Nebraska Football: Will Nixon shows off diverse skillset Saturday
Fans and media members alike were buzzing as Nebraska football on Saturday. There were a lot of things to take note of on Saturday, and one name that came up in several of the media reports I read was wide receiver Will Nixon.
Speaking of buzzing, there has been a buzz surrounding him ever since the beginning of the offseason. It’s been talked about many times that he is impressing the coaching staff, and that appears to be paying off. As noted in a report from Brian Christopherson, Nebraska was using Nixon in several different spots on the field.
More from Husker Corner
- Former Nebraska football star returns to the program in new role
- Travis Hunter injury uproar has some Nebraska football fans reminding Colorado about Adrian Martinez
- Nebraska Football: Freshman RB in line for big playing time
- Nebraska Cornhuskers News: Heinrich Haarberg has believer in Rhule, more
- Nebraska Football: Matt Rhule faces tough decision between Heinrich Haarberg and Jeff Sims
This is interesting to me because usually freshmen do not get a ton of reps at multiple positions on the field. For one thing, this shows me that they want to utilize him and are trying to find the best way to do so. Secondly, it tells me that they will utilize him in whichever way they see fit, and not just hold him to the wide receiver position. It makes me wonder how often we will see him on the field in 2021, as well as if he will line up at other positions besides wide receiver.
For my part, I thought Nixon was going to be a guy that Nebraska football could use to help stabilize the wide receiver position. He can make things happen, particularly after the catch. This is something that Nebraska football needs out of the wide receiver position. He can definitely be a weapon at wide receiver.
As for Saturday’s practice, Nebraska football was experimenting with him all over the field. It was intriguing to see to say the least and it’s something Christopherson took note of.
"Will Nixon is a guy they obviously really like. He gets a lot of run with the top units at wide receiver. They even lined him up in the backfield coming out of motion the last couple plays and gave him a handoff. We were told earlier this spring by veteran Levi Falck that Nixon really knows his stuff, and even teaches some things to older guys. So this isn’t a shock he’s heavy in the mix. Nixon was also back deep during special teams drills (which were scattered throughout the practice) as a kick returner."
Between his knowledge and his overall skill, Nixon is a guy that I could see getting a ton of playing time in the future. That knowledge could get him places.
It was great to hear about everybody participating on Saturday. For a player like Nixon, Saturday could be the start of something even bigger.