Nebraska OC Satterfield predicts breakout year for Jeff Sims

Nebraska offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield has been seeing progress this summer.
While Satterfield and other NU coaches aren’t allowed to take part in offseason workouts, simply seeing players in the hallways has demonstrated that offseason training programs are working. It’s not just the linebackers or offensive linemen, too — quarterback Jeff Sims has been working hard according to Satterfield.
“I think (Sims) power-cleaned 245 (pounds) last week, he’s 6-foot-4 and he’s put on some good weight, so he looks like he can play linebacker right now,” Satterfield said Monday on "Sports Nightly."
As Nebraska’s quarterbacks coach alongside his play-calling duties, Satterfield has been closely watching his quarterback room since arriving in the winter. When it comes to Sims, though, he’s been following the junior quarterback for much longer.
Satterfield recalls watching Sims during his freshman year at Georgia Tech in 2020 and leaving impressed with the young quarterback’s potential. Now his position coach three years later, Satterfield said Sims has made plenty of progress since then — and he’s projecting further growth to come soon.
“He’s tough, a good leader and a competitor,” Satterfield said of Sims. “I think his ability to function out there from a cerebral standpoint is great, his athletic traits are off the charts and his arm talent is really high level. I think he’s poised to have a breakout year.”
A quarterback room is much more than just one person, though, with Satterfield complementing the unity he’s seen among his quarterbacks. Walk-ons Jack Woche and Luke Longval will help run NU’s scout teams, Satterfield said, while Chubba Purdy progressed as a passer in the offseason.
Also in the mix at quarterback is Heinrich Haarberg, a sophomore who Satterfield was glad to see gain some live-action reps during Nebraska’s April spring game.
“Like Jeff, he’s got super-athletic traits of speed and agility, toughness and durability,” Satterfield said. “He can hurt you running the football, he can run away from you, he can run through you or he can throw the football. He’s got a lot of good football ahead and he had a good summer.”
While he works most closely with the quarterbacks, Satterfield also provided brief updates on other offensive position groups. Satterfield said the Nebraska offensive line is “one of the tightest units I’ve ever been a part of in 24 years of coaching,” and that Nebraska’s tight ends “are the least experienced (position group on offense) but could be the most talented.”