Husker freshmen taking baby steps
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BY STEVEN M. SIPPLE / Lincoln Journal Star
They had big plans for Leon Jackson, those Internet football recruiting gurus.
He would play immediately at Nebraska, they said. He was fast, explosive, precocious, ready to shine.
“When I read all of that stuff, it got me excited,” Jackson said. “Everyone had big plans for me. But those big plans don’t always happen in the first year. I got here and I was like, ‘Man, which big plan do they have for me now? I’m sitting here on the sideline.’
“The coaches say that my time could come any day. I just have to have my head ready for it. I’m usually not a patient guy, but I have to be now.”
The same holds true for most of the other heavily hyped freshmen in Nebraska’s vaunted 2005 recruiting class. Harrison Beck. Marlon Lucky. Phillip Dillard. Chris Brooks. None of them have cracked the starting lineup. In fact, Beck, a quarterback, hasn’t played a snap. Dillard, a linebacker, has but four tackles. Brooks, a wideout, hasn’t caught a pass.
With the exception of starting place-kicker Jordan Congdon, the most highly touted of the Huskers’ true freshmen have played reserve roles, with I-backs Cody Glenn and Lucky and defensive end Barry Turner making the biggest impact through six games.
Nebraska, for the most part, has taken a patient approach with the school-record 11 true freshmen who’ve seen action this season. While storied programs like Penn State and Oklahoma have thrust several true freshmen into prominent roles this season, the Huskers have surged to a 5-1 record using rookies primarily on special teams or in backup roles behind older players, or both.
In short, Nebraska has allowed its young guns to take baby steps on the way to critical roles.
“I think back to all of the things that were said during training camp about these young players,” Nebraska coach Bill Callahan said this week. “They’re finding themselves. They’re getting more comfortable with their execution. They’re getting more confident in what they’re being asked to do because they can see the picture a little more clearly now.”
Callahan doesn’t rule out playing more true freshmen this season depending on circumstances. The Huskers’ 29-player 2005 recruiting class featured 17 freshmen.
Said Jackson, a third-string safety who contributes on special teams: “It’s hard waiting your turn, but even if we’re not playing, we know we are the future. We have to get prepared.”
***
Nebraska’s freshmen lean on each other for support and feed off of each other’s talent. They celebrate their little victories.
For instance, when Jackson made a teeth-rattling tackle on the opening kickoff two weeks ago against Texas Tech, Lucky jumped up and down on the sideline in a fit of joy.
“Whenever one us freshmen get in a game, we all get excited,” Jackson said. “When you walk around this campus, you’re going to see at least five of us together. We try to hang tight as much as possible.”
Jackson and Lucky have become particularly close, in part because Jackson has a car and Lucky doesn’t.
Lucky and Beck arguably were the most hyped players in the 2005 class. Lucky, an I-back, said he read glowing Internet reports about his prowess on the field. He said he took note of recruiting experts’ high expectations for him this season. However, he said it became clear after the second game he would play a backup role this season.
“Cory’s here, Brandon’s here,” said Lucky, referring to senior Cory Ross and sophomore Brandon Jackson. “I have to be patient. I am patient. I’m still practicing hard.”
Glenn and Lucky both have been nudged along slowly by coaches. Each has a small package of plays designed specifically for him for each game. It appears their roles may be on the verge of expanding, as the 5-6, 195-pound Ross limped off the field in the fourth quarter in each of the last two games. One must wonder if Ross can continue to carry as heavy a load as he has thus far.
The 6-foot, 230-pound Glenn, of Rusk, Texas, has carried the ball 12 times in each of the last two games for a combined 80 yards and two touchdowns. He’s a power runner who moves the pile in short-yardage situations, while Lucky is a speedy, slashing runner. On the season, the North Hollywood, Calif., native has 26 carries for 84 yards — not the kind of numbers one might expect from, according to Rivals.com, the nation’s No. 2-rated high school running back last season.
Lucky and Glenn both have had to learn to block, especially in pass protection. Both also have encountered the normal adjustments that many college freshmen endure.
“When I came here in the summer, I really didn’t like it too much,” Lucky said. “There was nobody here. I was like, ‘Man, where are all the girls at? They’re not here.’”
Of course, that all changed once classes began and dormitories filled.
Glenn, ranked by Rivals.com as the nation’s No. 28 prep running back last year, said he’s had to adjust to living in a much larger community than Rusk (population 5,000). His transition was eased during the summer months because, before moving into the dorms, he lived off-campus with Nebraska junior left guard Greg Austin and Brandon Jackson. They took in the rookie, showed him the ropes, beat him in dominoes.
However, “When I left home last summer for the last time, it was very hard,” Glenn said. “That’s all you’ve known all your life. Then, suddenly, you’re set to go somewhere different. You’re by yourself. You know people but you really don’t know them. It’s a big change.”
Meanwhile, Turner, of suburban Nashville, Tenn., has had little-to-no trouble with the adjustment to big-time college football, he said. He’s comfortable in a college environment. Comfortable in Lincoln (though he occasionally misses greasy Southern food, he said). He obviously was ready to play from a physical standpoint — the 6-3, 250-pound player has nine tackles, including four sacks, while playing mostly in obvious passing situations.
“I can adjust to any circumstance or condition,” Turner said flatly.
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Penn State had just beaten Northwestern 34-29 on true freshman wideout Derrick Williams’ 36-yard touchdown catch with 51 seconds remaining. A handful of Nittany Lion true freshmen, including place-kicker Kevin Kelly and wideout/defensive back Justin King, contributed to the Sept. 24 triumph.
“So, you’re 100 percent comfortable with all of these freshmen running around the field?” an ESPN sideline reporter asked Penn State coach Joe Paterno moments after the final gun.
“Not really,” Paterno said with a chuckle.
Meanwhile, Nebraska fans might remember Reggie Smith. A native of Edmond, Okla., Smith narrowed his final list of college choices to Nebraska and Oklahoma last spring before selecting the Sooners. Now, he’s among nine true freshmen contributing for OU, 3-3 overall and 2-1 in the Big 12 entering tonight’s game against Baylor.
Oklahoma, in fact, started two true freshmen — Smith and Nic Harris — at the safety positions Oct. 8 against blood-rival Texas. Last week against Kansas, the Sooners’ offense at one point had seven true freshmen on the field at once.
“There’s a maturity factor for them, and it has to happen quickly,” Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops said. “But there are some things you can’t experience until you’re in a ballgame.”
Like Penn State, Oklahoma — which plays Nebraska next week in Lincoln — is using first-year freshmen out of necessity. According to the Daily Oklahoman, only two of 24 players in the Sooners’ 2003 recruiting class are starting, and only 11 are still on the team. What’s more, OU’s dip in talent can be traced to losing 10 players to the NFL draft from last year’s 12-1 team.
Nebraska, meanwhile, has just enough talent in the system that the Huskers don’t have to lean hard on a lot of true freshmen. At least not yet.
Consequently, players like Leon Jackson can afford to watch and take notes — and wait for their time to shine.
“I’m learning off of the older guys this year so I can take that knowledge into next year,” Jackson said.
Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.
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