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After impressive spring, Bell continuing rapid rise

Running back Greg Bell is starting to match his natural ability with a firm grasp of Nebraska's offense, and his impressive play this fall is a direct result.
Running back Greg Bell is starting to match his natural ability with a firm grasp of Nebraska's offense, and his impressive play this fall is a direct result. (Getty Images)

Rated as the No. 1 junior college running back in the country, Greg Bell arrived on campus this winter with plenty of hype, and with that, hefty expectations.

Bell backed up that acclaim with a strong first spring, capped with eight carries for 54 yards (6.8 ypc) in the Red-White game.

What made his initial debut even more impressive, according to offensive coordinator Troy Walters, was the Chula Vista, Calif., native by way of Arizona Western C.C. did so while relying almost entirely on his pure skill and athleticism.

“In the spring, he was just kind of going off athletic ability,” Walters said. “Now he truly understands the offense. He’s not making as many mental errors as he did in the spring. He’s a guy you just have to get the ball in his hands. If you get the ball in his hands, he’s able to make some things happen.”

While much of the talk this fall has been about the instant impact of true freshman Maurice Washington and the return of junior Tre Bryant, Bell has quietly picked up right where he left off in the spring.

The 6-foot, 205-pound former first-team JUCO All-American agreed with Walters’ evaluation, and he’s noticed a big difference in his overall comfort within the offense.

“He’s right,” Bell said. “In the fall I was just relying on my ability. But now I know where the holes are going to open up, how to block in the scheme, stuff like that.

“It helps a lot because I know where (the hole) is going to open up, so I don’t have to do so much dancing. I just have to hit it and get it and go.”

Bell showed how good he could be once he’s comfortable in an offense, as he racked up more than 2,400 yards and averaged 114.5 yards per game (6.3 ypc) in his two seasons at Arizona Western.

Even though AWCC ran more of a traditional I-formation scheme, Bell said he'd seen a lot of similarities in his previous offense and what Nebraska does.

Running backs coach Ryan Held said that while Bell has proven to be a dynamic threat with the ball in his hands, maybe his biggest jump this fall has been in his blocking.

“The one thing about (Bell) and our other guys is they are not afraid of contact,” Held said. “They are going to go up and step it up. We want to break the blitzer’s will. So when they come, we’re going to stick our nose up in there and we’re going to get after it.

“We’re not going to be shy about contact as a running back at Nebraska. So he’s a guy that will go up, he will be physical, he’s not afraid, he’ll stick it up in there. You will not play for me if you’re soft and won’t stick it up in there.”

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