John Parrella
The timing could not have been better for John Parrella. The former All-Big Eight defensive lineman for the Huskers not only got the chance to return to the school where he starred but he will also work for a coach he played for in the National Football League.
Parella spent most of his 12 seasons in the NFL in San Diego and was on the roster when Mike Riley was the head coach.
“This is a great program and coach Riley has done a tremendous job with it as well as his staff”, said Parrella. “Any role I can fill especially with our defensive linemen to get them to understand the toughness it takes to play in this conference I am going to do that.”
Parrella began his coaching career in the high school ranks in Southern California and says he always thought about the possibility of someday returning to Nebraska.
“I think any former player that had success at his college would want to go back and coach there.”
Parrella spent the past two seasons as the defensive line coach at Northern Michigan. The Huskers open spring practice on Saturday.