Carter an Electric Extension of Coach Cav's O-Line

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Carter Helps Nebraska Roll to 31-14 Win at Rutgers

Randy York N-Sider

Official Blog of the Huskers

Somehow, it was only fitting that tight end Cethan Carter was Nebraska’s breakout performer who sparked the Huskers' 31-14 win over Rutgers Saturday night in Piscataway, N.J. Carter is, after all, considered a vital extension of Nebraska’s emerging offensive line that continues to grow under the tough yet tender tutelage of Mike Cavanaugh, a.k.a. "Coach Cav".

In helping to prevent Rutgers from earning a 10th bowl bid in the last 11 years, Carter, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound junior from Metairie, La., had a 32-yard touchdown run to open the scoring in the first quarter. The 32-yard rush was the longest by a tight end in the FBS ranks this season and the first carry for a touchdown by a Husker tight end since at least 1971. Carter added an 11-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter, marking his second receiving touchdown of the season and the third of his career. It was a good day for Carter and another productive performance from Cavanaugh's offensive line, which deserves the N-Sider spotlight and a fan’s look at the anatomy of what Cavanaugh’s leadership has created to support first-year Nebraska Coach Mike Riley.

Imani Cross another Major Benefactor from Nebraska’s Evolving O-Line

Senior I-back Imani Cross (Gainesville, Ga., native and No. 32 pictured above) was another major benefactor from Nebraska’s evolving offensive line. Cross rushed for 90 yards and a 4.5-yard per carry average Saturday. Freshman Devine Ozigbo (Sachse, Texas) contributed 33 yards rushing on only two carries that helped solidify 174 overall rushing yards and a 4.6-yard per carry average. Coach Cav’s O-line also protected Tommy Armstrong Jr., who threw three touchdown passes and increased his career touchdown total to 52, only four short of tying Taylor Martinez's school record 56 TD passes

Nebraska also had three rushes that covered 30 or more yards against Rutgers. Entering the game, Nebraska had only five carries that went for 30 or more yards in the first 10 games of the season, another guidepost for the offensive line’s evolution.

Productivity, of course, is contingent on what’s up front. That’s why this weekend’s Husker N-Sider takes a closer look at what makes Cavanaugh tick and how he relates to an offensive line that loves playing for him, fighting for the team, and moving the Huskers to bigger and better moments. Please read on to understand the camaraderie, chemistry and character that provide the pillars for the remainder of this season and the autumns that follow.

Passion and Technique Motivate Offensive Line Coach Mike Cavanaugh

"Everybody’s passions are different, and my passion is coaching the offensive line. I really love the part that involves technique. To me, its teaching guys how to block," said Cavanaugh (pictured above at a Husker practice). "There are so many different ways to block. There’s a drive block, a reach block and all the zone combinations, including double-team combinations for gap plays. I love teaching how to block people…the footwork, how you strike, the posture and your feet underneath your block. When I first got here, I told our players that our technique and confidence are going to be our separator. We’ve grown and need to continue to grow. We’ve improved but we’re not at a point where we’re content.”

Here are Cavanaugh’s quick-hitting takes on the five Husker offensive line starters:

Coach Cav on left tackle Alex Lewis: "He's really bought in. His hands are way better. He’s done a great job on his run blocks with his elbows in and striking and driving his knees in his block. He’s really bought into pass pro, too. I’m a heavy outside hands guy. Some guys teach an inside shoulder point. I’ve never believed in that. I think your shoulders get in the way. Alex has done a nice job of getting people’s hands off of him. He’s just keeps getting better.”

Coach Cav on left guard Dylan Utter:“He’s a very tough guy, smart, guy, just a dirt devil or a dirt dog, however you want to say it. I just love the toughness that he brings. He’s another guy that I think has improved with his hands. I know this. He likes to go to war. He likes to battle. He’s going to go 15 rounds every time he steps on the field.”

Coach Cav on center Ryne Reeves: “Ryne (No. 65 above) is probably the smartest guy I’ve been around. I mean, this isn’t an easy system, and he learned it very quickly. I’ve had guys that take three years to learn it. He’s up in my office all the time because learning is so important to him. The quarterback’s job is huge, but the center’s job is as huge as the quarterback. The preparation Ryne puts in is tremendous. He’s a physical guy. He’s worked hard on his posture in pass-pro. When you play with one hand up your butt, your other hand has to be exceptional.”

Coach Cav on right guard Zach Sterup: “Zach has done a great job. He’s improved tremendously. Zach really that didn’t go in spring practice either, but he works hard on his craft didn’t really get to do much last spring that’s. It’s been fun to watch his growth. He has that drive, you know what I mean?  If you don’t have that drive, then you’re not going to be as good as you can be. You’ve got to love what you’re doing, and that’s why Zach has improved.”

Coach Cav on right tackle Nick Gates:“Nick was doing really good things before he got hurt and it took him awhile to get back to where he was. Once he was able to bend his knees a little bit better, he became a much tougher finisher. He loves the game. He’s a real competitor. Not many redshirt freshmen start in the Big Ten. But he’s worked hard and earned the job. He has three more years of eligibility after this year.”

Coach Cav’s bottom line:“We have guys who are playing with more fire and gaining more confidence," said Cavanaugh (pictured above with Dylan Utter). They’re a pretty good group and keep getting better. Every week is a fistfight. Nothing’s easy in this conference or in any other conferences out there. Your mentality has to be, ‘Hey I’m ready to go’ and the focus has to be there. You have to physically wear down your opponent. We talk about breaking people’s wills. The Big Ten is very physical, so you have to punch people in the nose (figuratively) over and over again. I want to see the kind of offensive line that puts this team on their backs. I want the O-line to be a rough, tough kind of group that brings’ their lunch pails and really gets after it. Every day, Mike Riley talks about game film being the tool that measures your progress. Our mentality, preparation and classroom time have been great. We all want to get better.”

Lewis (No. 71 above), Utter, Reeves, Sterup and Gates Describe Their Roles

Now that you're equipped with Coach Cav's takes, let’s listen to all five Husker offensive line starters and how they look at the world while beginning the countdown to the annual Nebraska-Iowa Heroes Game in Lincoln the Friday after Thanksgiving:

Left tackle Alex Lewis, 6-6, 290, senior, Tempe, Ariz.

“We’reexcited with the way we’ve been able to run the ball. We weren’t going to back down from Michigan State. We figured we’d run right at them and see what we could do and since it was working, didn’t stop. Winning that game at the end was fun. Everybody got rowdy because we just kept believing. I love Coach Cav. He’s a great coach and improved every one of us.

"Everyone respects him and we look forward to working for him every day. The way Zach stepped up at right guard was big time for us. He’s played well for us all year. It was fun to see him go out there and enjoy it. He did it with no questions asked and we look forward to seeing him out there again. The Rutgers game was a big deal for our family. We had 32 sisters, cousins, uncles, aunts, great aunts and great uncles who got their tickets together.”

Left guard Dylan Utter (No. 66 above), 6-1, 285, junior, Papillion, Neb.

“Coach Cavanaugh has so much passion. He’s been preaching all year how offensive lines should lead any team. We’ve taken it upon ourselves to lead this offense. It’s our job to get the ball outside for guys to make plays. We talk about technique every day. Coach Cav is always giving us different tools to put in our toolbox. The range of things he’s taught us really enhances our abilities to make plays and open up holes.

"He motivates us to go out there and work on our technique every day," said Utter, pictured above with Cavanaugh. "Everybody brings something to the table. Alex lets his game speak for itself. Reeves is the brains. He allows us to go to the right guy and declares all the pass-pros and run declarations. Gates is always flying around, and Sterup brings a positive attitude to the room. So does Chongo Kondolo. He’s started a lot of games for us and is always in a happy mood. He’s just a real positive guy and puts in just as much heart and effort as we do. When we see that, that just makes us respect him even more.”

Center Ryne Reeves, 6-3, 300, senior, Crete, Neb.

“We’re playing as a unit, communicating and clicking. I’m glad we could play on the East Coast. We have a lot of family that lives in the Washington D.C. area, so we had a mixture of both at Rutgers. Coach Cav really cares about everything. He cares about the players. I get to spend a lot of time with him when we watch film. He’s just a genuine good guy, and I think that all ties into why he’s a good coach. Playing in the offensive line is all about your attitude and what you do.

"We look at (junior tight end) Cethan Carter as one of our own, just like we see Sam Cotton, David Sutton and Trey Foster. We consider them part of the offensive line. They’re all a part of the camaraderie, and they’re a big part of our success in the run game. Beating Rutgers is huge because we finally won back-to-back games. We’re a better team than what our record shows and we need to continue to play off the momentum we’ve created, beating Michigan State at home and then winning a road game.”

Right guard Zach Sterup (No. 57 above), 6-8, 320, senior, Hastings, Neb.

“We’ve been busting our tails every play. Rutgers has a pretty good defensive line and front seven, but we prepared well. We’ve had good practices and are getting more comfortable together. Throwing me in there at guard put me next to Nick (Gates) and Ryne (Reeves). I think more about my next assignment than playing a new position. Coach Cav has a good idea of what works and he’s developed a lot of guys. We just buy in and we trust him. I think my hands are a lot better than they’ve ever been. We work a lot of technique with our hands and punching and snatching people. I’m down to my last game against Iowa with a bowl game at stake. We’re in-sync with our tight ends and they’re in-sync with us. Love the opportunity to play. It’s getting toward the end. My mom went to New York early, saw the 9/11 memorial, went shopping and got to see us win. It was like a little vacation for her.”  

Right tackle Nick Gates, 6-5, 290, redshirt freshman, Las Vegas, Nev. 

“Before the past couple games, our line hasn’t been consistent. That was kind of our weakness. We’re playing with good passion now, I believe. That’s probably the biggest difference. We knew if we didn’t beat Michigan State and Rutgers, we wouldn’t have a chance at a bowl game. Proving our identity as an O-line is a big part of our comeback. If we continue to play like we’re capable of playing, it’s going to be hard to beat us. Consistency and passion are the keys to keep winning. Learning goes beyond football.  You can talk to Coach Cav about anything. If you’re having trouble at home, having trouble at school, you can go up to his office and he’ll drop everything he has going on a just to talk to you. We have to finish the season the best we can. We have to put whatever we have left in our tank and move this program forward.”

Will Shields, Milt Tenopir: O-Line Sets the Tone, Determines Outcome 

To help fans realize the fundamental significance of the offensive line, we turn to College and Pro Football Hall-of-Famer Will Shields, pictured above with Milt Tenopir, his offensive line coach at Nebraska. "The offensive and defensive lines are always key," Shields told me. "They dictate what happens because everything you do affects what happens. When I talked to our offensive line the day before a game a few weeks ago, I just told the guys if your favorite thing is to run the ball, when Tommy Armstrong calls the runs, you have to make it happen, even if you’re facing an eight-man front or something else of that nature. You haeve to will that play to happen because if you don’t, he may never call it again just because the first time didn't work. It all depends on your mentality and what you're trying to create. That's first and foremost. Once you know that, it sets the tone for everything else you do. As an offensive lineman, your job is to set the tone for anything you need to call and get done. The mindset should always be 'we can get it done and we will make it happen'. I’m not necessarily saying that it's perfect. It never is, but what you can do is make up for some things simply by working together. Do your part. Make it a little easier. Make it a little better. Understand what people can and can't do and do whatever works."

Tenopir, now retired, has become a good friend of Coach Cavanaugh. "He's a teacher. That’s what I like most," Tenopir said. "I like to watch him work because he’s so zeroed in on technique. He coaches the same way we taught – continuous repetition on the same old technique. Coach Cav is so down to earth. We’ve become friends. We’re close because of our occupation. We like each other, understand each other. He’s been successful because he knows how to bring kids along. He remembers meeting me 30 years ago in Boston, but I don’t remember that. I just know this new staff wants to replicate the way we controlled the line of scrimmage. We discuss technique a lot. We’re very similar in the way we teach. They strive to get better every day. They’ve used the fullback a little bit more and fans relate back to that day. It’s a surprise element. It doesn’t always work but when it does, the whole stadium screams…they explode. It excites me. In fact, I whooped it up when I saw the fullback trap. I thought they were going to throw me out of the press box. I have to watch that.”

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