Lincoln – The Nebraska football team practiced for 90 minutes Tuesday afternoon. The offense practiced outside on the Ed and Joyanne Gass Practice Field, while the defense practiced inside the Hawks Center.
Offensive Coordinator Danny Langsdorf spoke with the media after practice and talked about the potential return of sophomore wide receiver De’Mornay Pierson-El as well as other general questions regarding the offense. Pierson-El is now practicing with the team as he recovers from his injury.
“He’s looking good. He’s kind of getting back into the swing of things and testing that foot and making sure he’s healthy, but he looks good running,” said Langsdorf.
Pierson-El has missed the first four games of the season while battling an injury to his foot and is hopeful to return as soon as possible. Coach Langsdorf does not want to rush him back, however, and is taking precaution in allowing him to practice.
“We don’t want to rush him back, so we got to be smart about how he’s feeling…We don’t want to throw him in there and have him get worn out and hurt again, so we will be smart about that,” said Langsdorf.
Langsdorf elaborated on how he feels about the running game as well as the performance of the tailbacks.
“We could be a little more consistent there with some of the run paths and some of the decisions that we’ve made, but I like the effort that they’re giving. I do like our variety and how we’ve been able to hand the ball off to different people.” said Langsdorf.
Langsdorf also spoke about how he feels the running game will be affected by conference play and colder weather.
“We need to do it better than we’ve done it overall, but I do like our production and I think that’s a big thing in this conference. You have to be ready to get in some weather situations and there are going to be times when we just can’t throw it around the yard. We will have to continue to improve and be ready to go in that type of situation.” Langsdorf said .
Langsdorf also spoke on the performance of tailback Terrell Newby.
“He’s an all-around player. He’s a good pass protector, he’s a great receiver out of the backfield and he’s running well. I think there are some things he could continue to improve on…but I think the fact that he is in all three phases that they need to do that he’s been the best at that, and that’s why he’s played the most.” said Langsdorf.
Langsdorf also spoke about the offense as a whole and how he thinks he’s done as a playcaller.
“You want them all to work. There’s been some calls I want back. There’s been some calls that weren’t executed great. We need to score more. You’re always going to critique yourself, and I think just trying to get the players in the right position to make a play is the most important thing.” said Langsdorf.
The Huskers will resume practice tomorrow afternoon. For more information, check back to Huskers.com.