Five burning questions heading into Fresno State week
Should Tommy have been voted a captain?
There will no doubt be a lot of discussion on local talk radio and during today's first weekly press conference about quarterback Tommy Armstrong not being selected a captain.
However, when you look at past Husker history, it’s not as rare as you think.
The last senior starting quarterbacks not to be named a captain at NU were Sam Keller (2007), Scott Frost (1997) and Tommie Frazier (1995).
NU actually went from 1990 to 2000 without having a senior captain at quarterback. However, since Eric Crouch in 2001, every senior starting QB at Nebraska has been a captain other than Keller and now Armstrong.
What makes Armstrong’s situation unique is he was selected a captain in 2015 and is just one of three four-year starting quarterbacks in modern program history.
It will definitely be interesting to hear his reaction on the situation today.
Who will replace Gerry's leadership vs. Fresno State?
Nebraska's defense was left with a major void to replace when it was announced that senior safety Nate Gerry would be suspended for this week's season opener vs. Fresno State.
Not only will the Huskers be without arguably their best overall defensive player and one of their four team captains against the Bulldogs, they'll also be missing the on-field leadership from by far the most experienced veteran in the secondary.
It's still already unclear who will be the other safety starter opposite Gerry going forward, and now NU must fill both safety voids this week with the combination of Aaron Williams, Kieron Williams, and Antonio Reed.
Is Pierson-El back to his old self?
How much did the decision to redshirt true freshman wide receiver JD Spielman have to do with how far along De’Mornay Pierson-El is in his recovery?
Watching the last few weeks it’s becoming pretty clear that Pierson-El has gotten better each and every day.
One has to think this had to play a factor in the decision to keep the redshirt on the talented Spielman.
There will be a lot of anticipation when Pierson-El fields that first punt against Fresno State on Saturday.
Will NU's patchwork offensive line hold up?
One issue Nebraska thought it had all figured out going into fall camp was its five starters on the offensive line, but a season-ending injury to left guard Jerald Foster threw a big wrench into those plans midway though fall camp.
Not only did the Huskers lose their projected starting left guard for the year, their top backup - senior Corey Whitaker - was also temporarily sidelined with arthroscopic knee surgery.
Whitaker has already been ruled out for Saturday's season opener, leaving senior walk-on Sam Hahn as the new No. 1 left guard and redshirt freshman Jalin Barnett as his likely backup.
Nebraska is hoping it won't have to play true freshman Boe Wilson in order to preserve his redshirt, so it will be up to Hahn and Barnett to make it through Week One and maybe beyond until Whitaker returns to form.
Injury statuses unclear for some key Huskers
Nebraska enters its first game week of 2016 with a handful of high-profile players nursing injuries.
One of the more notable sidelined Huskers is linebacker Dedrick Young, who sat out of Saturday's practice with a groin injury.
With the health status of fellow linebacker Michael Rose-Ivey always in doubt, NU's linebacker depth could be tested early on if Young misses any time.
Sophomore Luke Gifford was working with the first-team defense on Saturday in their absence.
Wide receiver was another position that was missing some key names on Saturday, as Alonzo Moore and Stanley Morgan both sat out for undisclosed reasons. Moore did not practice for the majority of last week, and Morgan was a new name to the inactive list.
If either can't go vs. Fresno State, look for sophomore walk-on Bryan Reimers to have an increased role in the wide out rotation.