On Monday, 3-star (HV Rating: 87.2) junior college running back Dedrick Mills signed his letter of intent to become a Husker. He is my No. 5 Early Signing Period Greg’s Guy.
Mills was the only player who didn’t sign back in December, which caught people off guard. There was a bit of academic work to clean up and Nebraska couldn’t risk letting him sign before that was taken care of or his scholarship would count against the Huskers’ total if he did not make it to campus.
His name: Dedrick Mills (@MillsDedrick)
His position: Running Back
Status: HUSKER#B19RedRevival ✍️🌽💯 pic.twitter.com/95U35yElWH
— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFBNation) January 14, 2019
Back in September, Mills verbally committed to the Huskers in a big surprise to many. In January 2016, Mills early enrolled at Georgia Tech. He starred for the Yellow Jackets in Paul Johnson’s attack as a freshman. He was the team’s leading rusher with 771 yards and 12 touchdowns, averaging 85 yards per game. He was later dismissed from Georgia Tech.
Once he landed at Garden City Community College, he worked his way into being the No. 1 running back in the junior college ranks this year. His coach Jeff Sims told Hail Varsity how he thinks Mills will stack up in the Big Ten.
“What makes him a special back is the same thing that made Lavonte David a great football player," Sims said. "He loves football. He loves it on Tuesday, he loves it on Saturday, he loves it at practice and he loves it during games. That’s what makes him different. We could put a highlight film of him up where he doesn’t carry the ball. The block he made this weekend so our other back could run 75 yards, the pancake he had on the punt block team where he destroyed the guy on the shield. He doesn’t care what you have him play, he goes as hard as he possibly can. God made him as a football player. He is tremendous. What makes him great is that he is a guy that loves football every minute of every day.
"How will he do in the Big Ten? He will be an impact player that fits in just fine. Just like Jermarcus Hardrick, Brandon Kinnie, Stanley Jean-Baptiste and Lavonte David. We’ve had four All-American tailbacks and he’s as good as any running back I’ve ever seen. He’s an elite football player.”
This season, Mills rushed for 1,358 yards and 19 touchdowns on 5.8 yards per carry. Most expect him to get the first shot at replacing Devine Ozigbo’s role in the offense. Orginally it was thought that Mills would enrolling this month in time for the spring semester but after needing to take additional winter classes at Garden City, he told Hail Varsity that he will enroll this summer.
Mills is now the 25th player to sign with Nebraska for the 2019 class including graduate transfer defensive tackle Darrion Daniels.
Greg is the Recruiting Analyst for Hail Varsity and has covered Husker athletics since 2013. He has always had a passion for sports while growing up in the Chicago area. As he got older and had to hang up his cleats and sneakers, he realized his passion for sports went beyond just watching and attending games. He has covered many events from the Rose Bowl to championship boxing matches. If he’s not talking sports, he’s hovering over his grill. He is married to an amazing woman, Kim, and they have a dog that barks when Greg yells at the TV during games.
