Lincoln,
Neb.
- The Nebraska football team practiced for just over two hours on the Ed and
Joyanne Gass Practice Fields on Tuesday in preparation for its Saturday night
matchup with Legends Division foe Michigan.
Defensive
Coordinator John Papuchis addressed the media following Tuesday's practice, focusing on Michigan quarterback, Denard Robinson,
and how Nebraska's defense plans to contain him.
"Denard
is extremely dangerous. Every time he touches the ball he is a threat to take
it the distance," Papuchis said. "The biggest keys to stopping him are tackling
well and being assignment sound. The quarterback run game comes down to being
disciplined and playing assignment-sound football."
Robinson
was the Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and a third-team AP All-American
in 2010, with 2,570 yards passing and 1,702 yards rushing. The rushing yardage
stands as the NCAA FBS record for rushing yards in a season by a quarterback.
Robinson comes into Saturday's game with 1,264 passing yards and 900 rushing
yards this season.
Papuchis
also mentioned some other weapons that Michigan's offense has, including running
back Fitzgerald Toussaint and wide receiver Jeremy Gallon, who both played key
roles in last year's win over Nebraska. Toussaint had 138 yards and two scores
on 29 carries, while Galleon had a team-high three catches, including a
touchdown, in the 2011 matchup. However, Papuchis said that the focus is still
on Robinson this week.
"You
can't spend all of your time worrying about Denard Robinson," Papuchis said.
"But at the end of the day, he is 68.2 percent of their total offense."
One
of the factors that might play a big role in stopping Michigan's offense this
week is the home crowd. Papuchis mentioned how big of an advantage it is to be
playing at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, as Nebraska has won its last 10 night
home games dating back to 2008.
"It's
a great game-day atmosphere, especially defensively, with as loud as our fans
can be," Papuchis said. "The communication problems it can cause for an offense
are huge. I hope it's a loud crowd on Saturday, and I'm expecting it to be."
Check back in to
Huskers.com for more updates throughout the week as the Huskers prepare to face
the Wolverines Saturday at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast nationally on
ESPN2.
