Steven M. Sipple: Dillard, Blackshirts need to raise game
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His friends still call him “donut” or “jelly roll” or “fat man.”
With friends like that, who needs the Missouri Tigers?
Actually, Phillip Dillard laughs off the good-natured teasing. Yeah, he admits, he enjoys his junk food (Rocky road ice cream is a primary weakness). Nebraska’s starting middle linebacker’s weight has ballooned as high as 270 pounds during his college career. But the 6-foot-1 junior now weighs in at 238, no longer the “fat man” on campus. Yuk, yuk.
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“It’s like, ‘Whatever, I’m in better shape than y’all, so what now?’ ” Dillard said of his friends’ comments, smiling all the while.
Dillard’s weight loss, positive attitude and contagious energy are good things for his team, because NU defenders might need all the energy they can muster this season chasing around those lethal spread offenses and offenses in general. Make no mistake, the talent on the 2008 NU roster tips decisively toward offense. It’s becoming increasingly evident that Big Red’s strong suit entering the season is the o-line, with running backs probably next on the list.
The defense, meanwhile, absolutely will need to reflect the hallmarks of Nebraska head coach Bo Pelini. In other words, this defense will need to compete with maximum intensity and a hard edge every week — every down — because this defense won’t be able to count primarily on sheer talent.
This defense will need to be extremely resilient because there’ll be times when it feels like Lubbock, Texas, and Norman, Okla., are crashing down all around it.
This defense will need to play intelligently and efficiently, keeping mental errors to a minimum.
Also, if Nebraska has a chance to play in a decent bowl game, this defense is going to need several defenders to raise their levels of play to heights they’ve never reached.
I’m talking about a slew of players — essentially everyone, I guess — but perhaps most notably strong safety Larry Asante (78 tackles last season, but zero behind the line), end Zach Potter (steady as a full-time starter but produced only 2½ sacks), nose tackle Ndamukong Suh (one sack), and end Barry Turner (three sacks, but too many stretches of nothingness).
I mention those players because they were regular starters and will be counted on heavily again this season. There obviously are others you could list, including Dillard.
He played regularly as a reserve last season and started two games, finishing with 37 tackles, including one behind the line. He obviously plays a crucial position, especially when it comes to communication with fellow defenders. So, yes, Dillard also needs to rise to the challenge. Good thing is, he appears well-prepared to do so.
His rehab from a torn ACL in 2006 made him a stronger person overall, he says. He evidently has achieved the respect of teammates because he was voted to the Unity Council, the players-only leadership group that’s basically a conduit of communication between players and coaches. He embraces his leadership role on and off the field.
What’s more, Dillard feels good physically. His lighter frame should serve him well in a Pelini defense that demands 11 players swarming to the ball.
“If you don’t do that, you’re going to hear about it,” Dillard said. “That’s the way it should be.”
Wednesday was a good practice, Dillard said. The communication level was higher than at any point in a preseason camp that began Aug. 4.
Thursday was another story. Too many communication breakdowns in a full-scale scrimmage.
“We still have a long ways to go,” Dillard cautioned.
In light of last season, it only makes sense to speak in cautionary tones about Nebraska’s defense. Oh, there are plenty of reasons for optimism. Six starters return. Plus, Pelini’s presence obviously helps matters. Don’t overlook the fact he spent all of last season coaching in practice against Louisiana State offensive coordinator Gary Crowton, a 20-year coaching veteran known for engineering prolific spread offenses.
Another plus for Nebraska: If a given team comes up a little short of talent on one side of the ball, it’s probably better to be the defense. Sheer determination, all-out effort and sound overall play can mask a lot of deficiencies on defense.
Can Pelini orchestrate the turnaround on defense that he did in 2003 at Nebraska? You have to remember that each of the Huskers’ top 10 tacklers in 2003 ended up on an NFL roster at some point. At least seven of them were still on rosters at the end of last season. Does this year’s defense possess such a high level of talent? We’ll see if players rise to the occasion in the manner of Barrett Ruud (58 more tackles in 2003 than 2002) and Demorrio Williams (36 more).
Dillard, for one, is confident.
“This coaching staff, they make you feel comfortable,” he said. “They’re going to correct you and get in your face. But it’s all for the better. Once they do get in your face, and then make you re-do the play, and you do it right, you see that you always get a stop. So, obviously, they know what they’re talking about.
“After three years here, you’re like, ‘Finally, thank you.’ The time has come for this defense to settle down and get it going.”
He has a point. But it won’t be easy.
Reach Steven M. Sipple at 473-7440 or ssipple@journalstar.com.
