The 2011 NFL Draft was held Thursday-Saturday in New York City and when it was all said and done seven Nebraska Cornhuskers were picked by NFL teams. The Washington Redskins picked three Huskers which had a lot of people thinking what’s going on in the nations capital?

Prince Amukamara was first to go as he was the #19th pick in the 1st round the New York Giants
Roy Helu was the 8th pick in the 4th round to the Washington Redskins
Alex Henery was the only place kicker taken in the draft and he went to the Philadelphia Eagles with the 23rd pick in the 4th round
Dejon Gomes was picked next by the Washington Redskins #15 in the 5th round
Niles Paul was the the other player picked by the Redskins as he was selected with the 24th pick in the 5th round
Keith Williams was chosen by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 6th round with the 31st pick
Eric Hagg was the final Husker picked in the draft as he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the 7th round

Overall getting seven players selected was nice. Former players like D.J. Jones, Mike McNeill, and Ricky Henry will get looks at by teams that can sign free agents once the lockout is lifted. Right now players can’ t do a whole lot but sit back and see how things go as far as the lockout is concerned.

Congrats to everyone that got drafted and to those that did not, good luck in the free agent pool!


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Dropped passes, terrible line play, bad decisions in the zone read and some questionable injuries. That is what every Nebraska fan was left to talk about Saturday evening and Sunday after watching Texas come into Lincoln and give the Huskers their first loss of the season. The 20-13 defeat to the Longhorns was not what everyone was expecting before the game but coming off a bye week, Texas knew what they wanted to do and that was take Taylor Martinez out of the game and that is exactly what they did.

Martinez could never get on track in the running game as Will Muschamp had the best scheme setup to slow Martinez down. Sitting in row 18 in the North end zone I was able to see the game up close. I don’t fault Taylor for not being able to execute the zone read plays because it made no difference if he would have handed the ball off or ran it. A longhorn defender was there waiting. So how do you beat that defense?

You put the ball in the air and trust that your receivers and running backs can catch it. Rex Burkhead, Niles Paul and Brandon Kinnie all dropped balls that should have been caught for touchdowns. Had Rex come up with the touchdown early in the game, I don’t think we would be talking about a loss right now. Niles, the guy just needs to strap it up and go out there and make plays like he is capable of doing. You want the ball, CATCH IT!

Sure it sucks losing to Texas. It was the game every fan was looking forward to. However, it is not the end of the season and the team is still looking good to make it to the Big 12 Championship. The guys must rebound in a hostile environment down in Stillwater this coming Saturday but I have faith that they will bounce back and pick up a big conference victory.


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So it’s Monday morning and I’ve had some more time to think about the Nebraska vs Idaho game. I know a lot of people are upset with the game and the coaching staff wasn’t too much pleased but there were quite a few positives to come out of the game in my opinion.

The Huskers can line up and run the ball no question about it. You have the speedster Taylor Martinez and running backs Roy Helu Jr. and Rex Burkhead who can all break a long run and score from anywhere on the field. Helu Jr. and Burkhead aren’t getting as many carries as most would think, but that is because Martinez is scoring from 50 and 60 yards out taking up a lot of yardage.  I love how the running game is shaping up and the team will need to execute it again this coming Saturday when the Big Red invades Seattle to take on the Washington Huskies.

The defense played very good. I liked the d-line was able to put pressure on Nathan Enderle and force him into 5 interceptions. The defensive backs did a wonderful job of being physical with the Idaho receivers and made Enderle look like a junior varisty qb not a quarterback that is projected to be a 4-7th round pick in the upcoming NFL draft. Anytime your defense sacks the opposing team over five times and your defense picks the ball off five times things are going to turn out good.

The negatives to come out of the game were stupid and costly penalties along with bone headed turnovers. Ben Cotton, c’mon man! Niles Paul, hold onto the ball kid! Martinez will need to learn to read coverages more and know to get rid of the ball quicker. All those mistakes that were just boneheaded mistakes that can be fixed. They will have to be fixed soon or you juts might see some other players in there at the tight end position etc.

What was everyone’s thoughts on the game? Leave a commend or let us know through Twitter @nebsports


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The Big Red kicked off the 2010 season with a 49-10 victory over Western Kentucky on Saturday night. The team was sparked by redshirt freshman Taylor Martinez at the quarterback position and the defense played good enough to keep the Hilltoppers out of the end zone for the most part.

My thoughts on the game were up and down. The offense played nice with Martinez doing most of the damage. Making his first college start, and the first time the Huskers opened up a season with a freshman quarterback, Martinez wowed the crowd with a 46 yard touchdown on his first rushing attempt. He would later add touchdown runs of 19 and 15 yards and finish the game with 127 yards rushing on seven carries.

I also thought that Rex Burkhead did well as he had over 100 all purpose yards including a 20 yard touchdown. Niles Paul and Austin Jones would also both get in the end zone for the big red.

On the defensive side of the ball the Huskers were good in the first half but did let down in the second half. Bo Pelini called the defense “embarrassing” even though they allowed just 10 points. The d-line did not get any sort of push and sometimes were getting pushed back off the line of scrimmage two or three yards. It’s time to toughen up guys and dominate that line of scrimmage!

The one player on defense that It thought really stood out was juco transfer Lavonte David. David would finish with a game high 13 tackles. David needs to do a little bit better job of stopping the run from his linebacker position but overall for his first game at the D1 level, he played outstanding.

Overall it was a good way to start the season but there are things that do have to be worked on and improved on. Defense needs to man up especially on the line and the offense needs to continue to move the ball. Roy Helu Jr. and Burkhead didn’t run the ball to often as Martinez was running around with the ball. Both backs will be counted on more as the season goes on and they will need to step up and take some pressure off Martinez.

What did everyone else think of the game? Your highlights? Things to improve on?


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So the Big12 media days are wrapping up down in Dallas / Ft. Worth and I apologize for just getting this written today. I haven’t had much time to watch or listen to the meetings as I try to finish some projects up at work and also get the house ready for our first baby that is due in the next 10 days. I sure hope things calm down before the season opener against Western Kentucky!

Nebraska was the first team to meet with the media on Monday and right from the get go Coach Pelini said that he would not answer any questions about moving the Big10. Of course that didn’t stop some reporters from hinting or trying to get a little bit of information about the move. Pelini just said it’s “It’s Business As Usual”. Typical response from Bo lol.

Pelini did mention that Zac Lee is back to 100% and that was also confirmed by wide receiver Niles Paul who has been playing catch with Lee. Niles said that Lee is throwing the ball harder than every before. That sure is good news, now hopefully Zac can get the ball up over the defender and not under throw his to get picked off.

I found it pretty funny that some players on opposing teams say that Nebraska should not have went but that they also “hate” Nebraska. For “hating” a team you sure want them to still be in your conference and play you each year? Whatever Missouri!

All in all I can’t wait for the season to get underway. Nebraska is going to have teams coming at them all season long and Big12 play is going to be exciting to watch. Teams like Iowa State, Missouri, K-State etc all want to beat the Huskers and show them that the Big12 is the place to be.  We will all have to sit back and see how it pays out but I think Bo and the rest of the coaches will have the team mentally and physically prepared to take on each and every team that they face this year. Yes, even you Texas.


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For the second time Nebraska wide receiver Niles Paul is in trouble with the Lincoln Police. This time Paul was ticketed for minor consumption and urinating in public early Friday morning near the city’s downtown bar strip. An on-site preliminary breath test indicated that his blood-alcohol level was 0.104.

It was just 13 months ago when Paul first got in trouble with alcohol when he was pulled over and arrested under suspicion of driving while intoxicated. Paul missed the rest of spring practices and also the red/white game due to arrest. It will be interested to see what Coach Pelini does regarding the situation as it is his second alcohol related infraction. If I had to guess it will be dealt with in-house and Niles will be inside Memorial Stadium getting acquainted with the upper rows of the stadium.

You sure do expect more out of Paul as he enters his final season for the Huskers. It’s time start thinking Niles…


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The rosters for Saturday’s Red-White Spring Game have been announced, and like Coach Bo Pelini’s first two seasons, the teams appear to be fairly evenly divided.

The White team will be quarterbacked by sophomore Cody Green and senior Latravis Washington. The offense will have plenty of firepower with I-backs Roy Helu Jr. and Dontrayevous Robinson, along with receiving targets Niles Paul, Mike McNeill and Dreu Young. Up front, center Mike Caputo and tackle D.J. Jones are the leaders of the White offensive line.

Defensively, the White squad boasts a number of players with significant starting experience, led by junior defensive tackle Jared Crick and senior end Pierre Allen. Sean Fisher heads the linebacking corps, while the secondary features Alfonzo Dennard, DeJon Gomes and Rickey Thenarse.

Offensive coordinator Shawn Watson leads the White coaching staff, along with Barney Cotton, John Papuchis, Marvin Sanders and offfensive graduate assistant Curt Baldus.

Redshirt freshman Taylor Martinez and sophomore Kody Spano will quarterback the Red unit, while redshirt freshman Ron Kellogg III is expected to see action on both teams. Keith Williams and Marcel Jones lead the Red offensive line, with I-back Rex Burkhead and receivers Brandon Kinnie and Curenski Gilleylen among the top offensive weapons.

Defensively, sophomores Baker Steinkuhler and Cameron Meredith lead the Red front four, with Will Compton the most experienced linebacker on the Red squad. Veterans Eric Hagg, Prince Amukamara and Anthony West will patrol the Red secondary, while all-conference place-kicker/punter Alex Henery heads up the Red special teams.

Defensive coordinator Carl Pelini heads up the Red coaching staff, along with Tim Beck, Ron Brown, Mike Ekeler, Ted Gilmore and defensive graduate assistant Ross Watson.

Kickoff for Saturday’s spring game is set for 1 p.m. at Memorial Stadium. ? Tickets are still available at huskers.com

(Info courtesy of Huskers.Com)


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