QB Beck skips practice
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BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL and STEVEN M. SIPPLE / Lincoln Journal Star
Nebraska sophomore quarterback Harrison Beck, apparently upset over lack of practice time, skipped Saturday’s practice, only the Huskers’ third of the season.
Coaches were initially concerned they couldn’t locate Beck, who was with the team in the morning but disappeared shortly after noon. Evelyn Beck-Bothwell, Beck’s mother, said her son text-messaged her late Saturday afternoon with the message, “I’m safe.”
Beck-Bothwell said from Florida her son has been frustrated because he’s not getting enough practice repetitions. She said junior Joey Ganz is receiving the brunt of the snaps behind senior returning starter Zac Taylor.
“It’d be different if (Beck) was sitting behind Matt Leinart or Brady Quinn,” Beck-Bothwell said. “Zac’s OK; I wish him all the best, but he’s just OK. The bottom line is, my son isn’t learning anything. He’s just on his own. If he got more time and attention from the coaches, he would be ahead of (Taylor). That’s just my opinion, but I’m his mother.
“He knows that playbook. It’s just an issue of not getting respect from the older players.”
Callahan, who addressed the media after practice regarding Beck’s absence, said through Nebraska media relations that he didn’t want to respond to Beck-Bothwell’s comments until he had a chance to talk to Beck.
Calls from the Journal Star to Beck’s cell phone late Saturday afternoon went directly to voice mail.
After practice, Callahan said Beck had given no indication of unhappiness.
“No, not at all,” Callahan said. “I’ve talked to the players about it, and it really comes as a real surprise and shock to all of us right now.”
How had Beck been performing during the first two practices?
“Pretty good,” Callahan said. “Really, very well, in fact. We’ve been very encouraged.”
At Thursday’s press conference to open Nebraska’s fall camp, sophomore running back Cody Glenn said Beck had been working on becoming more focused.
“Harrison, he’s the kind of guy who’s got all of the physical tools, he can throw it a mile, he can throw it harder than anybody else I’ve seen in my life,” Glenn said. “But he has to mature a little more. You saw it a lot during 7-on-7 stuff this past summer, how he’d come in and take control and try to be more of a leader, as opposed to last year, where he kind of goofed off and jacked around. This year, it’s like a totally different Harrison.”
Beck played in two games last season as a true freshman, completing 1 of 10 passes with an interception. He missed the latter half of the spring season and sat out the Red-White Spring Game with a sore shoulder.
Beck reported to fall camp healthy and in improved shape, having lost some 20 to 25 pounds. He also was unleashing strong throws in practice.
“He’s been looking good,” Nebraska receiver Nate Swift said after Saturday’s practice. “I mean, he had his arm strength back from his shoulder injury. He was looking good. He was looking crisp out here and running the offense pretty good. I didn’t think he had anything to be mad about, you know. I don’t know what’s going on.”
Did Beck give any indication to players that he was unhappy?
“He hasn’t said anything to me,” Swift said, “and I haven’t heard him say anything to anybody else.”
Beck was a prep standout at Countryside High School in Clearwater, Fla., and was ranked by Rivals.com as the nation’s No. 3 pro-style quarterback and the 20th-best prospect in the state of Florida. He was among the first players to commit to Nebraska’s 2005 recruiting class, giving his oral commitment in June of 2004. He turned down offers from Florida, Florida State and Miami.
“Maybe if he would’ve stayed in the SEC, he would’ve been playing,” Beck-Bothwell said. “Maybe he made the wrong decision, I don’t know.
“I know he has some growing up to do, but it’s not like he’s getting in trouble. He’s doing everything he’s supposed to do.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com. Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.
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