Tree Babalade’s summer path at Nebraska has gone from promising to frustrating and back toward promising again.
He opened fall camp as the favorite to land one of the five starting spots on the offensive line, then slipped down the depth chart and had a hard time finding snaps. But offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen said Tuesday that the former South Carolina transfer is beginning to put it together.
Holgorsen spoke with reporters at his official game-week press conference and said the line had stretches of solid play against Michigan State. Babalade, in particular, stood out enough to earn more work.
“ had his best game, which increased his reps,” Holgorsen said. “I think you’ll start seeing that happen more.
We didn’t feel a need to put Gunnar over on the left side, because Pritch probably had his best game since he’s been here. There weren't any hiccups.
Sometimes, you know, our plan was that if there was a hiccup or a missed assignment, or something like that, we’d pull them out, and I didn’t feel like I had to do that.”
That kind of progress matters because Holgorsen also sees Elijah Pritchett coming on. The Nebraska coordinator said Babalade’s rise could force some decisions about how the staff arranges the line and distributes the snaps.
“With that said, Gunnar and Tree are probably, arguably, two of our top five,” he continued. “So, we’ve got to maybe do some things to get all three of those guys in the game at some point.”
Holgorsen also pointed to Anthony Colandrea as part of why Nebraska can afford to keep adjusting up front. He said Colandrea’s quickness can be both a strength and a challenge.
“I think Anthony was a little quick to get out of the pocket at times. I don’t want him scrambling around getting hit like he did. He did that too much, in my opinion.”
“He’s fast through his decisions, and he makes quick decisions, which is good,” Holgorsen continued. “That means there are no sacks.
But he missed some things in the passing game that, if he stands in there a bit longer, then he can go to different places and get through his progressions… With that said, he kept some drives alive with his feet. That’s a weapon, and we’re going to utilize that.”
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