Legends aside, on his first day of practice Spears decided to test Nagurski in the "Nutcracker" drill, where a defensive player had to take on two blockers and try to tackle a following ball carrier. On the first drill, two All-Big Ten linemen and Herb Joesting charged at Bronko, who promptly split the blockers and drove the big fullback into a blocking dummy. Spears sent in three more players, blew his whistle, and watched Bronko produce the same explosive results. After a third try with the same conclusion, Spears realized what kind of a player he had recruited.
Legends aside, on his first day of practice Spears decided to test Nagurski in the "Nutcracker" drill, where a defensive player had to take on two blockers and try to tackle a following ball carrier. On the first drill two All-Big Ten linemen and Herb Joesting charged at Bronko, who promptly s,plit the blockers and drove the big fullback into a blocking dummy. Spears sent in three more players, blew his whistle, and watched Bronko produce the same explosive results. After a third try with the same conclusion, Spears realized what kind of a player he had recruited.