In recent years, the Nebraska defense hasn’t lived up to its glorious history. There’s a steep history rooted in the Blackshirt defense, so Monday’s coronation of the top 11 defenders came as a pleasant surprise.
As Nebraska.247sports.com reported, the players didn’t know they were receiving the jerseys until they saw them in the locker. Earning a blackshirt is a huge deal, however, the coaching staff kept the day low-key. Still, the players displayed a range of emotions upon recognizing their status on the team. It was an emotional day for everybody as the countdown began towards their first contest with the BYU Cougars.
Nebraska’s Jack Gangwish earns his first Blackshirt with the Huskers
Nebraska defensive coordinator Mark Banker revealed that the coaching staff researched the best ways to unveil the starting defense, and they even reached out to former coordinator Charlie McBride to facilitate the process.
“It’s a deal that is done through hard work and a system we established, a criteria, and we wanted them to be together. It wasn’t a big hoopla kind of thing,” Banker said. “It’s meaningful. It’s not necessarily ceremonial, because day in and day out, like our game, it’s result-based, and now it’s time to represent in all that you do whether it’s on the field, which is an important criteria, the other part is academics whether it’s in the classroom or out in the streets.”
The Huskers depth chart has a strong defensive front up the middle. For the Blackshirts to maintain stability, Maliek Collins (14 starts) and Vincent Valentine (17 starts) must control the trenches. Both players are entering their junior season, so it will be intriguing to see if they can become a dominant force in all facets of the game.
Maliek Collins named to the 2015 Blackshirt defense
Jack Gangwish, the most emotional of all the Husker defenders earning a blackshirt, has three starts under his belt. As a senior, it’s been an enduring process for Gangwish to get this honor. Don’t bet on him losing it anytime soon. Combined with his three starts, Gangwish is joined by Greg McMullen (13 starts) at the defensive end position. Overall, the defensive line has 47 starts coming into the season.
At linebacker, the Cornhuskers combine a veteran group, with the lone freshman defensive starter. Led by Josh Banderas (10 starts) and Michael Rose-Ivey (7 starts), the Huskers announced Dedric Young as the third linebacker. It’s the start to a promising career for the freshman playmaker. It should be noted that Rose-Ivey did not receive a blackshirt, leading to speculation that he’s one of the two defensive players suspended.
The four defensive backs to earn a blackshirt were Nate Gerry (16 starts), Daniel Davie (13 starts), Byerson Cockrell (6 starts), Josh Kalu (2 starts). Gerry leads a veteran group of players that have had their ups and downs defensively.
Josh Banderas has 10 starts in Nebraska career. Named to Blackshirt defense
Hopefully, the entire Nebraska defense plays more consistently throughout the season. Last season, the Huskers didn’t receive the Blackshirts until October. By November, they gave up the most rushing yards by a player (Melvin Gordon) in a single game.