Pelini likes second Nebraska team

He still hasn’t settled on a quarterback, but that’s what spring practice is for.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Bo Pelini says he knows his players better and he’s more comfortable in his role as Nebraska’s coach entering his second spring with the Cornhuskers.

Pelini said the pieces are in place for Nebraska to make major strides this fall after going 9-4 with a Gator Bowl win over Clemson last season.

“We’re going into year two here. I expect us to make a big jump,” Pelini said.

The quarterback situation has been a focal point of spring practice, which began last Wednesday.

Zac Lee is the heir apparent to Joe Ganz, but Pelini said nothing is set.

Freshman Cody Green will miss the first few days of practice with a hip injury he aggravated while lifting weights. Green, highly recruited out of Dayton, Texas, enrolled at Nebraska in January after graduating from high school in December.

“He’s really a high school senior. He really shouldn’t be here anyway,” Pelini said. “The way I look at it is that it’s a bonus that he’s here at all.”

Latravis Washington will move from linebacker to quarterback this spring. The 6-foot-3, 225-pounder appeared in 10 games last season, primarily on special teams.

Pelini said Washington’s move was a mutual decision between the coaches and player, partially necessitated by quarterback Patrick Witt’s decision to leave the program in the offseason. Redshirt freshman Kody Spano is also taking snaps this spring.

Washington was starting quarterback for Bayshore High School in Bradenton, Fla., as a senior, and he attended Nebraska’s Elite Quarterback camp in 2005 and ‘06.

“He’s got a big arm. We needed another arm, and we’ll see what it looks like,” Pelini said.

Pelini said Lee probably would get the majority of the reps, but only because he’s the most experienced returning quarterback. The extent of his experience was two mop-up appearances. He’s thrown two passes, completing one for 5 yards.

“He’s got a lot of talent, and I just want him to get better and compete for a job,” Pelini said.

Pelini, who has made his mark in college football as a defensive coordinator, is looking for sharper performances from the Blackshirts.

Playing in the offense-oriented Big 12, Nebraska put up decent defensive numbers. The Huskers allowed 350 yards a game to rank second to Texas in total defense. They were sixth in points allowed, at 28.5 a game. But Nebraska gave up 87 plays of 20 yards or longer, was last in the league in turnover margin, and there was a run of personal fouls.

Pelini said the defense certainly was better than coordinator Kevin Cosgrove’s unit in 2007.

“But we’re nowhere near where I want us to play defensively, and I expect to get there this year,” Pelini said.

“When I look back at last season, we were our own worst enemy a lot of the time. If we fixed that — and we have a pretty good idea how to get that done — we have a chance to be a lot better.”

The Cornhuskers had a 21‚Ñ2-hour workout in full pads on Saturday morning, attended by about 450 youths participating in the Husker Youth Experience.

Following practice, Pelini said he won’t be satisfied until the team is perfectly executing plays. Right now, he said, there’s too many repeated mistakes and not enough consistency.

The coach said he’s looking for physicality and accountability during spring workouts, and that calls for mental discipline.

The Red-White game is scheduled for April 18.