Tag Archives: Ross Els

Zaire Anderson was listed at 220 pounds in the Nebraska football media guide last season but the linebacker said he actually reported to the Huskers at around 203.

Anderson said Monday that he’s now around 225, and eventually thinks he could play at 235.

“I think I can get a little heavier,” he said. “I just don’t want to lose my speed.”

Anderson appears to be off to a good start to spring practice despite tearing his right ACL last September. The former junior-college transfer has been running with the No. 1 defense.

Anderson said the knee hasn’t been a hindrance at all. NU assistant coach Ross Els said Anderson also appears to have full trust in it as he goes through drills.

“He’s not …

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Sophomore Ameer Abdullah is in great physical shape, but coach Ron Brown said his mental toughness is what has allowed him to persevere through the rigors of Big Ten play as NU’s top I-back.

Abdullah isn’t fully healthy, but you wouldn’t know it during the last three weeks — when he’s carried the ball 65 total times, averaging 4.8 yards per attempt. He’s passed the century mark in all three games (against Northwestern, Michigan and Michigan State).

Brown’s been impressed with Abdullah’s character.

“He’s been tremendous,” Brown said. “I’ve appreciated his attitude.”

As Rex Burkhead continues to work back to full strength after suffering a knee injury, Abdullah’s playing time isn’t expect to decrease one bit. And that’s OK, according to Brown. Abdullah can handle …

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Assistant coach Ross Els, Nebraska’s recruiting coordinator, spoke to Husker fans Friday morning at the Big Red Breakfast and spent the majority of his time talking about NU’s strategies for luring prospective athletes to Lincoln.

We’ll have plenty more in the Metro edition of The World-Herald. But for now, here are the highlights from Els’ hour-long talk Friday:

>> Nebraska’s shooting for a 2013 recruiting class in the “low-to-mid 20s,” Els said. Fourteen have made nonbinding commitments. The biggest areas of need, according to Els: OL, DL, TE and DB. But no spot is off-limits. “There isn’t a position we’re not recruiting in this class,” Els said.

>> Els confirmed that there are, at this point, 23 recruits who plan to be on hand for …

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The demeanor of Taylor Martinez in practice Monday, after an impressive showing Saturday afternoon, was no different, according to offensive coordinator Tim Beck.

Martinez completed 26 of his 34 passes for 354 yards (and five touchdowns!) in a 49-20 win over Southern Miss. But Beck said Martinez was just as focused Monday as he was last week. The Huskers’ starter is ready to move on, now that his team is preparing for a road trip to UCLA.

“It’s not a one-hit wonder for him,” Beck said. “He wants to have a good season. And I feel like he knows it’s going to take, every week, the same kind of preparation.”

Other notes from practice Monday…

>> Senior running back Rex Burkhead, in street clothes after …

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The crowd around Nebraska coach Bo Pelini was significantly smaller this year than it was in 2011, when out-of-town reporters huddled for Bo’s thoughts and memories on the Big Ten, Woody Hayes, football philosophy and quarterback Taylor Martinez’s dramatic 2010 season.

Friday, Pelini had the NU beat reporters — four or five from recruiting Web sites — and the topics often turned, shall we say, deeply toward the rote mechanics of recruiting. And Pelini can talk recruiting when he’s prompted to discuss challenges and overall philosophy.

My colleague, Tom Shatel, made a good point Friday when he said that the old-school scribes want personality and good stories, while the new-school idea is to delve into commit lists and scouting techniques. I enjoy a flavor of …

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Nebraska recruiting coordinator Ross Els is trying to shake up the Huskers’ recruiting calendar and get some more momentum for the 2013 class.

So he’s planned an invitation-only Big Red Weekend on June 16 for prospects that NU has at the top its board.

“This came out of a staff meeting,” he told Huskers Illustrated. “We keep talking about how kids tell us that they leave from Nebraska visits realizing that there is more here than they originally thought. They realize we don’t live in a corn field and realize we have unbelievable facilities. Every staff meeting we bring up, ‘What can we do to get kids on campus?’ Because you can’t sit there and hope that they come.”

Els is pretty blunt in the …

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It appears that Nebraska’s coaching staff will continue to tell its kickers (most regularly Brett Maher) to boot kickoffs as far as possible, even though opponents will now start drives at the 25-yard-line after touchbacks.

The NCAA rule change, adopted last month, gives kickers an extra 5 yards (kicking off from the 35 instead of the 30) — but, in hopes of inciting returners to take knees in the end zone, the rule gives teams accepting touchbacks a first-and-10 from the 25 (not the 20).

What’s that mean for Nebraska? Apparently, not much.

“My thought is, let’s kick it as far as we can and limit any possibility of a return,” John Papuchis said.

Papuchis isn’t technically the special teams coordinator anymore. That’s Ross Els’ …

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Defensive end Josh Williams, a soon-to-be senior, is no longer with the Nebraska football program after a violation of team rules, coach Bo Pelini said Wednesday.

Williams played in all 13 games for the Huskers last year, starting two. The 6-foot-4, 260-pounder from Denton, Texas, finished the 2011 season with 15 total tackles and one stop behind the line of scrimmage. He also blocked a kick.

Other tidbits passed on by Pelini Wednesday are below…

>> Linebackers coach Ross Els will be the team’s recruiting coordinator (now that John Papuchis has been promoted to defensive coordinator). Why Els? Said Pelini: “Experience. Thought it was the right choice.” Els will also oversee the special teams.

>> The NU staff is considering moving running back Braylon Heard …

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There was one point in the recruiting process when linebacker recruit Michael Rose remembers he was seriously uncertain about whether Nebraska was the right choice for him.

It was some time in March last year, after the Huskers had announced their revamped defensive staff — most notably in Rose’s mind, hiring Ross Els to coach the linebackers.

Basically, Rose had lots and lots of questions. “I was just like, ‘What is going on?’ ”

So on the day of the Red-White spring game, he sat down with Els in the linebacker position room. They talked about Els’ background. About Xs and Os. About defensive philosophy. About Rose’s skill set — positives and negatives. Els never gave Rose any guarantees.

It was what Rose needed.

“Me …

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It’s a good thing the Huskers have a few more days to prepare for Monday’s Capital One Bowl against South Carolina. Nebraska still has plenty of work to do.

Coach Bo Pelini said after Thursday’s morning practice in Orlando, Fla., that NU will be ready to play Monday, but the Huskers are “not there yet.” They still have two practices and a walk-through (plus meetings) left, though.

Practice on Thursday started slowly but finished well, according to Pelini. The Huskers will have two less-intense, more mentally driven sessions on Friday and Saturday to help “clean things up,” Pelini said.

A few other notes from Pelini…

>> Defensive line coach Rick Kaczenski will be in the press box during the Capital One Bowl, up there with …

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