[Husker] Burkes, Mendoza

[Dan Draney]

Shedding the Burkes redshirt makes sense, if he is indeed the best player at
this time. Getting some experience now will help him (and the team) next
year, too. 

Throwing Mendoza into the mix seems pointless, though. With Lucky, Castille,
and Helu all playing very well and competing for playing time, and Cody
Glenn on the shelf, how much meaningful PT can Mendoza get? It certainly
doesn't seem to me that the offensive woes are something that another
running back will fix, since the RB play is already very good.

Today's LJS (dead tree edition) quotes BC as saying that Glenn is "not in
the doghouse" (LJS quote, not BC). Rather it is the emergence of Helu and
Castille that has pushed Glenn out of the lineup. Says BC, "We're just in a
rhythm with those other players right now. I talked with Cody last week and
explained the situation to him. We're going to utilize him the best we can.
Right now it's a situation where all three backs are doing well. It would be
great if we could get him in, but right now, we're playing the hot hand, and
they're all contributing."

I don't know how to reconcile those statements with a decision to burn
Mendoza's redshirt. It seems Glenn is now #5 in a running back rotation that
doesn't have room for the 4th player.

Dan

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Dick Karre
> Sent: Wednesday, October 24, 2007 1:15 PM
> To: Husker List
> Subject: [personal] [Husker] Burkes, Mendoza
> 
> Jaivorio Burkes will apparently surrender his redshirt and play in place
> of the injured Lydon Murtha Saturday; Burkes says the coaches told him
> he would start. Marcus Mendoza reportedly will also play for the first
> time. Despite being asked, Callahan did not indicate why he was throwing
> Burkes into the fray rather than, say, DJ Jones. Puzzling.
> http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=1200&u_sid=10166234
> 
> Highlight of the article: Callahan indicating he hopes Murtha will
> return in time for bowl practice. By the time NU has bowl practice,
> Murtha will surely be available - unless he has used up his eligibility
> by then. (He has only one more year.)
> 
> BTW, have there been any Cody Glenn sightings recently?
> --
> Dick Karre
> dkarre at comcast.net