Jacob Hickman

Nebraska Football Weekly Press Conference
Monday, Oct. 5, 2009
Pre-Missouri

On if he feels like this is a revenge game

“Well, I think we let emotions run a little bit too hot last year, and it didn’t really work out for us as planned. It’s definitely in the back of your mind. You definitely want to win this game for more than just the fact that it’s the opening of the Big 12 season, but you can’t let it get to the point where you get real emotional about it, because that’s how you end up overwhelming yourself and not playing up to par.”

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On if he thinks last year's performance was based upon the previous year’s performance

“Well, I feel that’s kind of the way personally.  I don’t know if everybody else went that way, but it’s a possibility. I know I could have played a better game last year, and I usually don’t get that riled up so I’m going to try and not do that this time.”

 

On if they felt like they weren’t a very good team for last year's <?xml:namespace prefix="st1" ns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"?>Missouri game

“I understand what you’re getting at. Yeah, but anytime you don’t go into a game expecting to have that kind of outcome or else you wouldn’t be playing. That’s what happened and it’s completely different year.”

 

On how much more comfortable they are with their identity this year on offense

“I think we have a lot more understanding of what we’re trying to accomplish overall, so the indentity is a little bit more so there. It might seem vague to the untrained eye, because it seems like we don’t really do any particular thing for one game. One game’s pass, one game is run. We’ve gotten to the point where we understand whatever they give us, is what we’re going to take. If they are going to load up the box against the run, we’re going to do some passing stuff and visa versa. I think we really have an understanding of what the coaches are trying to accomplish on a given play, being it set them up for future plays or whatever it may be, and I think everybody is on the same page, which is huge.”

 

On how much different the air around this team is different from last year

“I think it’s a confidence thing. I think a lot of guys this season, more so than last or even previous years that have been here, it’s kind of one of those things where guys feel like we’re a pretty good team, and we can win a lot of these games this year and there is no one on our schedule that we can’t beat if we play the right way.  I think that’s something that I don’t know if everybody believed to that extent in previous years. I feel pretty good about it and I think it’s a good thing to have.”

 

On if he has more of an appreciation for his defense this season

“Definitely, it’s always encouraging to have the feeling where it’s like you know if we didn’t succeed on that drive, we didn’t get what we were trying to accomplish, but we know the defense will get a three and out and we’ll get right back out there. It’s a good thing to have. I remember a couple of years ago when you kind of felt like you had to score every drive and now it’s like, all right the defense will keep us in the game if we can’t get it done, and so we kind of feel like we need to make sure we keep pushing to make sure we don’t let them down. It’s a good place to be as an offensive guy.”

 

On what he remembers about Columbia in 2007

“It was real intense, 8 o’clock game as well.  The crowd was riled up, real loud and it’s going to be kind of the same thing I figure. It’s Thursday, but it’s still going to be the same thing. I just have to make sure the guys who haven’t been there know it’s going to be a hostile atmosphere, very hostile. I think a lot of guys played in the Virginia Tech game, it’s going to be loud, it’s going to be the same kind of thing, so we have some guys getting acclimated from that so that will be a good thing we can take with us. Just making sure everybody understands what we’re getting nto.”

 

On how important it is to get off to a fast start

“That’s always the goal going into a hostile environment; you want to get the crowd out of it as soon as possible. The best way to do that is get in there and start scoring points. If we can do that, that is definitely the goal. If it doesn’t work out that way, we just have to be ready for a long night and go the long haul and get points whenever we need to and come out on top however it may take.”

 

On how you waste time on a Thursday waiting for an 8 p.m. game

“I hate late games. You sit in the hotel for what seems like two days. You’re sitting there kind of getting stir crazy, you just want to get started. I don’t know, you try to take a nap if you can, it’s doubtful that you will be able to. Usually just watch all the other college games and try to stay calm and conserve energy the night.”

 

On how there is no college games to watch on a Thursday afternoon

“You’re right, I forgot about that. I don’t know, soap operas I guess.”

 

On if the fan hatred is a motivational factor for him

“Yeah, it’s a pretty cool deal.  They always think its pretty fun. I remember a full beer got dumped on me last time, so I kind of stunk like beer for the rest of the game which kind of sucked. It’s the kind of place you want to play. If you can shut up that kind of crowd, it’s definitely a fun thing to do.”