AZ Husker

Papuchis will be on field for bowl game

Posted by: Brian Christopherson on December 23, 2011 at 9:01AM CST

We live in a cynical world. A cynical, cynical world. I know this because Jerry Maguire once told me.

Given that, it was a fun experience to see the other side of things, a guy speaking on one of the best days of his professional career.

Nebraska's new defensive coordinator John Papuchis was relaxed and funny as he addressed a crowd at a Big Red Breakfast bowl preview on Friday.

"It is a true honor," Papuchis said of his new role. "And I understand the responsibility, the expectations, and the level of success that this program has become accustomed to on the defensive side of the ball.

"I always thought one of the great things about Nebraska, it really struck me when I first came here, is how passionate the fan base was, and how strong the commitment was to the defensive side of the ball. A lot of places you go, they root for offense, they root for points, they root for touchdowns and that's all great. Here I think people really get excited about watching us play D, the Blackshirt tradition, just everything this program is about. It's about toughness, effort, hard work, tenacity, and that's what kind of defense we want to play here."

With that, a few notes:

*** Papuchis is not going to step on the toes of Bo Pelini in announcing what will be done with the recruiting coordinator and special teams coordinator positions that have been held by Papuchis.

But it seems pretty clear from Papuchis' comments that he will drop those positions now that he's the defensive coordinator.

"My hunch is I would think that is going to go to someone (else) who is on staff," Papuchis said. "I don't know how realistic it is to wear all those hats."


On the topic of special teams coordinator, Papuchis was definitely the head of that unit, but it's important to note Nebraska has employed a group coaching effort in regards to special teams under Bo Pelini.

So, yes, someone will have the title. But there will be many hands involved regardless of who carries the label as the leader of the unit.

*** Papuchis has normally been in the press box during gamedays, alongside Ross Els and Corey Raymond.

Defensive coaches who have been on the field alongside Bo Pelini have been Carl Pelini and Ross Watson. Well, Carl and Ross are both working for Florida Atlantic now.
So the Huskers will change some things up for the Capital One Bowl. As the defensive coordinator, Papuchis will be on the field for that game, he said.

"Whether that's the long-term plan, I'm not 100 percent going into next year," Papuchis said.

*** Since newest Husker commit Mohammed Seisay has already signed with Nebraska -- he sent his letter to Lincoln this week -- Papuchis could talk about the junior college cornerback when asked about him Friday.

"Mo, he was a big, big part of this recruiting class," Papuchis said. "Obviously when you lose a guy like Alfonzo Dennard, that leaves a void. ....So we thought it was important to get an experienced, more veteran defensive back. That's why we went and at least got one out of the junior college ranks, and he's an extremely talented one.

"We're very fortunate we got him on our team. I don't want to create unrealistic expectations for him but I think when he comes in the spring, we're going to get him to work right away."


*** It appears new defensive line coach Rick Kaczenski already has a nickname among his fellow coaches. "Coach Kaz" is what Papuchis was calling him Friday.

Interesting situation this week with Kaczenski going with the team to Orlando.

"How much he will be able to do (next week), we're going to play it by ear a bit," Papuchis said."Because he obviously has to learn our system and our terminology. But one thing I came away with from my opportunity to be with him when he came to campus a couple days, was I came away extremely impressed with his knowledge. Very smart, very intense. I think it's a great hire.

"He got in there with the defensive staff on Wednesday when we were sitting there talking to him. We were game-planning for South Carolina and he was right there in the mix, and had some good thoughts and suggestions. To me, that's awesome, a guy that can come in and isn't afraid to voice his opinion right off the bat."

*** You've perhaps heard the number 15 or 16 thrown out as a possibility for how many commits Nebraska might be able to take in this class.

Papuchis reminded on Friday of a Big Ten rule that allows a school to take three more commits in addition to the number you'd have available to fill the holes of your graduating seniors. In other words, if you had 15 graduating seniors, you could potentially take 18 in the class.

Currently with nine commits in the class, Papuchis mentioned 18 as a possible high-end number for this class. "Whether we get to 18 or not depends on who wants to jump in the boat."

*** Papuchis knows how much a win over an SEC team, a 10th win in this season, could boost the team heading into offseason workouts.

"Certainly none of us were pleased with the idea that we didn't play for a Big Ten championship," he said. "That's our goal. That's what we set out to do every year. But I think there are a lot of positives that can be taken out of the year. And we have an opportunity on Jan. 2 to put a punctuation on the season, get the momentum going forward into spring football, propel this football team into the 2012 season and get to where we want to be."

AMSTERDAM (AP) - The editor of a Dutch fashion magazine has been fired after the publication used a racial slur to refer to Barbados-born Rihanna, setting off a social media furor and prompting an outraged response from the singer.
Eva Hoeke, editor of "Jackie," and the magazine's publisher said in a joint statement on Facebook that the misuse of a racial slur - "although without malicious intentions" - was cause for Hoeke's departure after eight years on the job.
The slur was used in an article about how to dress your daughter like a pop star. Responding to criticism that flashed across the ocean, Hoeke said at first that her use of the term was meant as a joke.
She then put out a Twitter item with a more explicit apology, saying she learned, "1. Don't publish bad jokes in the magazine 2. Don't pretend bad jokes to be funny. Sorry guys. My bad."
On Tuesday, Rihanna responded herself via Twitter: "Your magazine is a poor representation of the evolution of human rights! I find you disrespectful, and rather desperate!!"
Rather than a positive article useful to Dutch girls, Rihanna said Jackie chose to print an item "degrading to an entire race. That's your contribution to this world!" She also ended her tweet with an indelicate phrase.
Hoeke said she was unaware the word she used was so loaded because "you hear it all the time on radio and TV."
By Wednesday, the Facebook apology had attracted hundreds of comments, many condemning Hoeke but some saying the reaction was overblown.