Filed by Jon Nyatawa at 7:45 p.m.
True freshman Rex Burkhead, who broke a bone in his right foot last month, practiced today for the first time since suffering his injury.
It's unknown if he'll be healthy enough to play in Saturday's game against Kansas State.
But NU defensive coordinator Carl Pelini confirmed today that Burkhead has indeed returned to practice.
“We'll see how it goes,” Pelini said. “He's got a lot of catching up to do.”
Burkhead averaged 5.1 yards per carry on his 23 rushing attempts during the first five games of the season. He also caught eight passes out of the backfield. But he went down in practice Oct. 12, a few days before Nebraska lost to Texas Tech.
Speaking of running backs, Pelini also talked today about Kansas State's Daniel Thomas, who's been tough for Big 12 teams to contain this season. The junior college transfer leads the conference with an average of 106 rushing yards per game.
Thomas brings a combination of power and speed that makes him difficult to bring down, according to Pelini.
“You've got to be physical when you get there, and at the same time, you've got to use your leverage, Pelini said. “You've got to be sure in the open field because he'll make you miss too. He's not just going to lower his shoulder all the time.”
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
RSS Feeds