Photo Showcase: Tuesday's practice
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LINCOLN — In the fall of 2007, three true freshman cornerbacks earned playing time for Bill Callahan.
The first was Prince Amukamara. He played in eight games and made four tackles. Now he's a potential All-American and first-round NFL draft pick.
The second was Eric Hagg. He played in seven games and made two tackles. Now he's a critical piece of Bo Pelini's scheme, a hybrid defender who can cover receivers and tackle running backs.
The best of the group was Anthony Blue.
He played in all 12 games in 2007 and started the last two. He made 18 tackles. The Sporting News named him first-team freshman All-Big 12.
Blue is still a Husker, but he's no longer prominent on the depth chart.
Blue tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during winter conditioning in 2008. He had surgery that March, then another surgery that summer to repair scar tissue. He redshirted and missed Bo Pelini's first year.
In 2009, Blue played in 11 games and filled a role on punt return and punt coverage.
The junior from Cedar Hill, Texas, says he still has plenty of time to make his mark in a stacked secondary. But at career's end, his chief accomplishment may be simply coming back. While his teammates were learning Pelini's defense in 2008, his knee was re-learning the art of flexibility.
“I learned that crying was OK,” he said. “It sounds easy, but I had to bend it. It's so stiff after surgery. Bending it, getting full range was a massacre. ... It's like rebuilding the whole leg.”
His trials taught him a lot, Blue said. One lesson was the importance of getting past what happened. Overcoming the fear of another injury and playing aggressively.
“If I get hurt again, I get hurt,” he said. “I kind of hate when people ask me about it.”
Blue considered himself 100 percent healthy a year ago. But he struggled to regain confidence in the knee. Meanwhile, Nebraska found two reliable corners: Amukamara and Alfonzo Dennard.
“I saw it in Blue's eyes,” Dennard said. “I could tell he wanted to come back and help the team. I look up to him because of that.”
Blue, a two-time member of the Brook Berringer citizenship team, will graduate in May with an art degree. He has visions of a video and graphic design business.
“People would come to me with ideas and I bring them to life.”
His football career still has some life, too. Two seasons, in fact.
So in an effort to build durability, Blue has added something to his breakfast routine of Cinnamon Toast Crunch.
Milk.
Contact the writer:
649-1461, dirk.chatelain@owh.com
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