Mavric
Yoda
OWHRiley indicates few changes to the running back or wideout positions other than what fans already know. Mikale Wilbon emerged this spring to become a third I-back Nebraska will use, joining Terrell Newby and Devine Ozigbo. Three players — Graham Nabity, Harrison Jordan and Luke McNitt — will combine to fill Andy Janovich’s role from last season. The wideouts may be the team’s best position group.
How does Riley incorporate all these weapons without weighing down the offense? He’s given the example of a chain restaurant with a giant menu, compared to a restaurant with a small one.
“In-N-Out,” Riley says about the latter. “There’s only three things on it.”
[SIZE=15.0015px]Q: So which menu will your offense in 2016 be closer to?[/SIZE]
A: I think we’d take that Cheesecake Factory menu and pare it down. I put the graduate assistants on it yesterday — I want them to make me a video of it, a snapshot of our offense coming out of spring. And I’ll work with (offensive coordinator) Danny Langsdorf and I’ll pare that thing back. My goal was not to have an overabundance of offense in the spring. Frankly, I think our variety can come from our play-action passes and our screen passes. But what we do in the dropback game — that menu’s gotta be pared down.
[SIZE=15.0015px]Q: Was your menu too big last year?[/SIZE]
A: Yeah, probably.
[SIZE=15.0015px]Q: But I’m guessing you’ve had menus that were much bigger than last year, right?[/SIZE]
A: Yes. Older quarterbacks. When you have Matt Moore, or Sean Mannion, who had been playing since he was a freshman, you didn’t worry about adding anything. He had such a good handle on what you were already doing that you weren’t going to blow a gasket.
But, Riley said, an offensive mind has to be thoughtful with quarterbacks. He uses a word: “careful.” Nebraska’s offense, while often explosive last season, was not always careful with the ball. That’ll need to change in 2016.
“We’ve always been thoughtful about that,” Riley said of not overloading the offense. “And heading into this year, we really have to be really, really careful."
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