LINCOLN, Neb. -- Nebraskas Caleb Lightbourn has taken the punting job he didnt want yet and run with it.Lightbourn expected to spend this season as the understudy to one of the nations best punters in Sam Foltz. But Foltz was killed in a car crash in Wisconsin in July, and Lightbourn was named his successor following a five-day competition in preseason practice.After up-and-down performances the first two games, Lightbourn was named Big Ten freshman of the week for shutting down Oregons powerful return game in last weeks 35-32 victory in Lincoln.You could always see the upside with this kid, special teams coach Bruce Read said. I thought if we could play him, he could get better and better. He has a great mindset, hes a very determined young man, hes a pretty mature kid. He does a nice job of being able to focus and block out the distractions.There have been lots of distractions.Foltz was another in a long line of small-town kids who walked on at Nebraska and made it big. He was beloved by fans, and his death continues to be mourned statewide and throughout the college football community.Lightbourn, from Washougal, Washington, is the first Nebraska punter since 1995 to come in on scholarship, so there were going to be high expectations no matter when he made his debut. But the circumstances for his first appearance would be almost unfathomable for any freshman.It came on the first series in the opener against Fresno State. Before he jogged onto the field, Nebraska lined up in a 10-man formation in an emotional tribute to Foltz.I almost came to tears when I was going out on the field because it was such a special moment, said Lightbourn, whose 29-yard punt was not returned. I was just glad to get the ball off and get my college career rolling, and doing it for Sam.Lightbourn struggled with the swirling wind the next week against Wyoming, and he made an ill-advised decision when he took off running on a fourth-and-10 and was stopped well short of a first down.But on a near-perfect afternoon against Oregon, Lightbourn averaged 47.2 yards on his five punts. His last three were all inside the Oregon 20, including one at the 3. The Ducks Charles Nelson, who entered the game ranked 11th nationally in punt returns, never got an opportunity to run one back.I got a lot more confidence through that game and that experience, Lightbourn said.Lightbourn actually was a better kicker than punter in high school, said Read, who worked with him at Oregon State summer camps for three years before coming with coach Mike Riley to Nebraska. Lightbourn had a knee injury his senior year at Camas High, and he received no offers from any school except Nebraska.The 6-foot-3 Lightbourn is listed at 220 pounds, but Read said hes closer to 240. His father, Edgar Lightbourn, was an elite high jumper. His mother, Marjie Van Der Laan, was a nationally ranked rower in high school.He gets his power from her. He gets his explosion from his dad, Read said. He never really punted all that much. Knowing the bloodlines, and having the history of working with him behind the scenes, we took a shot at him. We were confident he could be a real good player someday. We just didnt know when.Read said Lightbourn should excel in the Big Ten, where cold and strong winds become bigger factors as the season progresses.Guys who dont have pop arent able to deal with this conference very well, so you need big, powerful guys, which is a reason he was a real fit for us, Read said. I figured with a year, we could work and groom him into being that guy. It just happened to come on a lot faster than we thought.Lightbourn arrived at Nebraska in June with the plan to take a redshirt year and learn from Foltz. The two worked together when time allowed, and Lightbourn sensed Foltz taking him under his wing.He told me he wanted me to do the best I possibly can. He told me right before he went to Wisconsin, a few days before that, to kick how you know how to kick and dont let anything influence you too tremendously, Lightbourn said. I think going out there and doing the best I possibly can is what would make him happy.---Online:AP college football website: http://collegefootball.ap.orgFake Saints Jerseys . The Swede became the first golfer to win the PGA Tours FedEx Cup and European Tours Race to Dubai in the same season. 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Perhaps Canterbury are not the attacking flops they are made out to be.As September specialist - Bulldogs coach Des Hasler - readies his side for a finals ambush ahead of his teams NRL elimination final with Penrith, captain James Graham has argued Canterbury do have some offensive bite.And he is right.The Dogs attack, in particular halves Josh Reynolds and Moses Mbye have copped plenty of criticism in recent weeks as the club slipped out of contention for a top four spot.But Fox Sports Stats reveal some of that criticism is off the mark.Both Reynolds and Mbye boast greater key attacking stats than their opposites at Allianz Stadium on Sunday in Bryce Cartwright and Nathan ClearyMbye leads the way with 19 try assists this season, Reynolds has 14 while Cartwright has 11 and Cleary eight.We have our style, we play how we play and we back ourselves, Graham said.It is not easy to attack on the tryline, it is very, very difficult.In terms of taking their opportunities when in tryscoring positions, the Dogs are not worse than clubs seen as more having far more creativity in attack such, as North Queensland, Cronulla.And they are better than Penrith.Canterburys conversion rate from tackles in their opponents 20m red zone iss 63 tries from 668 tackles at a ratio of 10.dddddddddddd6. The Cowboys have scored 74 tries from 768 red zone tackles at 10.4 and the Sharks 66 tries from 694 tackles at 10.5Penrith have 68 tries from 761 red zone tackles at a ratio of 11.2.The Dogs problem isnt so much as scoring from the red zone as getting there.Hasler has coached sides at Manly and the Dogs to 12 successive finals appearances including the 2008 and 2011 premierships with the Sea Eagles and grand finals with Canterbury in 2012 and 2014.Graham, who has played in seven deciders in the NRL and UK Super League, said the Dogs will embrace their finals experience despite missing out on a top four finish.We are in with a shout whether we attack brilliant, great or indifferent, Graham said.We are playing in September and we are really going to attack the finals series.We had the chance to cement a top four and we are gutted that we didnt but the reality is we are here to play finals.We have given ourselves the chance to do that and we have done that by working hard throughout the year and we are excited about what lies ahead. 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