Coming into the Nebraska spring game the story was injuries and even more injuries – never really the way you want your spring to go or the things you want to be discussing if your Bo Pelini and the coaching staff. On Saturday it was all about the players, but more importantly all about one awesome story as well.
Before we get into the final notes for the game itself, let's let the story that everyone should and will be talking about be told. With things winding down in the 4th quarter of the game in came a small guy, and by small I mean really small – as in 7 year old Jack Hoffman.
Hoffman is a pediatric cancer patient and perhaps one of the biggest Huskers fans out there. So he went out and lined up in the backfield with his buddy Taylor Martinez and took a handoff from the star QB, cut left and then right, finding a gap and enjoyed the Huskers team scampering with him for 69 yards and the touchdown.
His scamper was not only the longest of the day, but was the most yards gained by anyone on the team. It was simply a touching moment – one that reminds us all that sports has the power to provide more than just entertainment to some.
Here is the video of our new favorite Husker running down field for one of the coolest touchdown runs you will see this spring…
Furthermore, Hoffman's run not only went into the memory bank, but also into the official stats for the day:
With that said it's on to a few notes from what was a rather lackluster spring game:
– The QB's were the story, especially Taylor Martinez, who went 8-10 for 105 yards passing and TD.
– Look out for one Tommy Armstrong, Jr. at QB, as he was impressive with his legs and his arm going 7-10 for 102 yards passing and a TD of his own.
– In the 1st half it was clear that the Nebraska offensive line (as a unit) may be the best ever under Pelini – if they play the way they did in spring in the fall teams are going to have major issues stopping Martinez and Co.
– On the defensive side of the ball one big time stand out was LB Colby Starkenbaum, who was all over the place in the 2nd half especially.
– Highlights of the Day: Try the "Find a Way to Win Drill" and the access that BTN got – it was TV gold. Oh, and who doesn't love linemen catching punts and trying to look athletic, right?
