Becoming 'Tight End U,' Preaching Ball Security and More From Wednesday's Media Availability

Nebraska football is just eight days away from the season opener and wrapping up preseason preperations.

Assistant coaches Marcus Satterfield and E.J. Barthel met with the media Wednesday afternoon after the latest practice. Satterfield said he believes Luke Lindenmeyer's comments that his room can get to a place to lay claim to the title "Tight End U."

“I think it’s attainable,” Satterfield said. “I think we keep working towards it every single day. It doesn’t just happen in one year. It’s an accumulation of talent year after year through recruiting, when people see what our offense looks like and how we’re utilizing the tight ends and all the things.

"You don’t just come here and line up off the ball and block the backside, inside zones. You get to run multiple run schemes, and you have to learn to be a pass pro, and you have to learn to be a route runner. You have to learn multiple positions. You have to give them big sets. You have to hear long play calls. I think you want to win and be developed at a tight end that can produce at the next level. This is going to be a great spot to come.”

Barthel echoed the development sentiment for his group.

"Everything we do here is all about development," Barthel said, speaking to Emmett Johnson's physical gains in the offseason. "Emmett's really your first in my room, going through the three year carwash, four year carwash; he's going into his third year with us.

"He's developed every aspect of his game. It started with just seeing reads. It started with pass protection. Now, as he's accomplished all of the things at the running back position, he's really at the last stage and really focused on his body."

Johnson is now consistently in the 205-pound range, helping him to be more physical as he utilizes leverage and running behind his pads more. As he does that, he and the rest of the room are also focused on another part of the game.

"We preach ball security every snap here," Barthel said. "A lot of that is arm power and bicep flexion. We'll watch ball security drills that we did with Christian McCaffrey and we'll show them the focus of guys like him and Mike Davis when we were there and detail they put in to the 20 minutes, 15 minutes of a period of having correct technique."

One of the most intriguing offseason transitions has been Heinrich Haarberg's complete switch to the tight end position. Satterfield says at one point in the spring or summer, the former quarterback ran 22 miles an hour.

"His straight-line is ridiculous," Satterfield said. "Heinrich, from spring to now, is a total different tight end. I'm really proud of the steps that he's taken from the spring to the summer camp, from week one to week two, from week two to week three. He's working at it. He's getting more comfortable playing the physical nature of the position."

Satterfield and Barthel's full appearances are posted below. Continue scrolling for more coverage from Wednesday.

Coverage

Nebraska Athletics | Satterfield Meets with the Media
Husker247 | Rapid growth at tight end continues for Heinrich Haarberg
HuskerOnline* | Nebraska Wednesday nuggets: RB battle update, TE progress, and more
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Nebraska Football 2025 Schedule

Aug. 28 (Thursday) vs. Cincinnati (Kansas City) 8 p.m. ESPN
Sep. 6 vs. Akron 6:30 p.m. CDT BTN
Sep. 13 vs. Houston Christian 11 a.m. FS1
Sep. 20 vs. Michigan 2:30 p.m. CBS
Oct. 4 vs. Michigan State 11/2:30/3
Oct. 11 at Maryland TBA
Oct. 17 (Friday) at Minnesota 7 p.m. FOX
Oct. 25 vs. Northwestern TBA
Nov. 1 vs. USC TBA
Nov. 8 at UCLA TBA
Nov. 22 at Penn State TBA
Nov. 28 (Black Friday) vs. Iowa 11 a.m. CBS

Home games are bolded. All times central.

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