Husker Offense Preparing for Indiana

Lincoln, Neb. — The Nebraska football team worked out in full pads for two hours inside the Hawks Championship Center and outside on the Ed and Joyanne Gass Practice Fields on Wednesday morning.

Offensive Coordinator Troy Walters addressed the media following practice about sophomore quarterback Adrian Martinez’s health after the bye week.

“He looks pretty good out there,” Walters said. “He has a brace [on and is] moving around better than he was last week so we are hopeful. All the quarterbacks are taking reps and we will kind of see on game day who is ready to go but we have faith in whichever quarterback is out there.”

Walters also talked about how important explosive plays are to the success of the offense.

“It is very important, very important to any offense,” Walters said. “It is hard these days to go 8, 10, 12 plays down the field. If we can create explosives, it limits the amount of time we are on the field. [The reason] why we aren’t creating explosives is all across the board; receivers not running the right route, not getting separation, offensive line [has] to give the quarterback time to create those explosives. The running backs [need] protection. So, it is the full unit and everyone is working together [and] doing the little things. If we can do that, then this week we …[will] create explosives against these guys. They are athletic. They are fast. They are going to give you chances on the outside to make plays and we have to make them when our number is called.”

Walters also commented on the team’s preparation level after the bye week.

“We went back to fundamentals,” Walters explained. “A lot of it just comes back to fundamentals and execution and playing fast and so we definitely had a good three or four days of practice just getting back to our fundamentals. Now it is time for guys to go out there and just execute and do what we ask and play fast. If everybody is on the same page doing their job, then the explosive plays will come.”

Walters went on to discuss the challenges the offense will face in the upcoming game against Indiana.

“They are aggressive on defense,” Walters said. “They fly around, they play with a lot of swagger, they play together. They really symbolize their head coach who is a defensive-minded guy. So, they are flying around and play with a lot of passion. On the outside, they are going to get up in your face and jam and press and disrupt the timing on the perimeter. Inside guys are stout. It might be one of the most stout defensive line groups that we have played this year. So, we have a test up front with the O-line and their linebackers run well. [They’re] very athletic. They have a lot of kids from Florida. They play fast and very aggressive, so we have our hands full.”

The Huskers will continue preparations for Indiana with practice on Thursday. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. on Saturday with television coverage provided by BTN.

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