LINCOLN — Nebraska coach Bo Pelini said he plans to play multiple linebackers Saturday against Louisiana-Lafayette, but he wouldn't name a starter at the weakside spot.

Senior Phillip Dillard switched to weakside linebacker last week and started in front of a couple of injury-plagued teammates, junior Blake Lawrence and sophomore Mathew May.

Will Dillard start again Saturday? “We'll see,” Pelini said. “You're going to see a number of guys at the linebacker spot.”

Dillard recorded five total tackles against Virginia Tech, the first time he's seen the playing field this season. He played well, according to defensive coordinator Carl Pelini.

“He's really taken to the spot,” Pelini said. “He's very sure of himself. He's playing much faster than he ever has since we've been here.”

Redshirt freshmen Will Compton (middle) and Sean Fisher (strongside) are the two other projected starters at linebacker.

Bo likes team's response

If practice performance is any indication, the Huskers seemed to have moved on from the disappointing loss to Virginia Tech.

The players have practiced well this week, according to coach Bo Pelini. And actually, they ended the on-the-field portion of their preparation Thursday with the most productive session yet.

“I like the way this football team has responded,” Pelini said. “The kids have really practiced hard with good tempo. I like the way we've practiced. It's been a good week.”

NU bracing for blitzing

The Louisiana-Lafayette defense doesn't sit back and let opposing offenses dictate very often. The Ragin' Cajuns would rather blitz.

In fact, according to Nebraska's offensive line coach, they send linebackers and defensive backs about 50 percent of the time.

“They don't sit still in one spot,” Barney Cotton said. “Even when they don't blitz, there's a lot of movement with them.”

That shouldn't be an issue, though, according to Cotton. Dating back to preseason camp, Cotton said he's spent countless hours preparing his linemen to handle aggressive defensive units.

“Obviously, we're going to see some stuff sometimes that we haven't seen before,” Cotton said. “We spend an awful lot of time picking up blitzes. We need to be proficient in doing that. Otherwise, you don't get much done if you can't block movement.”

Mike Smith back on field

Junior Mike Smith was back on the practice field Thursday after missing Wednesday's practice with an ankle injury.

Smith, who's started 15 of his last 16 games at left tackle, will play Saturday, Pelini said.

— Jon Nyatawa

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