Kyler Reed will be a crucial component to the Nebraska Cornhuskers offense this fall, and his impact will go beyond the receiving stats in the box score.
Reed will be a key to the unit getting a nice offensive push forward, as they take on a league loaded with strong defensive lines. In the Big Ten, there’s a ton of great DL units: Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan State, Illinois, Purdue and more.
The Huskers will need all hands on deck to get the offense moving forward.
“I’m a small tight end, blocking bigger guys is a struggle for me, but what I really can do is good hand placement, good hat placement, and good footwork,” Redd told us at Big Ten media day.
“That’s where blocking starts, you got to get your hands inside, you got to get your feet down quick and in the right direction, and you got to get your hat in the right direction, it’s all about little things when it comes to blocking,” he continued.
The senior tight end holds the school record for touchdowns by a tight end in a season with 8 in 2010. He also had 257 receiving yards last season. But again, in 2012 it’ll be all about staying healthy, and blocking.
“I think this spring is the best I’ve blocked since I’ve been here. I think last camp I was coming on blocking, and then I hurt my ankle and I couldn’t push off it, I was a little bit bigger, when my ankle and hamstring got hurt….once I got healthy I picked off right where I left off,” Reed said.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net, an official Google News site generating millions of unique visitors. He’s also a regular contributor to Chicago Now, Chicago Tribune.com, Fox Sports, MSN, Walter Football and Yardbarker
A Fulbright scholar and MBA, Banks has appeared on live radio all over the world; and he’s a member of the Football Writers Association of America, U.S. Basketball Writers Association, and Society of Professional Journalists. The President of the United States follows him on Twitter (@Paul_M_BanksTSB) You should too