The Corner Table: Position Battles In Fall Camp
By John Ackeren
Douglas Jones-USA TODAY Sports
With the Nebraska Cornhuskers opening fall camp in a matter of days, the staff of Husker Corner got together for our Corner Table discussion on a few topics we are looking forward to. Featured Columnist Jimmie Allen, Staff Writer Joshua Shaw, and I talked about position battles, team leaders, and players we are looking forward to watching. Today we will focus on the first question.
- What position battle are you most looking forward to in fall camp?
John: I’m looking forward to watching the competition at tight end. With both Kyler Reed and Ben Cotton graduating, it will be interesting to see who can step in and produce.
Jake Long is likely going to get most of the reps based on his experience, but Sam Cotton and David Sutton should be an interesting battle in camp. One of them will earn the number two spot on the depth chart. I wouldn’t be surprised if true freshman Cethan Carter found his way into a few games as well.
Jimmie: The position battle I am looking forward to is the outside linebacker position. We all know what senior Zaire Anderson brings to the table. He will be the leader of the defense. Anderson saw limited playing time in his first season in Lincoln, due to learning the playbook and injuries. What he did in the offseason is more respectable than anything he could have done on the field. Not only did he finish a football game with a torn ACL, he approached the offseason head on, and seems ready to come back with a purpose. You can argue that he had the most impressive spring game of any Husker. The question is, who will play outside of him?
All signs would point to redshirt freshmen Michael Rose, and redshirt sophomore David Santos. Rose is 6-foot-0, 230 pounds with a solid frame. Santos is 6-foot-0 220 lb. Another player to keep an eye on is redshirt freshman Jared Afalava. The South Jordan Utah native was one of the most highly touted high school recruits in the country. Nebraska got a special player in the 6-foot-3, 215 lb. blue chipper. Those four guys should be the main rotation for the linebacking core.
Joshua: I’ve got my eye on both the Linebacker and Defensive Line spots for competition. Coach Pelini dropped bits of information at B1G Media Days that redshirt freshman Jared Afalava will be the starter going into camp for the strong-side linebacker (Buck) spot while others will be in the mix including the incoming freshman Josh Banderas and Marcus Newby. Michael Rose will compete for the Middle Linebacker spot, but Coach Pelini said his physique fits the mold of a true Buck strong-side linebacker. David Santos and Zaire Anderson are the only two, barring injury, who are all but guaranteed a starting spot at this point.