LINCOLN — Johnny Rodgers and Irving Fryar aside, receiver has been a relatively thankless job in Nebraska football history. More grit than glory. More blocks than big plays. But, to the casual Husker fan, it's also been a pretty blameless role.

Until 2009, when Menelik Holt couldn't secure a sure touchdown pass in a 16-15 loss at Virginia Tech. And two bizarre fumbles by Niles Paul hurt the Huskers in losses to Texas Tech and Iowa State.

Or 2010, when drops by just about every guy in red helped Texas pull a 20-13 upset.

"The receivers have always been on the butt-end of things," said Brandon Kinnie, entering his third year at NU. "It's always been like it's the fault of the receivers. I ... took that to heart."

Said junior slot receiver Tim Marlowe: "We haven't been the strongest crew. We've had some good players, but we haven't shown up in some of the bigger games. We're taking it upon ourselves to be the difference-makers."

So is new receivers coach Rich Fisher, who drills this mantra into his troops: Don't be the reason we lose. Be the reason we win. Make plays.

Pretty standard rhetoric. But the Huskers are trying new ways of achieving that goal.

Gone are West Coast offense assignments that required precise, predetermined routes regardless of how a defensive back covered the receiver. In its place, there is more freedom to simply get open, to fill the gaps the defenders leave and trust the quarterback will be on the same page.

"There's still set routes, but how you run those routes is up to you," junior KC Hyland said.

In the WCO, a quarterback could throw to a spot and expect the receiver to inhabit it. He just had to pick which route was open. In WCO theory, spacing makes sure that there is always an open receiver. The quarterback just needs to find him.

In coordinator Tim Beck's offense, there should be many open wide receivers, too. But a quarterback must see what the receiver sees, anticipate the route adjustment and throw accordingly.

It changes how NU practices. Old receivers coach Ted Gilmore used to harp on "detailing" and "timing up" routes, and during workouts he'd sometimes kneel on the turf and gently bark criticisms as receivers made their turns and adjustments. It was all about getting to a certain spot in a certain amount of time.

But Fisher — at least in pre-practice drills — teaches receivers how to adjust their routes based on a defense's alignment and drops. It's easier for receivers. But it's only easier for quarterbacks if they can intuit what the receivers are doing.

That's why the Huskers spent much of their time this summer building that chemistry in 7-on-7 drills. It takes chatter and recognition skills.

"When we're in the slot, and one of the faster guys — me or Kenny Bell or Jamal Turner — match up with a linebacker, that's a matchup we want," Marlowe said. "We want to expose that."

But a quarterback has to know, for example, when he has that mismatch. How's that sixth sense coming?

"That's kind of what we're working on right now," Hyland said, smiling. "That's what practice is for. It's getting the quarterback to know our tendencies."

At X receiver, Hyland is working behind Kinnie — who caught 44 passes for 494 yards and five touchdowns last year. Junior Stanley Jean-Baptiste and sophomore Quincy Enunwa are battling for time at Y. Marlowe and Turner are working in the slot, while Bell is learning a number of positions, including X.

Fueled in part by a number of spring and summer get-togethers — barbecues, laser tag games — Kinnie said the young receivers are on the same page more than ever.

"They listen," Kinnie said. "They want to be great. They take the criticism. As a leader, you have to do the little things. It's all about respect. Got to care about everyone. They've been growing."

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