Quarterback Cody Green

Nebraska Football
Weekly Press Conference
Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2010
Memorial Stadium (Lincoln, Neb.)
Pre-Kansas

On if this Tuesday is different from any other Tuesday going into practice
"Really just the same old attitude. We are doing the same things and just trying to stay down to Earth and trying not to do anything abnormal. I'm going out there and we will practice like we normally do."

On what happened during the play he had to come out against Iowa State
"I took a shot. I was just trying to get my bearings. I lost a contact and really couldn't get balanced and then after that, I just needed to sit for a play. After that, I was all right."

So it wasn't a concussion?
"They thought it was, but trust me, I'm OK. I've had one of those before. It was just a slight ding."

On if the majority of the locker room knows about Turner Gill
"I'm pretty sure the majority do know. As you walk through the top forum on the second floor, it is him and Mike Rozier. They have their pictures up there and everybody has seen the highlights of him and the plays he made. The majority do know that he was a very well-known Nebraska athlete, and especially us quarterbacks know. He is well-respected in our locker room."

On if he is ready to go back onto the field if he needs to this week
"I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing. If it is me, Taylor (Martinez) or Zac (Lee), we are going to practice the same way we practiced before. You never know when an ankle might get turned. Or even a hit like I took where Taylor had to go in for a play. You never know what may happen. We are all going to prepare ourselves as if we are the starter."

On if the coaches gave Gree tests or if he told them he was fine
"Of course the doctors asked if I was all right and how I was feeling. They asked if I knew the play and where I was. I answer those like 'bam, bam, bam' right off the bat. I think once when I said I was OK, they kind of figured out I was all right and they let me go. I was fine after that."

On how he felt about his play Saturday
"My performance was well enough to get the "W". I did what they asked me to do and that was manage the game. Not to do anything out of the ordinary. Don't walk around like I have an "S" on my chest and a cape on my back. Just basically get us a "W". That's what I did."

On if he is OK with being a 'game manager'
"Yeah, because in our offense, there is going to be games where we aren't going to have three or four breakout runs that we normally do. Sometimes you're going to have to get in there and throw punches with teams. In that case, you're going to have to manage it. We had to manage the offense in its entirety. We had to do things not asked to do on a normal basis. So I take pride in that the coaches feel they can come to me whenever they need me to manage a situation. Tough situations like we were in."

On what it is like going into a game knowing he cannot get injured because there are no other choices
"It is tough. Real tough. It goes with managing the game. You can't manage the game if you aren't in there and if you get hurt then oh well. We would have been up a creek without a paddle. I was totally OK with running that wildcat position. If threw the defense for a loop. Anytime we can get the better hand of a defense is good. We took advantage of the resources that we had, and we have three great backs between Dontrayevous (Robinson), Roy (Helu Jr.) and Rex (Burkhead). We could throw them all in there at the same time and mess up a defense. I'm OK with it as a quarterback. I do like to run, I am a physical guy and don't mind running in between the tackles when I have to. In that situation, we really have to be careful with our room. I was the last man standing, basically. If I went down, it would have been trouble."

On the player that lined up across from Green in the wildcat
"Really, I could tell that he wasn't sure what to do. He would go out there and act like he wanted to go to the run but if I broke off the ball like I was running a route, he had to come with me. It just seemed like with our receivers, BK (Brandon Kinnie), Niles (Paul) and myself, we are all big guys. Those corners were kind of small. They had to respect the passing game if he showed one. The run game as well."

On if Niles Paul or Brandon Kinnie gave Green any tips
"No, every time I was out there, they would ask me why I didn't throw a cut. Come on. If you throw a cut, it helps us out. They always gave me some stuff about it but as long as I did my job, they didn't mind it."

On throwing out of the open set with five wide receivers
"Yeah, it is a lot easier because you spread a defense out. Unless you have a fast defense that can run all over the place and linebackers that are safeties, it is going to be trouble for them.  You basically put them into a position you want them to be. There was a few times where we ran the same play three times in a row, and I had one option open the first time and they moved a guy to the one I just threw and I threw opposite of that. A defense really can't stop it, just blitz it like they did once. We just had a slight protection error on that. The guys up front had a really rare mistake on that one. They dialed it up at a perfect time. That's the only thing you can do to a five-wide set. Just blitz and hope to get to the quarterback before he gets the ball away. I felt real comfortable back there doing that. "

On how badly he wants to get back to Arlington
"Going back to Dallas Stadium is in the back of all of our minds. We know last time the chips didn't fall into our favor. We really control our destiny here and we have a mindset now that if and when we do go back, we are not going to let it fall into someone elses hands. They will not take the game away from us. We are going to make it be known that we are the champs and this is what we deserve."

On if they are still looking at Kansas this week
"Oh yeah, of course. You can't overlook teams. Kansas as a team is a new coaching staff with players learning what the coaches are selling them. You can see it on film that game after game they are starting to show up within that team. They were down 45-14 or something in the fourth quarter and came back and won against Colorado. That in itself shows the fight in them. They wait for teams to overlook them and they jump up on you. So we can't do that. We can't overlook A&M and Colorado in our next games either."

So Kansas got NU's attention
"Of course. Anytime you have a basketball score like they put up, you have to wonder what happened. On film, they put it on film that they are a good team and if you don't watch out for them, they are going to bite you."

On the difference between last year's and this year's offense
"I think just because we are more comfortable. We have been doing it now for two and a half almost three years within the spread, run, pass. Last year, we kind of tweaked it injury-wise and it led to power running. The seniors on the team have been running it for a while. Us young guys have been running it since high school. And so we just feel comfortable with it and we buy into what the coaches are saying and once you believe that all you have to do is trust it. You see what happens. We get to put up 400 yards rushing in a game or close to 600-yards total offense in a game. Things like that that are mind-boggling if you think about it outside of going in there running the zone-read racking up 300-yards rushing. You tell somebody that, they won't believe you. But with the guys we have, an offensive line that loves to run block, you have Roy and Rex and Trey who don't mind not carrying the ball. They love throwing blocks. And then the receivers corps who love to block as well and catch. Whenever they get the chance, they are going to go all out for it. You put all of that together with our QBs who are athletic, it is a mass weapon of destruction. The coaches put it forth and its fun to be a part of."

How much of Green's unselfishness comes from Offensive Coordinator Shawn Watson
"It has to do with him a lot just because that is how he brought us up. He is straightforward with us and says we always have a place, no matter what that place is. No matter what it is, we have it. We also have a job to do. Really, between me, Zac and Taylor, and even the guys under us like LaTravis (Washington) and Ron Kellog and Brion Carnes, those guys, we all have a place and have bought into that. The selfishness has really gone away from everybody in our room by that whole concept. Once you believe that if I do my job, no matter what it is, and we still win, you don't have to worry about selfish or I want to play. That I's go away and it is we and us. Really, we go in and believe what Watson says and buy into it."

On if Green likes being under the radar compared to Martinez
"I like being under the radar now because I don't have anything to worry about and can go out there and have fun and try to shield some of the stuff off of Taylor. Everybody around here wants that next Eric Crouch and he has the potential to be. He is very gifted. As a older guy, between me and Zac and the guys that can help Taylor out with the things that he is going through, that is one of the things we need to do. We need to shield him and try to tell him 'hey don't worry about this stuff' or people always trying to build him up. The first time you mess up, they're going to try and snatch everything from under you. We try to give to him what the older guys gave to us. Guys like Marlon Lucky, guys like (Ndamukong) Suh that really gave small lessons to us and said that this place is wonderful and will build you up and make you feel like you're on top of the world. But you gotta stay humble and hungry and if you do that, all of the accolades will come."

When did Green have to shield Martinez this year
"One of the biggest times was the Texas game. It was a big one because he was frustrated. With himself, with things going on, we really had to take him in and tell him to take it easy. These things happen, it's football. Basically, open up a  new door to him. Trust me, you're OK. This is just one game. They had an extra week to prepare for you. They had you down pat. Now we have to throw a curve ball to them and change something up. For me, I told him, it happened to me come the Baylor and the OU game. Baylor was all right, and OU had to come in and things just weren't working. We threw a curve ball and put Zac in. We changed the offense up. It happens. South Dakota State game, really not so much. Just because he was just aware of things going on. Like I said, the Texas game was a big one where we as a unit, had to help a guy out. Open a door to him."