25 Aug 2017, Cornhusker News of the Day.

Nish August 25, 2017 at 8:03pm

Teammates say Tanner Lee's calm demeanor rubs off:

The heat lamp has not been turned on yet. You don't know until then for sure. But teammates of Husker starting quarterback Tanner Lee think they have a pretty good idea of how he's going to handle the pressure.

His huddle presence is, as one teammate put it, "pretty chill."

"See, I like Tanner because he's real calm and he don't say too much, but you know at the same time he means business and he's going to get the work done," said sophomore running back Tre Bryant.

"That actually helps to run the offense more smoother. Let everyone calm down, catch their breath. He's not, 'Ahhhhhhhhh.' He's more, 'All right guys, let's go.' And we all just follow his lead."

Nine days from Lee's first start at Nebraska, the quarterback was especially chill. That was a coaches' decision. They decided to rest his arm, Mike Riley said after the practice.

It doesn't appear to be anything to sound the sirens about. "He ran a lot of the run plays, a lot of the checks at the line of scrimmage, the alerts at the line of scrimmage," Riley said. Lee just didn't throw. The plan is to put his arm back to work on Friday and Saturday, with an off day Sunday heading into game week.

Like Bryant, senior wide receiver Gabe Rahn thinks he has a pretty good idea of how Lee will handle himself not just in games, but also in hostile environments. Nebraska gets its first road test in Week 2 at Oregon.

"A lot of those big games, you need a calm quarterback who's not going to get everybody worked up and stuff like that," Rahn said. "He's just a very strong leader. Doesn't lead but talking, but leads by doing. Just keeping everyone calm. It's huge to have a quarterback like that back there."

And so, there are good vibes from Husker offensive players as they take a step closer to the Sept. 2 opener against Arkansas State.

"I feel like we're clicking a lot," Bryant said. "I enjoy the tempo and the smoothality that we've got."

Author

Brian Christopherson @nebraska247

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Low Country Husker August 25, 2017 at 4:34pm

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Nish August 25, 2017 at 3:06pm

While considering redshirt calls, Riley likes the 2-deep he sees:

Mike Riley thinks it's one of the biggest groups of true freshmen who could play right away that he's ever coached.

Decisions on who will play and who won't remain fluid nine days from Nebraska's season-opener against Arkansas State. Riley said during his appearance on the Husker Sports Network on Thursday night that he is slow to name off individuals yet because coaches are still having conversations about certain players.

"There are some guys still on the edge of it," Riley said. "I think probably the way I've been talking, everybody realizes Tyjon Lindsey is not going to redshirt, he's going to play."

But other decisions remain tough and some younger players may sit out for what Husker fans will no doubt see as a very positive reason. "We have a nice two-deep," Riley said. He brings up the inside linebacker position as a spot in particular that is deep. If it weren't so deep, he thinks true freshmen like Willie Hampton and Andrew Ward could be in the discussion about playing this year.

"I think this is one of those areas where it's just very important to be right," Riley said. "You don't want to waste a guy's year. ... You just don't want to get to the end of a year and a guy's played 25 plays in that year. It just doesn't make sense."

It's why Riley has a line he often tells his coaches: "If we're not going to redshirt a freshman, then we're going to watch him play, because he's going to be in the games."

The fact Lindsey is going to play immediately speaks to his talent because wide receiver is a position group, even after the loss of three seniors last year and the fall camp injury to Jaevon McQuitty, where Riley sees some good talent available.

He said there are three guys who can play at split end: Stanley Morgan, Bryan Reimers and Conor Young. Morgan is well established, and the junior Reimers "has just elevated his game almost every time he goes to practice for two years," according to the head coach.

The slot position is admittedly thinned out some, due to a season-ending injury to Kade Warner and the fact Keyan Williams is battling a muscle pull. But Riley again spoke of how well JD Spielman has looked and Gabe Rahn has also impressed at that spot. "So that's a good two-deep right there."

Then, at flanker, there's De'Mornay Pierson-El and the new arrival Lindsey. "It's talented," Riley said. "It's good speed. It's good athletic ability. That's a good sharing spot for those two guys. That's not bad." Senior walk-on Brett Classen is another the coach thinks can give his team snaps at that receiver spot if asked.

When considering those names at receiver, Riley and his offensive staff have spent "a lot of thoughtful time on the best way to get them the football" and analyzing what routes each guy runs the best. Certainly the redshirt freshman Spielman has shown he can do a lot of things well.

It's why Spielman was one of the tough redshirt decisions for this staff a year ago. He ultimately sat out. He's spent the year since thriving

Brian Christopherson

Nish August 25, 2017 at 3:01pm