Linebacker Will Compton

Nebraska Football
Weekly Press Conference
Memorial Stadium (Lincoln, Neb.)
Tuesday, Oct. 26, 2010
Pre-Missouri

On the game's significance
"That is for you guys to hype all that up. I know we're approaching it like any other game. Every game is significant because this team is the next team on your schedule. This is the next biggest game of the season for us and that is how we're approaching it."

On how much he still talks to Missouri quarterback Blaine Gabbert
"No, not really. I'll watch him play and he's a great quarterback for that team and he does a great job. I might shoot him a text just to see what's up, but we haven't kept in touch too much."

On if Compton is 100 percent healthy
"Yeah, yes sir."

On if there were times during the game when he just wanted to be put in
"I want to be in there every play, but unfortunately that is not the way it works. It's just us playing assignment football. They are easy fixes and I know we'll get them corrected."

On how important this game is for him, being from Missouri
"To me, winning the game just for bragging rights over friends back home and stuff like that. That's not like important right now if you know what I mean. We just have to approach it like any other game. I know that once we get in meetings and practice and things like that, we don't think of anything else. It's just the next game on our schedule and we have to win this game."

On how it felt to get back out on the field
"It felt awesome. I had a blast against Oklahoma State. None of our defensive players liked how they put up 41 on us, but we got out of there with a win. Personally, I had a lot of fun playing in that game and was glad I could play a role in there."

On how Missouri's receivers have changed their offense from last year
"They execute what they do on offense extremely well and they do a very good job of it. Blaine gets the ball out fast every play. They know what they're doing and they do a good job of doing that. They execute and they're a great football team."

On if they were very effective in the slots last year
"Last year will be different than this year. We executed really well defensively. If we do that again there is no reason why we shouldn't have the same outcome. We have to take care of us first."

On the history of the Nebraska-Missouri football series
"I just know growing up around it and committing to Nebraska and being around all the Missouri fans how much they want to beat Nebraska every year and how much they dislike Nebraska. It's all in fun and I know in the end, they are pulling my leg about it, but at the same time there is a lot of turmoil built between fans. That is the most I know about the history."

On what the people back home say about Nebraska going to the Big Ten
"I haven't heard too much about it, mostly when it happened I just got texts like 'oh wow, you guys are going to the Big Ten' and things like that. Mostly it's about teams we'll get to play and places we'll get to go. I haven't heard a lot about questions why stuff happened or bad things to say about it or anything like that."

On if this is the game he is going to miss the most down the road
"No, I don't really think of anything like that. It's just playing football pretty much and playing with the guys I do, the culture around here. You don't think of things like that, that's for outside of football and outside the stadium, for people to talk about other than living it."

On the linebacker rotation between Compton and Lavonte David
"Against Missouri, they run a pretty wide-open spread. I know we're using Lavonte this week. Coach (Mike) Ekeler said they might rotate us and stuff like that, but I don't know how much that will happen. If you're doing well, there is no need to rotate. I hope to get in there as much as I can. I'm going to play my role and that's preparing this week like I do every week. My focus will be there and I'll be ready to go when they call me."

On how much he helps Lavonte David still
"He's close. He's a quick learner, he learned the system fast. He has things to work on just like I do, like everybody does, but he is a great football player. He's smart. He's a very smart kid. He'll know everything going into Saturday."

On quick fixes with run defense
"It's just fundamentals, tackling and the assignments you have, knowing what call we're in and knowing who comes down and who also will be in the pit. We'll be fine come Saturday, they're easy adjustments."

On how hard it was to go down close to the start of the season
"It definitely took a toll on me. It was a rough 24 hours after that. I'm not mad about when it happened. I don't think about that, I try to think positively because I thought I made big strides in fall camp. I don't wish it would have been sooner, later or anything. I'm happy with where I'm at now."

On what it was like watching those first few games of the season
"It sucked. I wanted to be out there bad. Then again, what happened, happened, I know I learned a lot from it. I learned a lot from the perspective of football, learned a lot of x's and o's as far as watching what happened."

On if he sees coaching in his future
"That's something I definitely want to do. That's something I've always wanted to do. If football doesn't work out, that's what I would want to go into. When that (an injury) happens, you can't be selfish about it, you can't stay down on yourself like poor me, poor this and that. I got put into a different role and that role was helping out my teammates and linebackers and that's what I've moved on to do."

On if he liked sitting up here in the press box and watching how everyone worked
"I liked it, but then I didn't. I didn't because I wasn't playing and I would much rather do that than watch. I saw everything in a different perspective. There are a lot of positives that come out from watching and seeing things differently, like how coaches see things. I learned a lot in that area."

On the atmosphere of the press box
"Definitely quiet, you don't get the feel of what the environment is like out there because it's extremely quiet up here. I'd much rather be down there on the field."

On living up to the bar that was set defensively last season
"That's a bar that was set from outside sources and things like that. That's never really been talked about as far as meetings and practice and stuff like that. We're trying to focus on us and the task at hand, which is Missouri this week and how it was Ok-State last week. We prepare to execute to the best of our ability and we want to be the number one defense every week and at the end of the season, that is what we strive for."

On where he thinks they are at as a unit
"I don't know, we have fixes to make and things like that, which will happen. We have to take care of us first, take care of the fundamentals, and get the fundamentals and also our assignments."