Nebraska Football: Huskers Must Find Right Balance for De'Mornay Pierson-El

De'Mornay Pierson-El seems like he can do just about anything. Return punts? You got it. Make big plays at wide receiver? Absolutely. Step in at quarterback? Not a problem.

The true freshman has shined in all the roles he's been given by the Nebraska coaching staff in 2014. So much so that senior wide receiver Kenny Bell couldn't help but praise Pierson-El.

“He’s going to be a great player here. There’s no question in my mind,” Bell said, per Rich Kaipust and Jon Nyatawa of the Omaha World-Herald. “He’s got the work ethic. He’s more than intelligent enough. He works his tail off. He blocks, he catches, he does all the right stuff.”

Coordinating all the hats he wears is now crucial for Pierson-El going forward. In order to stay healthy, he must find the right balance at Nebraska.

Early in the season, returning punts was Pierson-El's bread and butter. It still arguably is, simply looking at the numbers. According to CFBStats.com, Pierson-El leads the Big Ten in total punt return yards, return attempts, touchdowns and yards per game.

And to be fair, punt returns still are his bread and butter. After all, he has 441 yards and two touchdowns on 29 punt returns alone so far this season. Those two touchdowns were big ones, too. He had an 86-yard punt return for a touchdown against Fresno State. The other was a 62-yard touchdown run against Michigan State.

Nati Harnik/Associated Press

"With De'Mornay, when you get him started he's pretty hard to tackle," Pelini said about his punt returning after Purdue.

As a wide receiver, Pierson-El has 124 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions. As he's grown in that role, he's gotten the ball more and more. Against Northwestern and Purdue, for instance, Pierson-El had six receptions combined, as he's being utilized as a wide receiver more in the second half of the season than he was in the first.

Pierson-El has even had the opportunity to play the role of quarterback this season. Against Northwestern, he came around on a reverse and took a pitch from I-back Ameer Abdullah. He then threw a 16-yard pass to quarterback Tommy Armstrong for a touchdown.

Standing on the sidelines after the win over Purdue, there was a general consensus from those left in Memorial Stadium that there has to be a balance for Pierson-El. And there has to be if, as Pelini strongly hinted at following the win over the Boilermakers, Pierson-El is utilized more going forward:

"He was in the game a lot. It just depends on where reads take the quarterback. There are other ways we can get him the football. We used the speed sweep to get him the ball, get him the ball on special teams and he caught a touchdown pass. So there's not many more ways we can get him on the field. He's still a young player and there's only so much he can handle, too."

That's the key. Pierson-El can handle only so much, so while it's possible he feels he can take on so much more, it's Pelini's job to protect him by not putting too much on the player's plate.

Nebraska has found a playmaker in Pierson-El. Ensuring he isn't overextended will have to be the focus of Pelini and offensive coordinator Tim Beck. As a true freshman, Pierson-El has a bright future at Nebraska.

After all, he's a player that seems capable of handling everything. As long as he finds the right balance, that is.

All quotes were obtained firsthand, unless otherwise noted.