman during Wednesday’s exercises. Coach Callahan and co-captains Daniel Bullocks and Cory Ross presented him with a team jersey before the start of practice.