FREMONT-- Yes, Nebraska is still on the lookout for potential grad transfer options. No, defensive backs coach Travis Fisher doesn't think there's enough depth in his room yet.

But both Husker defensive coordinator Erik Chinander and Fisher spoke candidly on Tuesday of finding the right kind of kids if you're going to add, while also presenting stiff challenges to those already on the roster. Fisher made it clear he certainly has already done that to even presumed starters like junior cornerback Lamar Jackson.

"How I picture this deal, and what I want in the room, is I don't want to just bring in this five-star kid from California," Fisher said while speaking to a crowd in Fremont during a day-wide tour of the state by Husker coaches. "I want to bring in a kid that wants to compete. He can be a two-star kid from St. Louis. ... I want to bring in a guy that's better than the guy I have there, and then next year bring in a guy that's better than the guy I brought in, and the next year ...

"That way, when I have that senior class, those juniors are pushing my seniors. Those seniors spend more time in the weight room because they're scared the junior is going to take over the deal. And then I have sophomores that are pushing those juniors, and those juniors, they can't miss a class because the spot's going to be gone, (where) it's going to be hard for me to issue out that Blackshirt. It's not going to be just given away to a guy."

Fisher said because of that he's being very careful who the Huskers bring in. Nebraska already has one defensive back grad transfer on the way in JUCO corner Will Jackson III, and is on the lookout to add. But Fisher doesn't want to bring in just any "entitled" player.

"I want to bring in a guy that can change a guy that I got in my room already, change his mind frame, by pushing him every day. 'Hey, I came to take your spot.' And I'm going to get this kid and sit him right next to Lamar Jackson and say, 'Hey, your job is take Lamar's job' right in front of Lamar."

The crowd started to laugh a bit.

"No, I'm serious," Fisher continued. "I just did yesterday. And then I'm going to tell Lamar, 'Hey, bro, it's your job to wake up, it's your job to not give it up.' That's how I was raised, and that's how it's going to be in the room. What did I really do? I really just made my whole room more competitive. Every day. That way we can have guys getting out of here every year, and have the type of secondary Nebraska is used to having, instead of just bringing one five-star kid to make everybody happy, but I didn't get my room any better."

In a recent meeting, Chinander told players, 'You know where we're going?' Players knew the coaches were going recruiting. Someone said it was to get some freshmen in here.

"No, no. We're trying to find guys to take your spot. Every single one of you. And your job is to not let that happen," Chinander told them. "The real guys, and I don't know how many real guys we got in here, the real guys, you're going to teach that kid to take your spot knowing that he can't ever do it -- if you're a real guy. And we''ll see how many real guys we got. Eventually we'll start getting them. They're going to teach these young kids, 'Hey bro, this is what you got to do take my spot, but I'm going to give you a heads up: It ain't ever going to happen.' Then when you get guys like that, that's when it really starts to happen."

Chinander believes the Huskers have more than 4-8 talent on the roster now, but felt football had become "a grind" to many on the team. He thinks it started to change some in the spring, but needs to continue.

Fisher sees some of that too, with some guys now having their chests puffed out a bit, confidence being gained. But he admits the Husker players he met when he first arrived didn't carry themselves like the former Husker players he played with in the NFL like Grant Wistrom, Richie Incognito, DeJuan Groce, Daniel Bullocks and Eric Crouch.

"All of those guys had the same characteristics, every last one of them," Fisher said. "All of them was mean. All of them showed up ... and played hurt. All of them were smart. All of them loved football. So, yes, I was surprised. I was surprised. Not at the talent level, though. I was surprised I didn't see what I was used to playing with. I was surprised to see guys that loved to put on the Nebraska jersey, but they wasn't Nebraska.

"So the talent level, yes, they got talent. But it's hidden talent. It won't come out until something is pushed. A button needs to be pushed."

Fisher noted that he's probably a pretty good button pusher.

"I went and pushed the biggest button in the room. Lamar Jackson, I pushed his button. I said, 'No, you're not going to the NFL.' I don't know if your last coaching staff told you that, but, 'No, you're not good enough.' There were some guys that looked up to him like, 'Oooh.' But that's what I had to do to get guys to understand there's more, you have a lot more inside of you. It's just hidden. You don't want to bring it out because you're so used to even-keel. And there's no such thing as even-keel in football.

"So they need to be challenged. So just like (Chinander) was saying, 'We're recruiting someone to beat you out.' Once they understand that, whether it's a fifth-year guy or a junior-college guy, there's a guy coming in to take your spot."