Nebraska defensive end Barry Turner materialized this week for preseason drills with a distinctly different appearance (he's much, much bigger) and approach toward media.
That is, he's doing interviews for the first time since shutting them off early last season.
"I got a little upset about the media last year, but it's a new year," Turner said with a smile.
What exactly upset him?
No comment, he said, it's over with. But in fielding questions this week, he did offer a clue about some criticism that might have raised his ire.
"I was criticized for not being able to play the run," he said. "But I played behind Jay Moore and Adam Carriker last season. I played limited (snaps) just on my special ability, which was pass rush, so I gained the extra weight to make sure I can also take on the run."
Moore and Carriker have departed to the NFL, a source of concern for many Nebraska fans. Moore started last year ahead of Turner at the "open" end position, while Carriker played mostly "base" end. Turner entered games primarily in obvious passing situations because of his speed and quickness coming off the edge of the line.
Now, as Moore's projected replacement, the 6-foot-3 Turner, a junior, wants to remain in games in all situations, which explains why he added nearly 20 pounds to weigh 270 - a better size to take on pulling guards and 215-pound ballcarriers.
Turner said he has retained his speed and quickness. He added "really good weight - it's muscle," he said. Meanwhile, Nebraska coach Bill Callahan said he hopes Turner's stamina is such that he can handle playing 60-plus snaps a game.
"He's going to be a full-time player for us," Callahan said.
In addition to Carriker and Moore, Nebraska lost to graduation Ola Dagunduro at nose tackle and Barry Cryer at defensive tackle. Consequently, many of those glossy preseason magazines that break down teams' strengths and weaknesses saddled the Huskers' defensive line with the dreaded "question mark" label.
"I don't even read that garbage," Turner said. "I don't even know if they have preseason rankings. I just do what I do best."
Which is chase down quarterbacks. In 2005, in his first season on the NU campus, Turner tied for the national lead among freshmen and set a Husker freshman record with six sacks among his 14 tackles. He also blocked two field goals.
Last season, Turner finished with 18 tackles, including 1 1/2 sacks. He blocked a field goal against Texas A&M in the final minutes, helping set up Nebraska's game-winning drive.
Such athletic exploits were expected of Turner coming out of Brentwood Academy High, where he recorded 25 sacks in his final two seasons. He also helped lead Brentwood to three consecutive Division II state basketball championships, averaging 16 points and nine rebounds as a junior.
As with most true freshmen, Turner quickly learned in college that he no longer was bigger and faster than almost everybody on the field. He came to realize the importance of the mental part of football, he said.
"You study more about what your opponent is doing," Turner said. "In high school, we watched film, but it was like . . . It wasn't serious. We'd go in there (to watch film) for 10 or 15 minutes and get done with it. We study film more than we practice now."
Turner enters this season confident about Nebraska's defensive line. In addition to Turner, the projected starters are sophomore Ndamukong Suh at nose tackle, junior Ty Steinkuhler at defensive tackle and junior Zach Potter at "base" end.
"Suh is probably one of the strongest men in the world," Turner said. "He has unlimited potential. Keep him healthy and he'll be in the league (NFL) somewhere. Steinkuhler as well. He's strong, smart and hard-working. There's unlimited talent with what we've got on the defensive line."
As for pervasive talk of Nebraska's d-line being a "question mark," Turner said, "It just fuels us to work harder to prove it's wrong."
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