Monday press conference takes: False positives are going to happen
Here are some quick takes and reactions from Monday's weekly press conference featuring Nebraska head coach Scott Frost and players as they get ready to play Wisconsin on Saturday.
False positives are going to happen with antigen testing
As Nebraska gets ready to play Wisconsin this weekend, the Badgers are facing a very interesting situation regarding their quarterback position.
Their starter Jack Coan is already out with an injury, while their current starter Graham Mertz tested positive over the weekend for COVID-19 according to multiple media reports.
However, that positive test is still not official, as it happened during the daily antigen tests the Big Ten administers. In order for it to be a true positive, they do a more thorough PCR test to verify it. If that test comes up positive, Mertz would be out for 21 days.
NU head coach Scott Frost said on Monday the Huskers have had multiple players test positive under the daily tests, but then have the positive test overturned once a PCR lab is done.
"We've had false positives here. I'm guessing that's what it is," Frost said on Monday.
Still, the Badgers aren't saying much. It will be interesting to see what leaks out of Madison by Tuesday when Wisconsin is in full game preparation mode.
This offensive line is well on its way
One of the biggest positive the Huskers got out of their loss against Ohio State is 13 different offensive linemen saw snaps this past Saturday.
This line is well on its way in 2020, as redshirt freshmen Bryce Benhart (56 snaps) and Ethan Piper (30 snaps) all saw extensive time, while even both true freshman Turner Corcoran (nine snaps) and redshirt freshman Brant Banks (two snaps) saw action.
I can't remember the last time NU had four freshmen play in a game on the offensive line, especially when it's a group that returned all five starters from 2019.
According to PFF, Piper was the highest-graded lineman for the Huskers on Saturday. You have to wonder if he'll be starting at left guard here before long. He played two more snaps than senior Boe Wilson.
Saturday also tells you how much depth there is now that Greg Austin and Frost are comfortable putting in so many different young players as they build for the future.
It's hard to read the Stoll injury situation
We know it didn't look good on Saturday when senior tight end Jack Stoll left the game with a leg injury.
On Monday we will still don't have a good read on the situation from Frost.
However, it's hard to imagine we'll see Stoll back this week, and with only eight weeks left in the season, time is ticking.
The good news is the tight end position is very deep. They also can play Chris Hickman there if need be. Hickman only saw time on special teams Saturday, while Kurt Rafdal saw five snaps of action as the third tight end once Stoll went out.
You have to imagine both Austin Allen and Travis Vokolek's snap count are only going to increase.
It's really not worth protesting a targeting suspension
Does Scott Frost think the targeting suspensions to both Cam Taylor-Britt and Deontai Williams are fair? Probably not.
FOX's Joel Klatt also went off on quite a tangent about the calls on Saturday.
However, we learned on Monday it probably doesn't matter what Frost or Klatt think of the calls.
According to Frost, there is no type of appeal process with the league to get the suspensions overturned for Saturday's first half against Wisconsin.
If you are Nebraska, all you can do at this point is figure out the plan for Saturday. More than likely you'll see Quinton Newsome at corner and Myles Farmer at safety in place of Taylor-Britt and Williams.
DiCaprio Bootle could also line up at some safety if they wanted to go that route.
The good thing about this game is NU won't be in very many situations where you have to play more than four defensive backs. This is where the injury to cornerback Braxton Clark also really hurts Nebraska.