The Huskers are now deep into spring football. We are inside of a month until the Red-White Spring Game on May 1. So far the tone of spring football has been about urgency. That’s a good thing as the program heads into Year 4 under Coach Scott Frost. There are a lot of moving parts with the team right now as players try to get better this spring. The end of the dead period is also potentially looming.
Let’s get to the Recon.
2022 Commits
Ernest Hausmann, Outside Linebacker, Columbus, Nebraska
Victor Jones Jr., Wide Receiver, Orlando, Florida
2022 Needs
| QB | 1 | DL | 2 |
| RB | 1 | MLB | 2 |
| WR | 1 | OLB | 2 |
| TE | 1 | DB | 3 |
| OL | 3 | K/P | 0 |
The Recon:
>> Among the players who were out with injury during Wednesday’s practice the most important might be Omar Manning. We’ll see what happens going forward with Manning. At this point it is best to consider whatever Nebraska gets from him gravy. Based on what happened last year we know that he needs more consistent practice time to become a factor this fall.
>> Inside linebacker Gavin Meyers wants to visit the Lincoln soon. The Kansas native told me that he’d actually like to visit Lincoln twice soon, perhaps for the spring game and an official visit in June. The fun wrinkle in this recruitment is that his teammate, athlete Jaren Kanak, might also want to take those same trips to Lincoln. That’s something to watch as the Huskers have recruited the teammates hard.
>> Another prospect that wants to visit Lincoln soon is 2023 quarterback Reese Mooney. The Louisiana native wants to come to town for the spring game. What’s interesting about it is that Mooney grew up in a family of Husker fans and has attended several Husker games as a kid. He holds offers from Ole Miss, Miami, West Virginia and others. There is a chance that Nebraska could have its 2023 quarterback committed before the team gets one for 2022.
>> There are three newcomers I hear the most spring camp buzz about right now. Running back Gabe Ervin, quarterback Heinrich Haarberg and linebacker Chris Kolarevic are turning heads early in spring ball. Ervin has a real shot to see significant carries this fall. Haarberg arrived more polished than expected. The battle between him and Logan Smothers for QB2 is real. Kolarevic is going to be in the mix at inside linebacker. The Huskers have a good problem at the position with Kolarevic, Will Honas, Luke Reimer and Nick Henrich all competing for time.
I should note that Samori Touré has also impressed and you can pencil him in as the starting slot receiver.
>> Another newcomer that you probably won’t see on the field this year is working hard behind the scenes. Defensive lineman Ru’Quan Buckley has consistently drawn praise for his work ethic. Defensive line coach Tony Tuioti brought him up as a player getting the most out of his first spring.
“But the one thing I love about him is he wants to work hard. He doesn’t want to take any shortcuts, even in academics. [executive athletic director for academics] Dennis Leblanc tells me that he lives down there. He’s trying to get the best grades he can. He does the same thing in the meeting room, same thing after practice, just trying to get better. If he has that attitude, he’ll be OK at the end of the day.”
This matches well with what Buckley told me he was looking to do by enrolling early at Nebraska.
“I want to start my career fast and see what it’s like. If I didn’t early enroll it would take me more time to develop. I want to develop fast by watching the guys ahead of me so I can learn from them and be the best.”