1 week Ago By NATE HEAD Lincoln Journal Star
Even a stoic Tony White couldn't help but light up when rattling off names of young, promising Nebraska defenders. He started with defensive lineman Keona Davis, who he says has earned the nickname "Tarzan" among his teammates due to his "brute strength and explosion." He went on to list lineman Vincent Shavers and defensive backs Braylen Prude, Rex Guthrie, Caleb Benning, Donovan Jones.
"Those young bucks are really starting to put themselves in a position to play," the Huskers' defensive coordinator said. "It would not be surprising if you saw them in a game in the next couple of weeks." Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule has been clear the Huskers are willing to infuse youth into certain areas as the season rolls within the redshirt window, meaning players who have appeared in one game (or none) could theoretically appear in each of Nebraska's remaining games and still retain a redshirt.
So far, most of the underclassmen contributors have been on offense — Dylan Raiola, Jacory Barney and Gunnar Gottula, to name a few. The Huskers' defense is veteran-laden, but with that comes a lot of miles on bodies. DeShon Singleton, a senior defensive back, has played through lingering injuries while other backs Tommi Hill and Malcolm Hartzog have missed games.
Princewill Umanmielen is another Husker defender "fighting through injuries," White said. Notably, White said Hill is playing at "100 percent." The senior cornerback, who has been battling plantar fasciitis, is showing glimpses of the level he played at early in the season, which White says was among the best in the country.
White was speaking publicly Thursday on Husker Sports Nightly for the first time since Nebraska lost 27-20 to UCLA. The Huskers were off last week, and then neither coordinators nor players were made available to the media this week following Dana Holgorsen's promotion to offensive coordinator. Unsurprisingly, White lamented his unit's third-down performance against UCLA, particularly in the first half, when it converted on 5 of its 6 first downs to sustain lengthy drives and take control of the game's momentum.
NU was better in the second half, which helped the Huskers stage a near-comeback. "All those extra plays led to yards," White said. "But we made some adjustments (at halftime) and came out and executed to give us a chance to win the game.
" White touched on USC quarterback Jayden Maiava, who will make his first start for the Trojans after coach Lincoln Riley decided to bench Miller Moss despite Moss helming one of the most productive passing offenses in the country, at least by yards per game. He said Husker staffers have compiled clips of Maiava's film while at UNLV. "They are not going to be a completely different offense but they are going to give him things to be comfortable with and things to execute that maybe they haven't shown because of the ability he has to run," White said.
"And, you know, you hear the reports about how great his deep ball is and how accurate it is. "It's going to be a game of adjustments. .
.. It'll be a great chess match.
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