From the Blog, 10/1: Kansas
1. What happened after Nebraska’s lights-out first quarter. Did the Huskers go to sleep or did Kansas make major adjustments?
Safety Andrew Shanle credited the Jayhawks for having a complex package that was hard to prepare for. Just the same, the Blackshirts went from looking like they’d score an early knockout to hanging on for dear life.
Kansas quarterback Adam Barmann, playing like a backup who has nothing to lose, got hot throwing underneath routes, and when running back Jon Cornish got revved up, Barmann was on the money with his deep throws.
You could think that cornerbacks Andre Jones and Cortney Grixby were napping, but it’s a lot harder to play single coverage when the quarterback is under little pressure and can see the entire field.
2. Why does Cortney Grixby play so far off the receivers? Is it because he is so short and wants to keep the players in front of him?
The 5-foot-9 Grixby has been hearing about his size all his life, but that has nothing to do with where he positions himself. Kansas had showed a tendency to try and get defensive backs to bite on a stop-and-go move, and the Huskers simply didn’t want to give up an easy score.
At the same time, cornerback coach Phil Elmassian acknowledged that Grixby could have been more aggressive.
“At the point of attack, there have been some misjudgments,” Elmassian said. “He’s a competitive guy. He’s got a 39-inch vertical jump, he’s got to bring it.”
3. Do the coaches believe we’re having success with our kickoff? I don’t think we’re having a lot of success in this segment of the game.
Apparently there is no panic with the Cornhusker coaching staff. Bill Busch, the special teams coach, said, of Jordan Congdon, “He is very accurate and gives the guys a chance. The trade off is accuracy for strength. We covered well tonight except for the first kickoff return. (Marcus Herford 27-yard return). We were sixth in the NCAA at 14 yards per return and tonight it was 15.2 yards per return. Sure, we’d like to have a few things different but the kids we have out there love to play, love to hit and are fun to watch. If you put a defensive starter out there and he’s in on six kickoffs, that can take a lot out of him.”
Safety Andrew Shanle credited the Jayhawks for having a complex package that was hard to prepare for. Just the same, the Blackshirts went from looking like they’d score an early knockout to hanging on for dear life.
Kansas quarterback Adam Barmann, playing like a backup who has nothing to lose, got hot throwing underneath routes, and when running back Jon Cornish got revved up, Barmann was on the money with his deep throws.
You could think that cornerbacks Andre Jones and Cortney Grixby were napping, but it’s a lot harder to play single coverage when the quarterback is under little pressure and can see the entire field.
2. Why does Cortney Grixby play so far off the receivers? Is it because he is so short and wants to keep the players in front of him?
The 5-foot-9 Grixby has been hearing about his size all his life, but that has nothing to do with where he positions himself. Kansas had showed a tendency to try and get defensive backs to bite on a stop-and-go move, and the Huskers simply didn’t want to give up an easy score.
At the same time, cornerback coach Phil Elmassian acknowledged that Grixby could have been more aggressive.
“At the point of attack, there have been some misjudgments,” Elmassian said. “He’s a competitive guy. He’s got a 39-inch vertical jump, he’s got to bring it.”
3. Do the coaches believe we’re having success with our kickoff? I don’t think we’re having a lot of success in this segment of the game.
Apparently there is no panic with the Cornhusker coaching staff. Bill Busch, the special teams coach, said, of Jordan Congdon, “He is very accurate and gives the guys a chance. The trade off is accuracy for strength. We covered well tonight except for the first kickoff return. (Marcus Herford 27-yard return). We were sixth in the NCAA at 14 yards per return and tonight it was 15.2 yards per return. Sure, we’d like to have a few things different but the kids we have out there love to play, love to hit and are fun to watch. If you put a defensive starter out there and he’s in on six kickoffs, that can take a lot out of him.”
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