LINCOLN — Throw out the name of Cole Pensick and the average Nebraska football fan might not know it.

Mention Mark Pelini and most would assume you were referencing NU head coach Bo Pelini by his given name.

Speak of Ryne Reeves and you would at least get some nods of recognition.

But ask NU assistant coach Barney Cotton about the need to develop one of those backup centers — to find a dependable No. 2 behind Mike Caputo and perhaps identify next year's starter — and Cotton won't mince any words.

"More important than you can ever imagine," Cotton said. "Probably one of our biggest tasks offensively is to have a viable backup center, finding that guy."

Pensick, Pelini and Reeves are the candidates through the first two weeks of preseason practice. But they are a sophomore, redshirt freshman and true freshman, respectively, and that kind of inexperience at such an important position is one of the reasons for Cotton's anxiety.

Which somebody like Pensick also understands.

"For anyone on the O-line, D-line, anywhere, if you're second string it's one play and you're in," Pensick said. "It can be any play. You've always got to be on top of your game and ready to go.

"I may not have the experience, the game play, but I'm where I understand it on the board and coming out of practice. But getting experience is probably the best thing for you."

Nebraska knows what it has with Caputo, a fifth-year senior from Millard North who started all 14 games last season. Caputo came off the field so little last season that Pensick ballparks that he played maybe 40 or 50 total snaps behind him.

But Caputo said that Cotton and NU assistant John Garrison — the Huskers' starting center in 2001 and '02 — have talent to work with and are bringing the underclassmen along.

"They're going to be good," Caputo said. "They'll be fine. I got faith in them, absolutely."

Caputo was there before as a walk-on and sophomore and backup to Jacob Hickman in 2009. One of the differences with Pensick, however, is that the two-time All-Nebraska player from Lincoln Northeast was signed as a defensive lineman and spent his first season with the Husker defensive line.

So of Caputo, Pensick said: "All I'm going to do is just look at him, pick his brain, and just go from there."

Pensick said things such as footwork, hand placement and making line calls didn't come easy at first. But now that he's spent two springs and one season at center, the 6-foot-2, 275-pounder feels as if it has been a good move — especially with the Huskers' current depth at defensive tackle.

"I'd never played center before, so I really didn't know what to think," Pensick said. "You know, just kind of snap the ball. But to me it was just I wanted to get on the field. I wanted to play. That's all that really mattered.

"They said this is where they want me and I was like, 'All right, I'm going to give it 110 percent and take it from there.'"

Mark Pelini is a nephew of Bo and a 6-foot, 285-pounder from Youngstown, Ohio. His blocking helped Cardinal Mooney to a 15-0 record and Division III state championship in 2009, when current Husker teammate Braylon Heard ran for 1,973 yards and 24 touchdowns.

Both Reeves and Ryan Klachko were considered candidates to play center out of NU's last signing class, but Klachko now is working at offensive guard. Reeves was a two-time All-Nebraska player at Crete, and the 6-3, 300-pounder was listed as a Rivals.com All-American at center despite playing mostly guard for the Cardinals.

In trying different linemen at center, Cotton said one of the underrated factors is finding players who are able to snap and step at the same time. Plenty aren't able to do it, and before long find themselves at guard or tackle.

"You try everybody once, but you identify body types as well," Cotton said. "And the good thing about Reeves, he has some center background from his Crete days."

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