Junior Offensive Lineman Matt Farniok Quotes - 8/26

Nebraska Football
Weekly Press Conference
Memorial Stadium (Lincoln, Neb.)
Monday, Aug. 26, 2019
Pre-South Alabama

Matt Farniok
Junior, Offensive Lineman

On being named captain
“Honestly I was honored. This university has a great tradition of great leaders and great men, and my goal is to help embody that and just keep the image that my teammates and my brothers believe in me. I want to make sure that I uphold that standard and prove that they made the right choice.”

On junior running back Dedrick Mills
“I love it. If we give him a hole he is going to hit it. Our backfield… you can’t complain about it. We’ve got what we want and those guys go. If we aren’t on our game, if we aren’t doing it right they will get on us, and same way if they aren’t running that great we are like, 'hey, step it up.' It is a give-and-take relationship, and we love each other for it, we are brothers. All we want is success for everyone around us. It is just an awesome feeling.”

On growing up with four brothers who play football
“Honestly, it gave me examples of how to be a good person and how to motivate people and what it takes to do the right thing. In all reality, doing the right thing kind of sucks. Sometimes you want to make the bad choice, but in the end you have to think, is this the best decision for my brother to my left and my brother to my right? At the end of the day, that is what it comes down to. Are you going to be a selfish person for a quick pleasure or are you going to suffer now for the long-run gains.”

On the fitness of the offensive line
“I would say (Coach Zach) Duval and his staff have done a fantastic job. Everyone is moving better, everyone is quicker, numbers have gone up. It is incredible what he has done. I love it because he doesn’t give you a choice, its either get bigger, get stronger or get faster.”

On fall camp
“Honestly it was just playing football. We didn’t really have time to think of ‘who is going to be here and who is going to do that.’ We just had to go. We didn’t really have a choice to really ever stop. At the end of the day we want to be one of the best O-lines in the country and give our running backs and our quarterback time to make plays because that is what they are, they are playmakers. They are really good at what they do, so if we can do our job correctly then we will have a great production on offense and we will get to where we want to be.”

On redshirt freshman offensive lineman Cam Jurgens
“He is very strong, he knows what he is doing, and he is just really good at what he does. He is able to get tight hands and he makes the calls very well. He is just a good player, and he knows how to play football really well.”

On if the offense feels young
“Honestly, no. A lot of these guys, even if they weren’t playing that much they were already in this offense, they were learning it. It might be a new looking mix but we know what we are doing and the way we have been practicing it feels like we have been doing this for a couple of years. There may not be too many seniors, but the way that we have been attacking everything we are doing it doesn’t feel like we are lacking that senior kind of feel to it. A lot of these guys just seem like they have been playing and doing this for a while now.”

On what Cam Jurgens brings to the team
“Fresh legs. He is really strong and able to get some movement up front, and he’s a good player when it comes down to it.”

On sophomore offensive lineman Trent Hixson being put on scholarship
“It was awesome. He has worked so hard and has been trying to do everything he can like I was saying being a great teammate. His choices truly are the…he’s not going to do anything stupid. He is looking out and he wants to make the best decision for the team. We were so happy for him because he is a man that busts his tail, and he may not always be the most talented person, but he is going to give you everything he’s got and that’s all you can really ask for in a player, and it works out really well and he has been doing a great job, and I am really excited for him this year. I think he is going to do really good.”

On the team's mindset
“We are excited. We are so ready. Like you said we have been waiting, we have been battling with each other. Eventually, when you just keep hitting the same guy over and over again it gets a little repetitive and boring. With the way the year started last year, with the way that it ended last year, we need to figure out what it takes to create a winning habit and creating the right type of environment. You have got to thank some of those senior guys because they truly were a trailblazer, some of them, and we have to be thankful for them but at the end of the day, we are excited. We have seen where we’re headed, and we are just ready to go play. We are all chomping at the bit for Saturday morning.”

On advice to the new players
“Just go play. You have heard our motto ‘desire to excel, no fear of failure when you hesitate you lose.’ Just go. You’re here for a reason, you’re here because you’re a great player. Go prove it. If you make a mistake, that’s football, keep playing.”

On freshman offensive lineman Bryce Benhart
“He has done a great job. He has learned that when you are in high school you can be bigger than everyone so you can kind of get away without the best technique. He has tightened it up and he has gotten a lot better with how he moves his body, his footwork, striking within the frame. He is starting to excel in the tiny details of what it takes to become a good O-lineman and a great O-lineman. I love it. I am so excited for him. He is a great guy, too. He is always eager to learn. He’s another prototype mindset for a lineman. He wants to be the best he can be and he wants to help any way he can.”

NU Athletic Communications