Casey Thompson reveals he and Marcus Washington have big chips on their shoulder

Casey Thompson was not the only Texas player to transfer to Nebraska, with wide receiver Marcus Washington joining his quarterback. The two are now hoping to tear up the Big Ten in new colors, beginning with Northwestern on Saturday afternoon in a Week 0 showdown.

When discussing the wide receivers in Lincoln, Thompson went into depth on what Washington has brought to the table thus far. Described as someone with great football IQ, Thompson credits Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian for the knowledge. It seems as if Washington is adapting to the Nebraksa offense well.

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“It’s really impressive,” Thompson said. “All of our receivers but Marcus and Trey Palmer especially have really good football IQ. Marcus is a great route runner, great natural hands. He’s very long. 6’3, he’s got long arms. He does a good job understanding leverage and the art of route running. I can tell Marcus spent a lot of time around Coach Sark because his level of football IQ is through the roof right now. Lot of times, we have plays that we run that Marcus is used to that he ran last year at Texas. So, he understands the plays, the routes.”

Thompson said when it comes to preparation, there’s not much to go over with Washington. He is transferring over a lot from Austin, making the transition smooth for both parties.

“You don’t really have to go over a lot of things. He’s a fast learner, he picks up on things quickly. Even today at practice. We were in the weight room and I was telling Marcus he’s doing a good job, he’s seeing things well. He said part of the reason is because of the knowledge he learned over at Texas. He’s done a good job.”

Starting X-receiver not known by Thompson

Trey Palmer was also mentioned by Thompson, although he spoke mainly about Washington. Both have been competing for starting time at the X-receiver spot throughout fall camp. Nebraska’s quarterback doesn’t know who will win out but is confident both will make serious contributions.

“I don’t know who’s going to be starting at receiver. They haven’t announced that publicly ore even to us but have the confidence and trust in Marcus and any of the receivers that will be out there at X.”

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Casey Thompson explains chip on his shoulder

Washington revealed Thompson had a chip on his shoulder and potentially rightfully so. After both had a poor team season with Texas last year, they will want to get some wins with Nebraska. Five wins for the Longhorns and three for the Cornhuskers aren’t good enough for either program. While Thompson can’t help in Austin, he will do his best for head coach Scott Frost.

To help the improvement, Thompson revealed the mentality throughout fall camp. He said no matter how they’re practicing, the chip has been prevalent.

“Marcus pointed out to me when he got here that I’m very locked in and focused,” Thompson said. ” I think the chip on my shoulder that he’s talking about — and on his shoulder — just comes from being doubted and things not going in your favor in life. When your back is against the wall you just have to continue to fight back, stay resilient. Whether it was injury, wins or losses.

“Here in Nebraska, there wasn’t a winning season and also didn’t have a winning season at the place I was at before,” said Thompson. “Just a chip on my shoulder to prove myself right and about my game. Knowing the ability I can play at but I think what Marcus is talking about is practice. Anything from walkthroughs, routes on air, one on one, seven on seven. Team vs. the scouts. Team vs. the defense, scrimmages. It doesn’t matter.”

Being perfect a goal for the Nebraska quarterback

From a personal standpoint, Thompson said he is always trying to be perfect. Whether it’s during practice or in a real game scenario, that’s the goal for the quarterback. He thought back throughout the past year, saying there were one or two times he was close. But Thompson will have plenty more opportunities as the 2022 season gets kicked off.

“I’m always trying to be perfect, have perfect throws,” Thompson said. “I want to have perfect reads. Throughout the last 18 or 19 practices, I’ve had a couple practices where I was maybe one or two throws off from being perfect on the whole day. I’m just continuing the strive for perfection. I don’t know if I’ll ever get there in practice or a game but the chip on my shoulder is bigger now than it ever was. Just trying to be a winning quarterback and play at a high level for this team.”