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Nebraska wide receivers have had to do a lot more than just catch passes during the last few years.
They've also had to learn plays - a lot of them.
Junior wide receiver Menelik Holt called last season's playbook "as big as a textbook," and estimated that it weighed at least a couple pounds. Holt said receivers would come to NU ready to play immediately, not realizing how daunting the task was that stood in the way.
"I always feel like I've been playing catch-up because I'm a lot younger than most of the guys," Holt said. "But with an offense like this and all the things you really got to understand - not just know on paper, but understand why you're doing it - it takes time to learn."
Nate Swift can relate. The senior played in all 12 of the Cornhuskers' games in 2007, collecting 520 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 36 catches, but said the sheer number of plays the wideouts had to learn bogged them down at points during the year.
What didn't help, Swift said, was that despite the bulk of formations and routes he learned in practices, the number of plays that carried over into games was "probably 10 percent or less" during the 2007 season.
"It was a lot of plays for each game," Swift said. "It was ridiculous. But that's how it was."
Ted Gilmore, Nebraska's wide receivers coach, said the playbook from last year remains. But installing those plays will come at a slower pace this time around given the Huskers' youth at the position.
NU boasts 11 wide receivers this spring, and will add four more when the new recruiting class arrives on campus during the summer or fall. Of the current group, the Huskers have six returning letterwinners, including just one starter in Swift. The Hutchinson, Minn., native joins Todd Peterson as the unit's only seniors.
Of course, there's also the small matter of replacing four departed seniors who combined for 293 catches and 34 touchdowns in their careers.
That's where Holt hopes to come in.
After spending two seasons watching the heroics of standout Maurice Purify - who will likely be catching passes in the NFL soon - Holt said he's ready to be a big-play guy. Of course, he said, steady blocking is also a must in seeing any semblance of game time.
Holt said a "Mo catch" or two aren't out of the question for him this season. After all, two years' worth of practices and studying are paying off for the 6-foot-4 wideout.
But that's not to say he's the only receiver primed for a breakout campaign in 2008.
"I can't even tell you who's going to play right now, it's so early," Holt said. "But I can tell you everybody on our team's capable of making plays."
That includes players who have been little more than names to casual Nebraska fans for a while now. Names like Niles Paul, Xavier Rucker, Matt Donahue and Gilleylen Curenski have been mentioned this spring by players and coaches as viable contributors for the fall.
Sophomore Will Henry should figure in prominently as well.
"No one's ever seen what Will (Henry) can do," Holt said. "I mean, that's a 6-foot-6 guy. If he gets on the field, it's going to be interesting."
Still, Gilmore is quick to point out that no depth chart has been formed this spring. He said he plans to continue trying different combinations of receivers on given plays and changing roles to see how each individual responds.
So far, the fact that his younger players are remembering routes and formations through four spring practices has been a positive sign.
"They're retaining the information," Gilmore said. "They're coming out - there's not a lot of busted assignments, so that's encouraging. We'll see what happens."
EVANBLAND@DAILYNEBRASKAN.COM
