Nebraska Tuesday nuggets: Satterfield talks Haarberg, turnovers
Nebraska offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield, defensive coordinator Tony White, and a handful of Husker players met with the media following Tuesday morning’s practice.
Here is a full recap of what they had to say…
Nebraska offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield
***Satterfield said he hasn’t thought much about how young Nebraska’s offense is right now. NU’s staff always holds every player to the same standard, regardless of age or experience.
***Satterfield said he’d seen “unbelievable” growth from Nebraska’s young receivers the past few weeks. That’s resulted from increased reps in practice and games for those guys.
***After coaching the past couple of games from the box, Satterfield said the move had helped him see the field and “slow things down and remove the chaos” during games.
***Satterfield said he needed to do a better job of putting the offense in better positions to make more plays.
***Satterfield said Heinrich Haarberg was “a tough young man” who was doing a good job of “compartmentalizing the noise.” He said Haarberg was “a little sporadic” at Michigan State, and he had to take better care of the ball.
“We talk about it all the time (as an offense)… That’s the reason we’re losing.”
***Satterfield’s message to Haarberg this week has been: “Just smile, have fun, and run through somebody’s face.”
***Satterfield said Malachi Coleman’s blocking was immediately apparent. “He turns into a monster with the way he blocks on the perimeter and puts people on the ground.”
***Satterfield said Nebraska had seen a lot of blitzes this season and expected Maryland to do the same. He said pressure has “disrupted us” at times, and NU had to respond better going forward.
***Satterfield said Emmett Johnson could handle 15-20 carries in a game, and his role would continue to grow as he progresses. NU’s staff has already talked about giving Johnson a heavier workload.
Defensive coordinator Tony White
***White said Maryland QB Taulia Tagovailoa was “ultra skilled” and “one of the best quarterbacks that we’ve faced.” Tagovailoa isn’t just a great passer, but his athleticism allows him to make plays as a runner and buy time for his receivers to get open.
***White said Tagovailoa made it challenging to keep good rush integrity, and it would be a significant challenge for Nebraska to pressure him while not giving up big plays.
***White said the defense “just didn’t make the plays” at Michigan State. He said he wasn’t aggressive enough with his blitzes. “That’s 100% on me as the play-caller.” White said he needed to trust his guys more to make plays.
***White said Cam Lenhardt was getting back to his early-season form and needed to continue to build. Lenhardt’s effort was very good at MSU, and now he just needs to get his legs back under him.
***White said James Williams was getting more comfortable, allowing him to play more in games. Williams started as a pass rusher, but he was becoming more of an every-down guy each week.
***On the lack of takeaways, White said NU emphasized creating turnovers every day. He said those come “in waves,” where once you get a couple of takeaways, they start to come in bunches.
***White said the explosive plays Michigan State got were “bull crap” because they resulted from mental mistakes by Nebraska. When teams get big gains on guys just making great plays, you live with that. When they happen because your eyes aren’t right or you’re not in the right spot, that’s a problem.
“As you can see, that still bothers the hell out of me.”
***White said it was fun to finally watch Marques Buford Jr. play in a game. He saw right away “how much of a baller” Buford was. Nebraska even used a package where Isaac Gifford moved up to linebacker, and Buford took over at safety.
Nebraska linebacker Luke Reimer
***Luke Reimer said Tagovailoa got his attention “quickly” this week, and the defense knows how challenging it will be to stop him.
***Reimer said Nebraska wasn’t looking at the rest of the season as just getting one more win. He said the focus would be the same as it had been all season, focusing only on the task at hand each week.
***Reimer said Maryland throws the ball around “a lot” but also had a solid stable of running backs. When the Terrapins do run, NU needs to be ready.
***Reimer didn’t feel like Nebraska wasn’t aggressive enough at Michigan State. He said it wasn’t about the calls but how the players executed the defense with “dominant contact.”
***Reimer said it was “awesome” to get Buford back on defense. He called Buford a “leader on the team,” and his return was “a testament to his character.”
***Reimer said he’d been taking in home games a little more, with this being his last college season. “It’s definitely coming to a close, and it’s a bittersweet moment. But I’m excited for these final two games.”
Wide receiver Malachi Coleman
***Coleman said the most significant challenge from high school to college was learning the playbook and adjusting to the physicality. He said his biggest jump over the last month had been his blocking.
“That’s one of my favorite things. When you can take another grown man somewhere against his will, that’s fun.”
***Coleman said Elliott Brown had been invaluable in helping the young receivers grow up quickly this season. “We couldn’t do it without him.”
Safety Marques Buford Jr.
***Buford said the most challenging part during his recovery was “patience.” Nebraska’s staff told him from the beginning that they wouldn’t put him back on the field until he was ready, “and not a day sooner.”
He said the coaches and his teammates helped him keep a positive attitude.
***Buford said preserving his redshirt this season was nice, but he’s only focused on making the most of these final three games.
***On his return at Michigan State, Buford admitted there was a little rust. But he feels close to his old self now.
***Buford said that playing in Memorial Stadium again is “going to mean the world to me… When you haven’t done something in a while, you appreciate it more. I’m excited.”
***On Nebraska’s new defensive scheme under White, Buford said he liked “every part of it.” He feels it fits his skill set well and gets the best out of everyone.
Defensive lineman Nash Hutmacher
***Nash Hutmacher said Nebraska’s defense “didn’t play up to our standard on Saturday. That’s not going to happen again.”
***Hutmacher said all of the rotation NU has done on the defensive line had made a noticeable difference in keeping guys fresh going into November.
***Hutmacher said all the Huskers were concerned about right now was “going out and dominating.” They don’t pay any attention to the outside talk about bowl games or anything else.
Nebraska linebacker Mikai Gbayor
***Mikai Gbayor said “getting to the ball and making plays” was the No. 1 goal for Nebraska’s defense this week. They have to hit Tagovailoa early and often to throw off his rhythm and “get him scared a little bit.”
***Gbayor said that emphasizing turnovers started in practice. They do a drill that focuses explicitly on running to the ball and punching it out.
Quarterback Heinrich Haarberg
***Haarberg said there had been “a lot of ups and downs” of being the starting quarterback at Nebraska. He said NU had a great support system to help him manage that.
***Haarberg said overanalyzing things on and off the field was “something I’ve been battling since I first started playing quarterback as a sophomore in high school.” One way he’s tried to handle that this year has been “de-cluttering stuff” and keeping his focus on what actually matters and what he can control.
***Haarberg said he knew he needed to run with physicality and not try to do too much on his rushes. Less dancing, more physicality.
***Haarberg said defenses were forcing him to hand the ball off more on read options. When he does keep the ball, he wants to “get more vertical” on his runs to maximize his yardage.
***Haarberg said his interception on a deep pass to Alex Bullock at MSU happened because he didn’t throw the ball where he was supposed to. “That’s me not being prepared… That was just a result of a lack of preparation on my part.”
***With Satterfield in the box, Haarberg said he’d talked with various people on the sidelines during games. That includes Jeff Sims and head coach Matt Rhule.
Rhule has much more of a brutally honest approach in those conversations. Haarberg said he might not like it as much at the time, but he can handle hard coaching and appreciates the value of what Rhule is saying.
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