Garrett Nelson Quotes - 8-21-22

Garrett Nelson
Nebraska Edge

On Frost saying the edge group is the strongest position
“Going back to earlier in my career it was probably the weakest position. Having that comment come out really says a lot about our guys, our coach, and our room and how much went into making that position group the strongest position on the field. It says a lot about that room that two guys are captains. It makes me proud to be in that room and proud to represent that and have that change happen at that position.”
 
On his emotions about being named a captain
“It was pretty surreal. Doing it with Nick (Henrich), he’s been there for me and for each other before college. He’s been my roommate every year, and we have been with each other side by side each step of the way and when both of us got named captains there was a tear or two shed and a big hug. It’s an honor. It’s pretty easy when you have a great group of guys. It says a lot that out of those great groups of guys that they want you to lead them into games and into adversity and be the voice of the team.”
 
On his aspirations to be a captain
“Being a captain is always something that has interested me. My biggest interest has always been being the best teammate I could be. Captain or no captain, we have four guys named but 20 other dudes who are leaders on this team who can do a phenomenal job at every position offensive and defensive. It’s awesome and I’m honored, and I can’t believe that I got named. Those four guys that want to be the best teammate, best friend to everybody and the best leader they could be in any situation, and they got recognized for that and it’s unbelievable.”
 
On Caleb Tannor’s growth
“When it started off, he was kind of a hot mess. He was a problem guy and was always on the accountability list or doing something wrong. It seemed like there was outside stuff going on, but the last couple years he’s really focused, and it says a lot for him coming back and being the best player he can be, best teammate he can be, talking to dudes, mentoring dudes and being the voice and saying something when I’m not. He’s grown and turned a new leaf. I’ve even talked about him with my parents. They ask about him and I tell them about his progress and they’re amazed and everybody is. He’s done a great job and I love him as a teammate, he’s been my partner in crime. You know in cop shows they have a partner. They go in the car together all the time, I look on the side of the field and he’s always been there. When Coach Dawson came it really changed things. He told him things he needed to hear, and I needed to hear some things I was told, along with everybody in that room. He works at it pretty much every day and he’s awesome. I couldn’t be more proud of him.”
 
On Caleb Tannor’s on-field ability
“If you’re on Twitter you can see him just laying out tackles in his pass rush, so he has the ability to do that which is solid. He’s probably the fastest if not one of the fastest players on this team and when you have that off the edge it’s pretty dangerous. He can run down ball carriers, throw tackles on the ground during a power move, and he can spin and run just about anywhere with the motor he has. He brings a lot on the field and teams definitely look out for that with game plans and say this No. 2 character is a special athlete off the edge. That’s kind of dangerous when you have him then me then Ochaun (Mathis) then Blaise (Gunnerson) then Jimari (Butler). Teams definitely watch out for number two.”
 
On going against one of the Big Ten’s best tackles
“That’s why you play in this league. In the Big Ten every week you’re going to have the best offensive linemen in the country. I’ve always been talking about how much I’ve improved my pass rush. This is a great test out of the gate. It’s been on my mind for a while. I’m really excited, that’s why you’re in this league and I’m really excited for the opportunity.”

On what Ochaun Mathis has added to the team
“He’s come in and added another element to our defense. We can do so many things with those edge guys. When you have three or four guys who know the defense and can put them anywhere, it’s pretty sweet and to see the genius Coach Chinander can do. He’s done a great job coming in and learning the defense. There was a little bit of a curve, but after that curve he’s done a phenomenal job learning and asking questions. You’d watch film every day and all of a sudden one day it just clicked. He’s strung together a lot of good practices with very little mistakes. He’s developed his pass rush game and his moves. He’s always a strong athlete. He’s a really good pass rusher. He’s done a phenomenal job fitting into our defense as a piece. It is cool to watch him do his stuff. It’s nice to have competition in the room and what he does and how he goes against our tackles and goes against our pass rushes and picks up little pieces from that. It’s a collaborative group of guys that are figuring out how we can be the best pass rushers.”
 
On things he’s looking forward to in Ireland
“Winning the game.”
 
On Nebraska’s quarterback depth
“Those guys can all sling it. They’re all ballplayers which is awesome. They have different assets just like with any player, one guy may be faster or quicker but they’re all incredible athletes that can run and throw really well. With any room we have a lot of depth at a ton of positions that a lot of guys can play. It’s exciting with all the pieces that we can put together on offense and defense.
 
On the defensive line development
“They’re taking a big step and that’s another part about being a captain or leader is that I didn’t have that, so I had to figure it out on my own. I swore I would never let these younger guys, whenever I got to this spot, feel the way that I did when I came in, getting thrown out to the wolves and figuring it out. So, I’m going to try my hardest and do my best to teach those guys this is how you watch film, this is how you practice, not saying that they need a complete overhaul but just things I wish I would’ve heard. They’ve developed really well and I’m excited to watch them play.”
 
On things he wishes he was told as a younger player
“How to learn a defense. What different words mean, how to watch film, break down different offenses, and how to be a good college football player. I had to figure that out mostly by myself, but like I said with Coach Dawson coming in, it has accelerated that and I finally had somebody tell me what I needed to hear.”
 
On controlling things in his life outside of football
“Control the controllables. This team does a really good job of that, and yeah, we’re going overseas which is wicked. You could focus on the giant plane ride and the weird conditions, and you know Ireland rains all the time. We’ll focus on being with each other and controlling the walkthrus, practices, and our mindset going into this game. You kind of have to be even more uber-focused on what we can do as players and leaders to bring everybody in and get them to focus on what they need to. Instead of we’re going to a different country, we’re going to be on a plane, we’re going to be doing weird stuff over there. Just reining everybody in and keeping the focus of what are you looking forward to, and that’s winning the game.”
 
On keeping guys locked in but relaxed
“That’s kind of a fine line. You don’t want to be messing around or not focused but don’t want to be too tight and hold onto the stick and crash into the mountain. We’ve kind of fallen into that because we know the stakes and what’s riding on it and that’s great because it elevates our play and focus. However, when you start looking at things to not hit, you usually end up hitting them instead of looking for the path to success. As a leader I just want guys to know yeah there are a lot of stakes and pressure, but we’ve done the training and work and need to go do it when a different color is on the field. We can’t control what they’re going to do, but we can control how we focus and play so displaying that to the team and each other is the most important. Yes, let’s be focused and locked in to how important this game is, but at the end of the day we’re playing football and hitting dudes and creating interceptions so that’s pretty fun. You have to laugh and enjoy that.”
NU Athletic Communications