Terrance Knighton shares depth of Nebraska defensive line

Terrance Knighton, a former NFL defensive lineman, has taken over as the defensive line coach at Nebraska. It will be his job to turn that group into a dominant force for the Cornhuskers.

This spring, he spoke about the depth of the team’s defensive line, which is currently missing several players.

“Depth is always good for d-linemen,” Terrance Knighton. “We like to rotate a lot. A few guys banged up right now and we’ve got some guys coming in in the summer, but, right now, I think it’s good for a lot of guys. I think our numbers are low.”

There are some benefits to missing guys during spring practice, though. As Knighton explained, this gives less experienced players a chance to practice more than they otherwise would.

“They’re getting a lot of reps. Guys who don’t usually get a lot of reps in the past. Ru’Quan Buckley, you know, [Jacob] Herbek, those guys. Princewill [Umanmielen], Cam Lenhardt, those guys that just got here, Kai Wallin, it’s good for those young guys to get a lot of reps,” Knighton said.

“So, right now, those guys are just focused on getting as many reps as they can, working on their technique, and getting better to improve the group.”

Terrance Knighton and Matt Rhule’s relationship goes back to Temple. There, Knighton played while Rhule was an assistant coach. One of the assistant roles that Rhule held at that time was as Knighton’s defensive line coach. After his NFL career, Knighton became the defensive line coach at Wagner before joining Rhule’s staff with the Carolina Panthers.

Matt Rhule on what positions are standing out

This spring, Matt Rhule and the Nebraska coaching staff are getting their first chance to work on the field with the team. There, one of the position groups that has jumped out to him so far, is the running back position.

“I really like all of our backs. I mean, I think our backs is one of our strengths; they all bring something different to the table. Omar Brown has been a guy that’s really coming on. So, there’s a lot of guys; you’ve heard me talk about A.J. Rollins,” Rhule said.

“I haven’t had a chance to watch this tape yet. This will be a really big evaluation for me. Again, not an evaluation in terms of trying to get the guys passing; are we good, am I bad? Just, hey, what can we do to help each player play better? So, I didn’t give you a great answer there. I’m sorry.”