Lincoln, Neb. ? Nebraska’s practices leading up to last year’s Alamo Bowl paid dividends not only in the victory over Michigan but in the 2006 season.
Coach Bill Callahan says he’ll take the same approach in pre-Cotton Bowl workouts, spending ample time preparing for 10th-ranked Auburn but also keeping an eye on 2007.
“If I had my druthers, I’d practice every day, maybe twice a day, with these bowl practices,” Callahan said. “I absolutely love them. I know they made our team last year. I think it’s a great, great bonus.
“We’re going to practice our kids as much as we can.”
No. 22 Nebraska returns to practice Saturday, a week after its 21-7 loss to Oklahoma in the Big 12 championship game. Callahan hadn’t released a practice schedule as of Wednesday.
The Huskers will have just over three weeks to practice before the Jan. 1 game. If they are like last year’s bowl practices, quarterback Zac Taylor said, the first few could be extremely physical.
“You can bang on each other and still have time to recover,” Taylor said. “It does wonders for getting the team ready for spring ball and giving new guys a look. We practiced a lot last year and it was tough, but it ended up getting us a (bowl) win. So we’re going to trust the coaches.”
Callahan said Sam Keller, the Arizona State transfer who’s on track to succeed Taylor next season, would get lots of work. Keller spent the season mostly running opponents’ plays on the scout team.
“We’re going to grind on him,” Callahan said. “We’re going to try to get him indoctrinated and get him ready to roll for spring football. He’s been in all the meetings. He understands it pretty well. But we’re going to give him a ton of reps.”
Going back to practice also helps the Huskers move on from the loss to Oklahoma. The Huskers outgained the Sooners but committed five turnovers.
“We all took it pretty hard,” Taylor said. “Everybody wants that Big 12 championship ring, and it didn’t work out for us. It stings, but we’ve got another great game ahead of us, and we’re set to make the most of that.”
Auburn beat two teams that are in Bowl Championship Series games: Florida, 27-17, and LSU, 7-3. Florida is playing Ohio State for the national championship, and LSU meets Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl.
A win would give the Huskers (9-4) a 10-win season for the first time since 2003, the year Frank Solich was fired and Bo Pelini coached the team in the Alamo Bowl win over Michigan State.
“The importance of it – not only for the record – is that it’s something you can dwell upon and use as you go through the winter and spring, something you can fuel yourself with,” tight end J.B. Phillips said. “Any time you can have those extra practices, it can only make you better.”
