Garrett Nelson Quotes - 10-25-22

Garrett Nelson
Nebraska Edge
Pre-Illinois
Press Conference

On coming off the bye week
"This was kind of the halfway point and having a rest right in the middle to kind of get your body and your mind right was huge. Especially with how physical the conference is and especially being a down guy getting hit every play. It is nice for everybody." 

On Illinois' physicality 
"That is what you watch the Big Ten for is big physical teams. As a defense, understanding what you need to do and understanding your opponent. (Coach Bret) Bielema being from Wisconsin, doing a lot of big guy, gap scheme stuff and now with Illinois, it is still a little bit of that but with a little zone mixed in with it. They want to be physical up front with their tight ends and offensive linemen. Obviously, (Chase Brown) back there is a really good running back. They are going to lean on that for their offense." 

On the difference from this year's Illinois' team from previous years
"With a new head coach and offensive coordinator, it is a little more old school Wisconsin style. They want to be physical upfront and run the ball. Their offense and their quarterback, they do a great job at managing the game. Their defense is really good. They don't want to jeopardize that and those guys playing well. They do a good job controlling the game and controlling what they can control on offense and giving it to the playmakers." 

On Nebraska's rush defense 
"If we can stop the run and if we can tackle. Those are probably the biggest things. We have to be physical up front. That is our job. I have to be able to knock back these big guys and create some lanes and get off some blocks for our linebackers to get through and get some tackles for loss. 

NU Athletic Communications