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Nebraska’s defensive coordinator has a plan for handing out The Blackshirts

evan bredeson
·2 min read
5

Nebraska defensive coordinator Tony White met with the media on Friday afternoon. White touched on various subjects, including the future of the Blackshirts.

White joined the Cornhusker coaching staff after having the same role at Syracuse for the 2022-23 football season. White was in charge of teams that had back-to-back Top 30 defenses.

He’s known for running a 3-3-5 base defense. Head coach Matt Rhule used the same scheme when he was in charge of Baylor from 2017-2019.

When asked about The Blackshirts, he’s previously said,

“The most important thing I can do with that tradition is acknowledged it. I have to talk to people who have instilled, who have lived, who have done it the right way. I’ve heard many different ways they have done it, from bringing old guys back,  taking it away, waiting a couple of games, do it fall camp. I’ve heard a lot of different things already.” 

“I think it’s one of the best traditions in college football.” 

In 2022 Nebraska awarded The Blackshirts before the Northwestern game in Dublin, Ireland. However, Interim Head Coach Mickey Joseph took those Blackshirts away when he assumed head coach duties on October 13th. They did not return for the remainder of the season.

“I have an idea, but I’m going to make sure I talked to coach Rhule, and then we’ll do it as we do.”

On the creativity of the 3-3-5 defense

“I think the biggest thing is putting the guys in positions where they can be successful. Every play on defense is designed to do something,” White said. “There are two categories for our defense, right? We’re trying to stop what the offense is doing to us, or there’s a certain emphasis on self-scouting. We’ll go back through the week and ask, what we did wrong and what we need to work on.”

On the atmosphere surrounding the defensive staff

“Being around those guys is great. You’ve got the knowledge aspect, but you have guys that have played and coached at the highest level. They’ve coached some of the most elite players on the planet,” he said. “It’s neat to be in the room and listen or see all the ideas come together. It makes it our defense, and I can’t stress that enough.”

On linebackers coach Rob Dvoracek

“He’s attentive to detail, Rob, he gets the big picture,” White said. “A lot of times position coaches they focus in on their position, and they don’t understand how it affects all the others in terms of the entire defense. He’s been very keen on seeing something and seeing what reactions would happen.”

On the observations from last Saturday's scrimmage

“I like the fact that the young men are starting to take on the identity of what we want to do, that’s the most important thing. We want to play with Husker speed, and we want to play with dominant contact,” White said. “You see the elements showing up on all three levels, from the D-line to the linebackers, to the secondary guys. As we continue to install defenses and as we get closer to (game day), that identity is the most important part. “

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Story originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire