Geep Wade hasn’t yet proved he’s the right man for the job at Nebraska, but his track record shows it’s a solid bet he is. One thing is clear when you talk to the men who play under him: his coaching and teaching style is welcome. Those players have talked before about how one reason they like how he does things is that he gives them the freedom to learn what needs to be done and then go out and do it. He doesn’t micromanage. He underlined that approach when he spoke to the media after practice on Tuesday.
“I don’t want to paralyze them. I want them to run off the ball, and I want them to play violent, be violent in their hands,” Wade said. “And if you give them 17,000 things to think of, they’re not going to do that. I want to be simple.”
The offensive line coach talked about one Nebraska player who’s worked the best. The coaches have talked before about how Elijah Pritchett has grown and improved immensely since he transferred over the 2024 offseason. Wade says the “just go out and do it” approach is definitely one they’ve taken with the former Alabama player, and it seems to have worked so far.
Wade talked at length on Tuesday about how proud of the development of Pritchett. He said that the coaches have talked about not wanting him to think about 17,000 things once, to go through what he’s been taught and keep his hands “violent.” The Husker coach added it’s like a light has turned on, and he’s getting it.
Geep Wade simplifies Nebraska football offensive line to unlock Elijah Pritchett
The idea that Wade doesn’t want to “paralyze” his players has been a standard among several Cornhuskers coaches this year. Defensive coordinator Rob Aurich has talked quite a bit about wanting his players to go out and do what they do without having to think too hard. The idea seems to be that both former DC John Butler and former offensive line coach Donovan Raiola may have had the players thinking too much to play that well.
So will Pritchett nab the starting right tackle? While he’s the frontrunner according to crowdsourced comments and coaches, it sure seems like it, though Gunnar Gottula is pushing him hard. Whoever the leader is, Wade isn’t ready to state it outright.
When asked how close he is to knowing his starting five, the first-year Nebraska offensive line coach said he’s not thinking about that right now. He added he’s still in camp mode and looking for eight players he’d be able to throw in a game without worrying.
Add us as a preferred source on Google