And with less than three weeks left before the season opener against BYU, Nebraska needs to see something new from its special teams nearly immediately.
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Nebraska also announced freshman wide receiver Lavan Alston suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice.
Heading into camp, Nebraska’s top three receivers appeared to be Pierson-El, Jordan Westerkamp and Reilly, in that order. But junior Lane Hovey, senior Taariq Allen and junior Sam Burtch were all out last week.
The return game is so crucial because not only can it mean electrifying plays that swing momentum, but it’s huge when it comes to the field position battle. That would mean he would miss all of the nonconference schedule and the first two games of the Big Ten season – at Illinois and vs. West Division favorite Wisconsin in Lincoln.
And what about replacing Pierson-El’s production? He had four receiving touchdowns and averaged 14 yards per catch. He said the players were suspended for team violations. Jamal Turner has been used in that role – but there aren’t many experienced/proven options behind him. He is also on the watch list for the Paul Hornung award, given to the most versatile player in college football. To maximizing the strengths of Westerkamp.
If you’re a Husker fan, do the above factors, particularly the news regarding Pierson-El, change your expectations for the season? “I suppose the silver lining is people like Stanley Morgan have gotten a lot of turns and made the most of it”.
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None of the losses is likely to loom as large as Pierson-El’s.
