Nebraska QBs Masker, Haarberg detail what it’s like to work with new OC Mark Whipple | Football

“We love giving back to the community, the kids absolutely have a blast and that’s why we do this,” Masker said. “It gets the community around and we love having fun together.”

The camp holds importance to Masker, who has plans of becoming a high school football coach after his time as a Husker. He discovered a passion for coaching through his high school days, noting Kearney Catholic head coach Rashawn Harvey and assistant coach Dave Colling’s impact as helping him fall in love with football. He saw them manifest as father figures in the players’ lives, something he aspires to be for future players.

His love of coaching grew larger at Nebraska, where he described himself as constantly being in the presence of smart coaches who inspired him to take their knowledge and share it with others, leading to the formation of the camp. Most of those coaches are gone now after head coach Scott Frost’s overhaul of the offensive staff. Whipple drew high praise from Masker, who touted the 65-year-old’s NFL experience and old-school mentality.

“The thing I’ve learned from him is that he never lets us get comfortable,” Masker said. “At practice, he throws stuff at you, where you think you’re doing everything right, but you’re not. He’ll correct you and it’s not always the most polite way, but it’s what you need.”

Having experienced two other offensive coordinators in his time as a Husker, Masker says Whipple’s coaching style emphasizes going through reads in the film room and stresses mental aspects. He teaches fundamentals — where to put your eyes on the defense, for example — and wants his quarterbacks to be as familiar with the new offensive plays and routes as he is. Whipple believes his quarterbacks should know defenses and playbooks like the back of their hand, and be able to teach the entire offense.

Haarberg also took note of Whipple’s stress on mentality, which he pointed to as an area of personal improvement this offseason under Whipple.

“Last year I felt like I had all the traits but was lacking mental maturity and mental knowledge of the game,” Haarberg said. “(Whipple showed me) knowledge of the defense, knowing what the defense is going to do before they do it, where to put the ball, and understanding that everything is just one big puzzle.”

The adjustment to a new offensive staff didn’t come easily for Haarberg, who anticipated former offensive coordinator Matt Lubick and quarterbacks coach Mario Verduzco would be there throughout his entire Husker career. However, Haarberg reminds himself that he committed to Nebraska, not a particular coach. He appreciates Whipple’s development skills, noting 2021 Heisman finalist Kenny Pickett as a success story of Whipple’s time at Pittsburgh, and Whipple’s emphasis on seeing the whole field under center.

“He’s an NFL guy, he just turned Kenny Pickett into a first-round pick at Pitt,” Haarberg said. “He has a lot of knowledge, so while his personality and teaching methods might be different from Coach Verduzco, you have to adapt and get everything you can out of him.”

The change in coaching also comes with a new offensive philosophy, which drew praise from Haarberg as less complicated, more focused on speed, and easy on the quarterback.

The new offense will be led by a new quarterback following four-year starter Adrian Martinez’s transfer to Kansas State. While ex-Texas starter Casey Thompson is the presumptive favorite, Haarberg describes the race going into fall camp as open to everyone, and he plans to seize the opportunity and make a case for himself this fall.

“[I plan on] showing Whipple and Frost that they can have confidence that I can go out and read the defense and be able to run the offense,” Haarberg said.

Both Masker and Haarberg noted that there’s a lot of hard work to come over fall camp, and are both happy with the offense’s progress so far. While the season opener in Ireland is still over a month away, Haarberg and Masker found time to escape, and give back to the place that started it all.