Spring game gives first look at Casey Thompson, Husker QBs in midst of a work-in-progress offseason | Football

Casey Thompson has had a plan for almost every element of his opening months as a member of the Nebraska football program.

The public will get a first look at the on-field portion of his acclimation Saturday in the Red-White Spring Game, but behind the scenes at practice and in the meeting room, the integration into the Husker program seems to be moving along smoothly.

“Casey’s a great leader. He’s a vocal leader, and then he also leads by his actions,” tight end Nate Boerkircher said earlier this spring. “He spends a lot of extra time watching film, a lot of extra time working on his craft, recovery. I think him leading by example kind of helps everybody else.”

“He’s a very vocal leader and guys rally around that,” wide receiver Oliver Martin added. “And it’s not a forced leadership. It’s pretty natural. That’s even better. So, guys rally around that and then he puts in a ton of time studying film, knowing the playbook. So he can come out and execute plays well and he’s asserted himself as the quarterback.”

Thompson detailed earlier this spring the manner in which he watched and learned over his three seasons at Texas. The way he sat back and observed during his opening days in Lincoln and then slowly but surely made his presence felt, taking offensive linemen out for dinner and bowling, throwing with receivers and getting to know everybody else on the roster, too. In the process, he impressed just about anybody who’s been asked for their opinion.

Between the lines, the task is probably even more difficult than getting to know everybody and establishing yourself quickly. Nebraska’s got new coaches, new concepts and eight quarterbacks in spring ball throwing to a big group of receivers, some of whom will be on the field in the fall and some of whom likely won’t.

“I think he’s done a really good job,” wide receivers coach Mickey Joseph said. “I think he’s getting to the point where he’s learning who he’s throwing the ball to, he’s seeing it better right now.”

There’s a lot that has to pull together between now and Aug. 27 from scheme to personnel to tailoring the plan to what the starting quarterback — likely Thompson, though Frost said this week NU is “nowhere near” ready to make an announcement like that — feels best about in the playbook.

Not only that, but Thompson and the other NU quarterbacks are getting used to playing the way offensive coordinator Mark Whipple wants them to.

“As guys are learning new things, there’s 100 things they have to know from protections and where their hots are and how to change protections and what the progression is and where their eyes should be based on coverages,” coach Scott Frost said this week. “I think all that leads to a higher completion percentage and I think there’s just more work to be done here.”

Logan Smothers has started a game in Memorial Stadium. Chubba Purdy started one at Florida State and Thompson led the Big 12 in touchdown passes last year with 24. Even Heinrich Haarberg, the redshirt freshman from Kearney, threw a game-winner in the spring game last year. So while Saturday will be an introduction of sorts between Husker fans and Thompson and Purdy, the on-field portion is much more work-in-progress than any kind of finished product.

“I think that we’ve all got to have a good summer on the offensive side of the ball,” Joseph said. “We’ve all got to have a good summer and I think the summer is going to be big for Casey and the receivers.”