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Joe Schad, Jesse Palmer and Ed Cunningham discuss conference expansion and if Notre Dame should remain independent.

Brent Venables is saying goodbye to Oklahoma, his home since 1999, the entirety of Bob Stoops' tenure in Norman.

He's accepted a job as the defensive coordinator at Clemson.

Colleague Jake Trotter of SoonerNation has the story:

NORMAN, Okla. -- Last week, the Sooners added a defensive coordinator.

This week, they lost one.

Brent Venables, an assistant at Oklahoma under Bob Stoops since 1999, is leaving to take the defensive coordinator job at Clemson.

Venables was co-defensive coordinator at OU from 1999 to 2003, before taking the defensive playcalling over after Mike Stoops left. But last week, Stoops brought his brother Mike back to the staff, relegating Venables to being a co-coordinator again.

Looks like the K-State faithful will have to look elsewhere for their new defensive coordinator ... and head coach?

Has something seemed odd to you about the BCS bowls this year? Does it seem like ... oh wait, West Virginia just scored again.

Does it seem like ... wait, there goes De'Anthony Thomas. Don't think he'll get caught from behind.

Does it seem like ... wait, would somebody please tackle Justin Blackmon?

Does it seem like there have been a lot of points this bowl season?

It's not just you. There have been a lot of points. More points than ever before. And by huge quantities.

So far, BCS bowl teams have averaged a total of 77 points in the Rose, Fiesta, Orange and Sugar bowls. That, folks, is nearly 26 points more than last year (51.6). And it's nearly 11 points better than the previous high of 66.3 from 2001-02.

Perhaps pairing two SEC teams in the title game has created a black hole sucking all defensive stinginess into the LSU-Alabama rematch, which you might recall went 9-6 with no touchdowns in their first meeting. West Virginia scored 10 touchdowns -- 10! -- against Clemson. Alabama gave up 12 TDs all season.

Speaking of Clemson: ACC. Well, well, well.

After the Tigers ingloriously fell 70-33 to the Mountaineers, we got our second story from the BCS bowl season: The ACC's insistence on throwing up on itself in BCS bowl games.

The conference that was once expected to challenge the SEC is now 2-13 in BCS bowl games. That's hard to do. You'd think in 15 BCS bowls the conference could get lucky at least five or six times. But no, it insists on making ACC blogger Heather Dinich, a genuinely nice person, into some sort of Grim Reaper every bowl season.

Heck, the Big East has won seven BCS bowls -- second fewest among AQ conferences -- but it's 7-7.

Of course, this all ties together, and we're here to bring out a bow, but first a warning: If you don't want to read about how good the SEC is for the 56,314th time this year, then stop reading. I'd recommend an episode of "South Park" or perhaps a John le Carré thriller as an alternative for passing the time.

We can all agree the SEC plays great defense right? Alabama and LSU will play for the title Monday with the nation's top-two defenses. Do you think perhaps that it's not a coincidence that the conference that is 16-7 in BCS bowl games plays great defense?

The only other AQ conference with a winning record in BCS bowl games is the Pac-12, which is 11-7. The Pac-12 isn't known for defense, either, but USC was when it won the conference's last national title in 2004.

The only team to win a BCS national title without an elite defense was Auburn in 2010, but the Tigers' defense seemed to find itself late in the season. Since 1999, eight national champions had a top-10 defense. Other than Auburn, the lowest-rated defense to win a BCS national title was Ohio State in 2002. It ranked 23rd in the nation in total defense.

Three of the four BCS bowl games have been thrillers. Two went to overtime. We've seen big plays all over the field in the passing game and running game. Yet, if things go according to script in the title game, we'll see none of that. We might not see more than a couple of plays that go for more than 20 yards. We might not see any.

Some might call that boring. It might seem that both offenses are so paranoid of making a mistake that they are stuck in mud, both in game plan and execution.

But, snoozefest or not, when the clock strikes zero a team from the SEC will hoist the crystal football for a sixth consecutive time.

That might say something about playing better defense.

» BCS standings reaction: ACC | Big 12 | Big East | Big Ten | Pac-12 | SEC | Non-AQ

Oklahoma State's spirits were at an all-time low Friday night while the Cowboys watched Iowa State storm the field after ruining their perfect season and — or so we thought — ending all hopes at a national title.

Additionally, the Cowboys fell to sixth in the coaches poll, which makes up one-third of the BCS standings; the Harris poll and the computer rankings each make up another third.

But don't turn the lights out just yet. Oklahoma State — by way of upset losses suffered by Oregon, Clemson and Oklahoma — fell just two spots to No. 4 in the latest BCS, released Sunday night, behind three teams from the SEC West. LSU, Alabama and Arkansas occupied the top three spots.

Computers love the Big 12. As I've referenced several times, its 27-3 record in nonconference play is paying off. Oklahoma State is still No. 2 in the computers and has a matchup in two weeks with No. 9 Oklahoma, which might also get a bump if teams lose next weekend. OSU ranks No. 2 in four of the computer polls and third in the other two.

For now, Oklahoma State must hope for SEC shenanigans or voter sentiment against an SEC rematch in the national title game. The top three teams in the SEC West have lost only to each other, and LSU hosts Arkansas on Friday. Alabama must also beat Auburn on Saturday. If the Crimson Tide lose and LSU beats Arkansas, you'd see LSU and Oklahoma State in the national title game after all.

Oklahoma State will sit and wait this weekend and hope for chaos that would buoy it back into the BCS driver's seat, but 48 hours after the most crushing loss in school history, there's reason to believe The Big Game is still within reach.

Other notes on the latest BCS standings:

• Oklahoma is No. 9 and No. 6 in the computers.
• Kansas State hopped to No. 11.
• Baylor is No. 18.
• Texas is still hanging on at No. 25.

It's icy and cold across much of the the nation's heartland this morning.

But here's an idea better than tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich for some warming noontime satisfaction.

Why, of course -- a piping hot selection of Big 12 lunchtime links for your edification.

Enjoy.

• The Lawrence Journal-World’s Chuck Woodling pronounces Kansas’ idea of a Gridiron Club as a massive flop.
• The Sporting News’ Matt Hayes ranks East Carolina's hiring of former Texas Tech defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill as the best made by a non-BCS school this season.
• It might be January, but football talk dominated the weekly chat by Austin American-Statesman pundits Kirk Bohls and Cedric Golden.
• ESPN.com’s Ivan Maisel likes the idea of the Hornung Trophy, believing it can honor all-around players who dominated their games like former Missouri player Jeremy Maclin.
• Rising Lakewood (Colo.) linebacker Joe Hemschoot will choose today between Colorado, Oregon and Stanford, Kyle Ringo of the Boulder Camera reports.
• The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal reports that documents filed by Texas Tech’s attorneys with the state attorney general’s office indicate that Craig James threatened to sue the school if it didn’t investigate his claims that Mike Leach mistreated an injured student-athlete.
• Oklahoma State cornerback Perrish Cox is listed among five rising players at the Senior Bowl by the Sporting News’ Clifton Brown.
• Running back Lucky Hadley of Taft High School in Woodland Hills, Calif., will visit Texas Tech this weekend, Gerry Gittelson of the Los Angeles Daily News reports. Hadley’s other finalists include Clemson, North Carolina and Utah.
• The Lincoln Journal Star's Brian Christopherson writes about some of Nebraska's most notable recruiting losses over the last several years.
• Turner Gill’s $2 million yearly contract makes him the fifth highest-paid coach in the Big 12, according to J. Brady McCollough of the Kansas City Star.
• UTEP athletic director Rob Stull told Zahira Torres of the El Paso Times that the Miners will pocket $1 million for their 2012 game against Texas in Austin.
• John Mackovic of the Palm Springs (Calif.) Desert Sun writes about the nervousness for coaches associated with national signing day.

We've got more lunch links that we can shake a stick at this afternoon.

My doctor tells me that consuming these links every day will help prevent colds.

Call it my version of chicken soup for the Big 12 fan's soul.

• Donald Trump hasn’t forgotten about his old friend Mike Leach, KCBD-TV in Lubbock reports.
• Not a good day for Kansas players working out at the East-West Shrine practices. Todd Reesing was measured at only 5-foot-10 and Kerry Meier lacked burst coming out of his cuts, Russ Lande of The Sporting News reports.
• The Lincoln Journal-Star’s Steve Sipple and Brian Christopherson provide a video update on Nebraska’s late recruiting prospects.
• Former Baylor coach and current Clemson defensive coordinator Kevin Steele has decided to stay at his job rather than accept the job as the new defensive coordinator on Derek Dooley’s staff at Tennessee, Ed McGranahan of the Greenville News reports.
• Denton Ryan (Texas) quarterback Scotty Young tells the Denton Record-Chronicle’s Adam Boedeker that he’s solid with his commitment to Texas Tech, even after the coaching change to Tommy Tuberville.
• The Daily Kansan’s Nicolas Roesler writes about where Mark Mangino’s staff has landed after it was let go by Turner Gill in the Jayhawks’ coaching change.
• Among the coaches still in the mix for East Carolina’s vacant head coaching job include Leach, former Texas Tech defensive coordinator and ECU alum Ruffin McNeill and Oklahoma offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson, Nathan Summers of the Greenville (N.C.) Daily Reflector.
• Air Force defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter is in line to be hired as Texas A&M’s new defensive coordinator later this week, Jake Schaller of the Colorado Springs Gazette reports.
• Oklahoma State defensive coordinator Bill Young and new offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen both will be paid $360,000 next season, Bill Haisten of the Tulsa World reports.
• The Oklahoman’s Berry Tramel opines that Mike Gundy showed some maturity when he ended his work as the Cowboys' offensive coordinator and hired Dana Holgorsen to replace him.
• Paul Rhoads was listed No. 4 and Bill Snyder was ninth in Richard Cirminiello of College Football News’ ranking of 2009’s first-year head coaches.

Tommy Tuberville was the best choice for Texas Tech to fill the vacancy created when Mike Leach was fired.

But I’m still a little surprised Tuberville took the job.

Tuberville’s introductory press conference in Lubbock Sunday found him about 180 degrees opposite from Leach -– both in appearance and in candor. He will be the anti-Leach in a lot of what he will do and represent.

It surprised me, however, when Tuberville expressed his continued commitment to a wide-open passing attack.

When Tuberville has been most successful, his teams had a defense-first, offense-second mentality. It’s not surprising considering his own background as a defensive coach when he was coming up the circuit.

Tech’s current roster is heavily stacked to playing a wide-open passing offense. But it's surprising Tuberville so quickly and easily endorsed it.

Naysayers will remember that Tuberville tried to embrace some of the new offensive philosophies in his final season at Auburn. The results were disastrous, mainly because of philosophical differences among his coaching staff.

That should change after his arrival at Tech as he appears ready to keep many of Leach’s assistants on board. Tuberville hopes, in his own words, to keep Tech’s offense “exciting” and “versatile.”

“We’re going to air out. We’re going to keep the air raid,” Tuberville said. “I think it’s something that Tech has hit upon that gives them that identity to recruit and we all want to have.”

That idea was what Gerald Myers had in mind when he hired Leach after the 1999 season. Leach built his reputation as an offensive coordinator before getting his break at Tech.

Myers and the school’s other power brokers thought they needed a flashy offense when Leach replaced the venerable Spike Dykes after 14 years as coach.

As such, they scoured the nation for the nation’s top offensive minds. The other finalist when they settled on Leach was Rich Rodriguez, then the offensive coordinator at Clemson.

It’s hard to argue with their choice today. Leach has brought the school unexpected national attention -– from stories on "60 Minutes" and a cameo appearance on “Friday Night Lights” to a fawning cover story in the New York Times Sunday Magazine about his quirky personality and offensive wizardry.

And his teams have played a little football too, considering they made bowl trips in each of his 10 seasons coaching the Red Raiders.

Tuberville is more of a traditionalist, although he said he likely will lean heavily on a defense with a three-man front and four linebackers.

“I believe in consistency,” Tuberville said. “If you look at the top teams in the country, they are all based on consistency. Not changing one week or one year. You change subtly.

“We’ll have a base offense. We’ll have a base defense, and we'll build from that each week. When we play on Saturday, we won't be complicated. We'll be simple in the fact in terms of what our players think. It will look a little bit more complicated in the naked eye.”

Tuberville represents the biggest football coaching fish attracted to Tech. He’s only four seasons removed from a 13-0 record and national coach of the year honors at Auburn.

But he’ll be facing challenges in the Big 12 South, which is universally considered one of the toughest divisions in college football. He’ll be tested to keep pace with big dogs Texas and Oklahoma, both at the apex of team strength since Mack Brown and Bob Stoops took over.

Oklahoma State has pumped millions into facilities and appears to be ready to become a serious challenger in the south. Baylor is still looking for its first bowl trip in 15 seasons, but has better facilities and the right coach to lead them into Big 12 South relevancy. Tuberville’s old school, Texas A&M, has the tradition and facilities and appears to need only the right coach to bring them back into contention.

It won’t be easy for Tuberville, but he appears to be uniquely qualified for the challenge of maintaining Tech’s recent success and maybe even building on it.

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin It's been a long time in coming, but Nebraska coach Bo Pelini rewarded the player who might be the most deserving walk-on with a scholarship after a strong season of production. Kicker/punter Alex Henery was among the six Cornhusker walk-on players who have been added to the school's scholarship list, Pelini announced after practice on Saturday. Other Cornhuskers who were put on scholarship include senior wide receiver Wes Cammack, senior linebacker Colton Koehler, senior offensive lineman Derek Meyer, junior tight end Dreu Young and sophomore center Mike Caputo. "It shows that if you come in here and you do the right things, for the football team and yourself, you have a good chance of being rewarded for your efforts," Pelini told reporters after Saturday's practice. "That shows with those six young men.'' The most obvious was Henery, who arguably was one of the most valuable Cornhuskers last season. His dramatic school-record 57-yard field goal against Colorado -- one of four in a 40-31 triumph over the Buffaloes -- helped boost the Cornhuskers into the Gator Bowl. Henery then added four field goals in the bowl game, providing the margin of victory in a 26-21 triumph over Clemson. It capped a season when he converted 26 of 29 field goals. Koehler produced 16 tackles in seven games last season. Young snagged nine passes. And Cammack has been a key producer for the Cornhuskers on special teams each of the past two seasons. Meyer, a recent transfer from Kansas State, and Caputo both are in the two-deep for the Huskers' offensive line. "This is a great group of guys and it is great to be able to have the ability to recognize their contributions by placing them on scholarship," Pelini said. "Each of those guys has shown a great commitment to our football program, and they do things the right way on and off the field."

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

Nebraska linebackers coach Mike Ekeler has the reputation as one of the best quotes among the Big 12 coaches.

It may be early August, but Ekeler already is in mid-season form if some of his comments to the Lincoln Journal-Star are any indication.

Ekeler thinks the Cornhuskers' linebackers need to be more physical this season. And he gave them a lot of verbiage to fire them up. 

"We have to know our system inside and out," Ekeler said. "We have to communicate like crazy, and we HAVE to become a physical group.

"Last year we weren't a physical group."

Ekeler's disappointment last season came despite the Cornhuskers winning six of their final seven games, capped by a dramatic victory over Clemson in the Gator Bowl.

So much for resting on laurels. Ekeler just wants to hear pads pop every day in practice from his group during the rest of training camp.

"We have to get to the point where there are no free passes," Ekeler said. "If a receiver's going to drag across the middle, we're going to take his damn head off.

"We're going to be physical in the run game. We're not going to take a side on a fullback. We're going to hit him right under the chin -- split his chin -- and get off and make the play."

I'm looking for some noticeable improvement from the Cornhuskers' defense in the second season under coach Bo Pelini's staff. Ekeler's words obviously will keep the Blackshirts excited -- and reporters' notebooks filled -- as they get ready for the start of the season.  

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

Excitement is coursing through the Nebraska program after the way the Cornhuskers finished the 2009 season.

Late victories over Kansas, Kansas State, Colorado and Clemson in the Gator Bowl to finish the season have helped make the Cornhuskers a fashionable choice to win the Big 12 North Division title. And that's even with untested quarterback Zac Lee and a lack of proven wide receivers as two huge offensive liabilities.

Those questions are the biggest reason why the Cornhuskers might struggle to fulfill any championship aspirations -- at least for this season. But coach Bo Pelini has Nebraska pointed in the right direction for future success and it wouldn't be a surprise to see Nebraska solidly in the North Division title mix for most of the season.

Here are three specific predictions for the Cornhuskers in the 2009 season.

1. Roy Helu Jr. and Quentin Castille will combine for at least 2,000 rushing yards. Nebraska offensive coordinator Shawn Watson helped win a Big 12 championship at Colorado in 2001 with shaky quarterbacks by utilizing a bruising running game that dominated opponents. I expect Nebraska will be the most heavy run-oriented team as Watson tries to make things easier for his untested quarterback again this season. Helu and Castille are nice foundations to build those plans around as the best pair of running backs this side of Oklahoma. If they can remain healthy, it wouldn't surprise me to see Helu produce 1,200 rushing yards and Castille to add 800 more.

2. Pierre Allen and Barry Turner will develop into the North's best pair of defensive ends. Of course, they should probably thank Ndamukong Suh for that. But the fact that Suh will command a lot of double-team blocks inside will mean that Allen and Turner will face single-team blocking outside on almost every play. That sounds like a recipe for production from one of the conference's best and balanced pass rushes -- and the key to Nebraska's overall defensive improvement.

3. The turnover will return to the Blackshirts' defensive montage. Pelini arrived at Nebraska with the reputation of helping produce some of the most opportunistic defenses in the country in recent memory. They didn't do much with only 17 takeaways last season as Nebraska finished 107th in turnover margin. That will change this year in Nebraska's second season working with Pelini. And a big enough improvement might be enough to boost them to their first North Division title since 2006.

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

The Big 12 was seriously underrepresented in a poll released on Friday.

And no, I don't mean the USA Today coaches' poll.

Foxsports.com came up with a list of what it considers are the 10 most obnoxious fan bases in college football. The Big 12's only representative was Oklahoma at No. 4.

Here's a look at the poll, which leans heavily to national teams and rivals.

1. Notre Dame

2. Michigan

3. LSU

4. Oklahoma

5. USC

6. Clemson

7. Ohio State

8. Alabama

9. Florida State

10. Florida

All are good choices, but I have to think that the fan bases of several Big 12 fan bases also would deserve some mention.

Anybody have any recommendations?

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

Here are the Big 12's best stories today for your lunchtime edification.

• The Des Moines Register's Randy Peterson has a touching story about how Iowa State defensive back James Smith found his mother in Haiti this summer after not seeing her for the past 19 years.
• Joe Williams of the Orlando Sentinel catches up with Lache Seastrunk of Temple, Texas, one of the nation's top recruits who is in Paisley, Fla., for the Football University's Top Gun Camp. Among the schools Seastrunk is considering includes Baylor, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Texas and Texas A&M.
• Texas Tech could make millions by taking advantage of Lubbock's new "wet" laws by designating vendors for sales at football games at Jones AT&T Stadium, the Daily Torreador's Ben Jones reports.
• ESPN.com's JC Shurbutt reports that Oklahoma State snatched a recruiting commitment from heralded offensive line prospect Dan Koenig of Cape Coral, Fla. Koenig, whose two older brothers played for the Cowboys, picked OSU over Nebraska, Mississippi and Clemson.
• Dave Matter of the Columbia Tribune provides another interesting "Case of the Mondays" with particular interest in Missouri's upcoming practice schedule, five questions heading into Missouri's fall practice and his need for assistance in a Big 12 fantasy football team.
• The Big 12 is in danger of being lapped by the SEC in terms of its mega television deal, the Lincoln Journal-Star's Steve Sipple reports.
• Jake Vehyl of Athlonsports.com predicts that Oklahoma State receiver Dez Bryant will be among the Heisman finalists this season.
• The Baton Rouge Advocate's Randy Rosetta writes that LSU might be willing to play Big 12 schools Texas and Texas A&M in the future at facilities like Reliant Stadium in Houston and the new Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
• Paul Myerburg of the New York Times' "The Quad" blog ranks Texas Tech as the nation's No. 29 team.
• John Werner of Lindys.com writes about Robert Griffin's attempt to lead Baylor to its first bowl game since 1994.
• Big 12 foes have trouble deciding whether Colt McCoy or Sam Bradford is the better quarterback, the Tulsa World's John Hoover reports.
• Bob Devaney's omission in a recent Sporting News poll of history's top-50 coaches makes development of a Nebraska Football Hall of Fame at Memorial Stadium a priority, Omaha World-Herald columnist Tom Shatel writes.

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

The Big East's hard-line pronouncement about its availability for the Gator Bowl might add another potential suitor into the Big 12's upcoming bowl mix.

New Big East commissioner John Marinatto told the Tampa Tribune that he is unwilling to continue the "shared-pick" arrangement that sends the Big East No. 2 team twice and the Big 12 No. 4 team twice in a four-year period to the Jacksonville-based bowl.

"It would be doubtful," Marinatto told the Tribune. "It's not what we want and not what we're going to try for. It's not on our agenda. We believe the Big East has earned that, we don't want the hybrid model.

"If we have to go somewhere else, so be it."

In the other two years of the shared pick, the No. 4 Big 12 team will go to the Alamo Bowl and the No. 5 Big 12 team will go to the Sun Bowl. That will be the case during this upcoming season.

New agreements will begin in 2010 and Big 12 Commissioner Dan Beebe has been working furiously over the last several weeks with various current partners and potential new bowls for destinations for his teams.

Big 12 teams have played in the Gator Bowl in two of the last three seasons, with Texas Tech meeting Virginia in the 2008 game and Nebraska and Clemson meeting in the 2009 game. The Big 12 has won both of those games.

Beebe said last week that the Gator Bowl has been a strong arrangement for the Big 12 for several reasons. First, it is a New Year's Day game that provides the strong kind of exposure that the conference craves. Secondly, it is based in Florida to give them a consistent recruiting presence in another part of the country.

But the Jacksonville trip is an expensive one for Big 12 fans -- particularly if they are forced to buy their airline tickets inside a 21-day window from the game.

The Big 12's current bowl arrangement provides its winner to the BCS and its No. 2 team to the Cotton Bowl. That long-term relationship is unlikely to change -- particularly as the Cotton Bowl moves to the Dallas Cowboys' plush new stadium in Arlington, Texas.

But after that, the Gator Bowl could get in the mix for a No. 3 team which is currently held by the Holiday Bowl. Bowl sources indicate the Alamo Bowl also is interested in that team and the Houston Bowl could be interested as well.

A more regionally based bowl such as the Alamo or Texas bowl might make more sense and prove more attractive to more Big 12 schools because of its proximity inside the conference's geographic footprint.

Even with a higher payout at another bowl in another part of the country, that number could be diminished if the Big 12 school wouldn't sell its quota of tickets. The conference's teams would be more likely to sell those tickets if they played in a bowl game where fans could drive.

But both bowls would struggle matching the sizzle of playing inside Florida -- particularly considering every Big 12 team normally plays at least one game inside the state of Texas as part of its regular-season schedule.

I expect a lot of posturing and positioning in the next several weeks. But however it plays out, the Big 12's stature among the bowls has never appeared stronger.

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

IRVING, Texas -- Nebraska coach Bo Pelini can tell a difference in the way his team is approaching workouts this summer.

"Right now, our program understands what it means to put in a good, hard day of work," Pelini said. "The culture of the program is getting firmer. The players are starting to get it, and I feel better about where we are at this point."

That attitude is a marked change from what Pelini inherited when he took over the program last season.

The Cornhuskers were 5-7 in 2007, the year before Pelini arrived, and won only two of eight conference games. But their familiarity after last season, when the Cornhuskers earned a share of the Big 12 North title, has helped flush those bad memories away.

"I thought when I first got here there was a sense of dread," Pelini said. "Now, they are looking to get better. They understand what it means to get out there and work."

Pelini said last season's accomplishments, capped by a Gator Bowl victory over Clemson, has helped push expectations for his squad.

"There's a sense of anticipation where we are headed," Pelini said. "I feel better about where we are at this point. We're still not a finished product, but there's a sense of anticipation in where we are headed."

Nebraska senior center Jacob Hickman stole a term from one of his business classes to describe the change he has noted in his team since Pelini arrived.

"There definitely is a change of mentality, but it wasn't a sense of dread," Hickman said. "People are on the same page and they want to get better. We have a lot of goal congruence. It gives us something to look forward to and build on."

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Griffin

Who needs a quiet summer? Alex Henery is doing his best to stay busy by trying to win another job with Nebraska.

It's why Henery is trying to build on his record-breaking start as a kicker by becoming the Cornhuskers' regular punter.

But whether booming high spiraling punts or drilling balls through the uprights, Henery has confidence he can help the Cornhuskers at both positions.

	Josh Wolfe/Icon SMI
	Nebraska kicker Alex Henery is looking to add the punting duties to his plate in 2009.

"It's something that I can do," Henery said. "Some kids are strictly kickers and others are punters. I feel like I can do both. It's a challenge I feel like I can accomplish."

Henery actually came to Nebraska as a punter after averaging more than 41 yards per kick at Burke High School in Omaha in his junior and senior seasons. Those numbers earned him all-state honors as a punter from the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal-Star in both seasons.

But when he arrived at Nebraska, his chances at the position were stifled with Dan Titchener and Jake Wesch in front of him on the depth chart. After sitting out a redshirt season, Henery moved to kicker where he has blossomed into one of the nation's most consistent performers once he got his chance.

And he earned Bo Pelini's ultimate compliment when he was described as "a stud" after his record-breaking 57-yard kick that helped beat Colorado last year.

During his college career, Henery has missed only one extra point and one field goal attempt inside of 50 yards. He is the most consistent kicker in Nebraska history to this point.

"I couldn't imagine things turning out much better for me than how they've worked out," Henery said. "I'm happy with how things have gone so far. My career has worked out pretty well."

Even with that early success, Henery hopes to build on that by punting this season after the graduation of Wesch and Titchener.

Few college players have been successful at both jobs. But recent success by Wake Forest standout Sam Swank and West Virginia's Pat McAfee have convinced Henery to give it a shot.

(Read full post)