“You are uncoachable!”

Nearby, holding in laughter, stood Bo Pelini. The disobedient teenager was no teenager at all; he was new video coordinator Mike Nobler.

The joke was on Carl.

Thus began Nobler’s summer camp tradition, which has victimized almost every new intern, graduate assistant and position coach in the past five years. In 2012 Nobler showed up in cutoff Wranglers, high-top tennis shoes and a neck roll (Bo personally put it on him).

He went through Rick Kaczenski’s defensive line drill, doing his best to look like the worst football player Kaz had ever seen. Kaczenski bit his tongue, even pulled the kid aside and threw an arm around him. When Nobler looked up under the helmet and made eye contact, Kaz knew he’d been had.

This is Nobler’s reputation on the football team. Yes, he has a serious job. Yes, he puts in long hours. But to the players, he’s comic relief.

“He doesn’t care what anybody thinks about him,” cornerback Daniel Davie says. “He’s just here to make us laugh.”

Nobler has worked in coaches’ offices for 15 years. He knows the culture. It’s gravely serious.