Lucky listed first, but all four I-backs will play
Who’s the starter at running back for the 2006 Nebraska football team?
Maybe this is a better question: Who’s the finisher?
The answer to the latter may give the fans and media a better idea of which of Nebraska’s four talented running backs the NU coaches hold in highest regard.
Who’s running the ball in the fourth quarter of a tie game? Who’s picking up the blitzes when Zac Taylor’s directing a game-winning drive in the final minutes? Who’s the gamer?
“As the season goes along,” Nebraska offensive coordinator Jay Norvell said, “we’ll probably see who rises to the top.”
Saturday’s starter? Well, judging from Tuesday’s weekly press conference, that’s a mere formality. It’ll be the guy who’s on the field for the first play. Duh.
OK, OK … and who exactly will that be?
Watch the season opener against Louisiana Tech and find out.
That’s all Nebraska coach Bill Callahan would say Tuesday, when the hotly discussed item was the fall’s first depth chart.
Sophomore Marlon Lucky is listed first at running back, on the same line with sophomore Cody Glenn. A slash separates their names. Junior Brandon Jackson and junior college transfer Kenny Wilson, also separated by a slash, appear on the second line.
“I couldn’t fit them all on one line,” Callahan said.
This much, according to Callahan, is certain: All four running backs will play. Callahan said he will have a rotation based on play selection and personnel groupings. Which player is on the field for the game’s first play depends on the play call. That, of course, could vary from game to game.
“We all knew it was going to be like that,” Glenn said. “So when the depth chart came out today, (we knew) all of us were probably going to be No. 1.”
Callahan credited running backs coach Randy Jordan for carefully managing a competitive group of backs fighting for playing time. Callahan called the backs “unselfish.”
But with a four-man running back-by-committee approach, is there any worry of unhappiness or discontent as the season wears on?
“There’s probably going to be some,” Glenn said. “With four guys, we’ll probably get the ball maybe 40 (total) times a game, so that’s average, 10 carries a person, and it won’t be that even. Some people will be unhappy some games and they’re going to be happy in other games.
“With the way we’ve got it going, everybody is probably not going to be happy. They’ve just got to know their role and know where we’re going to be as a team, and know there are going to be games like that.”
Callahan, as he has throughout the offseason and during preseason practices, was very cautious in using any words that would indicate separation among the backs.
“It’d be really unfair for me to say one is better than the next,” he said. “I’m not in a comparative mode. I think they all bring something different to the table.”
What if one particular back gets hot in a game? Is the committee at least momentarily shoved aside?
“It’s just going to be a thing we’re going to have to feel and look at how their rhythm is going and how we’re doing collectively as an offense,” Callahan said. “We’ll have a good plan for that.”
Said Norvell: “We’ll try to get them lathered up. We’re not going to rotate a different guy every play, but they’ll all get their opportunities. The guys who are running well will get more touches.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
Maybe this is a better question: Who’s the finisher?
The answer to the latter may give the fans and media a better idea of which of Nebraska’s four talented running backs the NU coaches hold in highest regard.
Who’s running the ball in the fourth quarter of a tie game? Who’s picking up the blitzes when Zac Taylor’s directing a game-winning drive in the final minutes? Who’s the gamer?
“As the season goes along,” Nebraska offensive coordinator Jay Norvell said, “we’ll probably see who rises to the top.”
Saturday’s starter? Well, judging from Tuesday’s weekly press conference, that’s a mere formality. It’ll be the guy who’s on the field for the first play. Duh.
OK, OK … and who exactly will that be?
Watch the season opener against Louisiana Tech and find out.
That’s all Nebraska coach Bill Callahan would say Tuesday, when the hotly discussed item was the fall’s first depth chart.
Sophomore Marlon Lucky is listed first at running back, on the same line with sophomore Cody Glenn. A slash separates their names. Junior Brandon Jackson and junior college transfer Kenny Wilson, also separated by a slash, appear on the second line.
“I couldn’t fit them all on one line,” Callahan said.
This much, according to Callahan, is certain: All four running backs will play. Callahan said he will have a rotation based on play selection and personnel groupings. Which player is on the field for the game’s first play depends on the play call. That, of course, could vary from game to game.
“We all knew it was going to be like that,” Glenn said. “So when the depth chart came out today, (we knew) all of us were probably going to be No. 1.”
Callahan credited running backs coach Randy Jordan for carefully managing a competitive group of backs fighting for playing time. Callahan called the backs “unselfish.”
But with a four-man running back-by-committee approach, is there any worry of unhappiness or discontent as the season wears on?
“There’s probably going to be some,” Glenn said. “With four guys, we’ll probably get the ball maybe 40 (total) times a game, so that’s average, 10 carries a person, and it won’t be that even. Some people will be unhappy some games and they’re going to be happy in other games.
“With the way we’ve got it going, everybody is probably not going to be happy. They’ve just got to know their role and know where we’re going to be as a team, and know there are going to be games like that.”
Callahan, as he has throughout the offseason and during preseason practices, was very cautious in using any words that would indicate separation among the backs.
“It’d be really unfair for me to say one is better than the next,” he said. “I’m not in a comparative mode. I think they all bring something different to the table.”
What if one particular back gets hot in a game? Is the committee at least momentarily shoved aside?
“It’s just going to be a thing we’re going to have to feel and look at how their rhythm is going and how we’re doing collectively as an offense,” Callahan said. “We’ll have a good plan for that.”
Said Norvell: “We’ll try to get them lathered up. We’re not going to rotate a different guy every play, but they’ll all get their opportunities. The guys who are running well will get more touches.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
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