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Lincoln – The Nebraska Cornhuskers continued preparations on Wednesday for this weekend’s showdown with the Michigan State Spartans. The Huskers practiced for two hours in half-pads, split between the Hawks Championship Center and Ed and Joyanne Gass practice fields.

Following practice, Assistant Coach John Papuchis spoke to the media about the challenges that Michigan State’s special teams unit will present to the Huskers.

“They’re good,” Papuchis said. “They play hard, they’re well-coached. You can tell it’s an important aspect of what they’re trying to get done and that’s usually true of any good program. I think so far we’ve had a good week of practice and we’ll be ready to go on Saturday.”

Papuchis also discussed the improvement of the defensive line’s depth over the past years.

“I think right now we’ve been fortunate to develop some more depth over the course of the last couple years,” Papuchis said. “That allows us to still feel very comfortable going into this game with the guys we’ve got. The depth is better than it has been.”

While he acknowledged that injuries are difficult, Papuchis reiterated that the team will press forward.

“That’s part of the game,” Papuchis said. “You feel bad for the guys who get hurt, but that’s just part of the game and we’ll move forward.”

The Huskers will practice again on Thursday as they march toward their divisional matchup against Michigan State on Saturday. The game will kick off at 11 a.m. in Memorial Stadium with a national telecast on ESPN.