Ahman and Ameer
Nebraska running backs coach Ron Brown called Ahman Green a few weeks before the 2014 Spring Game, letting the Green Bay Packers Hall of Famer know that he wanted him to connect with Ameer Abdullah. Always thankful for the attributes Tom Osborne and his staff instilled in him during his time at Nebraska, Green gladly obliged.
“I would love to return the favor, so that’s what I’ve been doing ever since I left,” Green said.
He approached Abdullah on the field after the game, introduced himself, and the pair exchanged phone numbers. They talked regularly over next few week via text message.
“We walk through the hallways every day. We see Mike Rozier, Johnny Rodgers,” Abdullah said. “We see the Ahman Greens, and we understand the legacy here is really strong at the running back position, and you want to push yourself to be at that level.
“I share a lot of knowledge with him, and ask a lot of questions of him just to get a better perspective on the running back position.”
You can tell Abdullah takes his Husker history seriously, reminding a group of reporters that Green is the Packers’ all-time leading rusher, and second in Nebraska history. With 903 rushing yards this fall however, Abdullah would supplant Green for second all-time among Nebraska rushers. With 1,803 yards, he’d oust Rozier for the top spot.
Now Abdullah has the advantage of Green as a mentor, and a model to emulate parts of his game after, like Green’s downfield vision.
“He took a lot of runs the distance, you know, and that’s what I really want to do this year; take a lot more runs to 60, 70, 80 yard runs,” Abdullah said. “And what he did when he got to the second level, he always made the last guy miss.
Those questions are the ones putting Abdullah ahead of the pack, Green said.
“That’s something you want out of a player, especially a young player, even an older player,” Green said. “You want those questions to keep coming as a coach because you’re not really sure where that development of the player’s at, and if they’re not asking questions, that means the brain’s not really getting a challenge.”
As for specific pointers and areas of advice for Abdullah, nothing stands out Green said. “Nowhere to improve, just get better.” He can get better at receiving out of the backfield, blocking linebackers and picking up blitzes. He’ll need that more at the next level when everyone’s bigger, faster and more experienced.
“From a physical standpoint, he’s definitely ready, and from what I know the way he watches film and studies and asks the questions he asks, he’s ready,” Green said.
“I ask him what was his peripheral vision on this play, what made him cut back, what was his thought process,” Abudllah said. “If he saw a 3-technique, which way are you going to cut, you know. He’s really insightful. He gives me a lot of knowledge I need.”
The extracurricular film study, while impressive, is par for the course if he wants be a great NFL back according to Green, who would watch his father’s VHS tapes of Walter Payton and Bo Jackson. If each week sees 10 to 15 hours of film study, Abdullah will truly continue to “hone his craft” in taking advantage of a defense.
“They don’t have to think, it’s just natural reaction,” Green said. “That’s how the better athletes get better and the great athletes become greater, because when they’ve already seen it in the classroom, they don’t have to think about it. It doesn’t slow them down.”
That speed — and his soft hands out the backfield — are the reason Green said Reggie Bush is the back Abdullah reminds him of the most coming out of college.
“The part I like about him a little bit more than Reggie in college is that you can use him more as a runner than just that back out of the backfield and running 20 screen plays,” Green said. “You can actually run the ball with Abdullah.”
“He knows how to get the edge and attack the edge. He’s not a big back, he’s not a bruiser, but he’s the type of back that for the college level, he can basically overwhelm a defense with the way he can run the ball up the middle and the way he can hit the edges with his feet.”
Carrying that out will be tougher in the NFL of course, Green said. In college however, he’s poised to become one of the all-time greats at Nebraska, where he wants to maintain the long-standing tradition of outstanding I-backs. “We want to keep that going,” Abdullah said.
The praise and accolades are nothing new for Abdullah, but is he ready for a comparison to Reggie Bush, one of the greatest college running backs, by Ahman Green, another of the greatest college running backs?
“Oh yeah, he’s ready for that,” Green chuckled. “He’s just got to not read what I said, and just go out there and play.”
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