Former I-back Glenn stands out at linebacker
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BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL / Lincoln Journal Star
Cody Glenn’s position switch is permanent.
“I’m 100 percent sure,” Glenn said, “I won’t be a running back again here.”
In fact, all signs indicate Glenn, a senior, is Nebraska’s starting WILL linebacker.
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“As of right now, I am,” said Glenn, who’s been working exclusively with the No. 1 defense since his move to linebacker April 2. “We’ll see how it goes in the fall. That’s my goal.”
Who exactly are Nebraska’s starting linebackers, should the season begin today?
“I really don’t want to say that right now, because we don’t have to play a game (today),” first-year linebackers coach Mike Ekeler said.
“But Cody would be right there. He’d be our guy.”
It’s been only 10 days since Glenn changed positions, but in that time he’s become the talk of Nebraska’s spring camp. Head coach Bo Pelini has offered unsolicted praise for Glenn. Coaches and players rave over his instinct for the ball. Glenn forced three turnovers in his first four practices.
“We’re watching film, and we’re all like, ‘Gol, he’s flying to the ball, he’s getting into his coverages,’” Nebraska middle linebacker Phillip Dillard said. “It’s natural to him, like he’s played it before.”
Or, perhaps, knows the offense. Glenn, after all, spent three years playing running back.
How much does his knowledge of what’s happening on the other side of the ball have to do with his defensive instincts?
“Zero. Absolutely zero,” Ekeler said bluntly.
“He’s just applying the concepts of our defense to what we’re doing. Our offense is so multiple, I don’t care if he knows what the plays are. We have so many looks out of each formation, he has no idea what’s coming.”
Glenn said knowing the offense is a bit of an advantage, but that his reads still take him away from the ball momentarily, so it’s not like he can zoom in immediately.
“He’s just very instinctive, he’s very, very intelligent and he works his tail off,” Ekeler said. “And he’s a great leader. He just has a great, natural feel for defense. I can’t take any credit for it.
“I know Bo’s been working with him a lot individually. He’s doing everything and more, to this point, of what we’ve asked him. We could not be happier.”
Glenn has also had help from his fellow linebackers, most notably Dillard and sophomore Blake Lawrence, who also plays the WILL.
The day Glenn moved to linebacker, Ekeler was in a meeting with Pelini. When he returned to his office, Ekeler found Lawrence at the board, laying out the entire defense for Glenn — inside, out, front and back.
“He knows his stuff,” Glenn said of Lawrence. “He doesn’t have a 4.0 for nothing. He got me squared away pretty good.”
Glenn said he’s still trying to grasp the entire system. When he makes a mistake, Ekeler said, Glenn knows immediately what he did wrong and why.
“That’s the mark of a great player,” Ekeler said, “and a really sharp, sharp guy.”
Glenn said he was skeptical about making a position change, what with this being his senior season. He’d had his heart set on being a running back.
“But with the circumstances and the opportunity, I thought I would give it a try,” Glenn said.
“It’s turned out great. A lot better than I thought it would be. I’m really happy with it.”
In addition to possessing “unbelievable natural instincts on defense,” Glenn is finding success, Ekeler said, because of his work ethic and character.
“He comes over after four or five practices of spring ball his senior year because he wants to help us,” Ekeler said. “And he’s going to help us now. He’s got an opportunity to be special.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
