Impressions from Nebraska's spring game:
- What a gorgeous day. My worst fear was that I'd drive 400 some-odd miles, have thunderstorms roll in, have the game cancelled or postponed and I'd see nothing. Thank you, God.
- The quarterbacks looked pretty decent. Steve Sipple thinks so, as does Steve at Big Red Network and Tad at Huskerpedia. All three looked pretty decent, as decent as you can when you're wearing a green jersey, not allowed to scramble nor afraid of being hit by a defensive linemen or linebacker.
Latravis Washington looked fairly natural in his new position. Some have indicated they feel like he'll switch back come fall, but I seriously doubt it. He's one injury away from potentially starting or a gob of playing time, so why would he? Washington checked down at least twice in the game. That's not bad.
- Ricky Henry, fiery nature, blah blah blah. Apparently he earned that from playing past the whistle in high school or something like that because I didn't see it yesterday. In fact, the whole offensive line looked flat to me, although they are playing one of the best defensive line units in the Big 12. We will struggle on offense next year, but it won't be apparent until Virginia Tech.
- Your "Who's that Guy!" moment came from tight end Kyler Reed, who caught a pass near the sideline and raced 71 yards for a touchdown. He outran everyone chasing him. He's a tight end. He didn't get as big a cheer as Antonio Bell did on his leaping catch, but his run happened later in the game when a lot of people had already left.
- Great leaping grab by Antonio Bell, ala the picture on this article and in today's Lincoln Journal sports section. That was another "Who's that Guy!" moment, but I gave Reed the nod for his speed.
- Defense looks improved. Few missed tackles, but some pass interference pentalties. A lot of people I talked to were there to see the linebackers. They should have left impressed.
- Collins Okafor had a couple nice runs, while Lester Ward was okay. Okafor should be the third back.
- Austin Jones looked pretty decent in last year's spring game and he looked good again this year. I like him - he's a good back for zone-blocking. Doesn't dance, just goes. Hopefully he'll get some work this season.
- The best part? No major injuries.