Recruiting never stops and it's easy to miss the top stories day-to-day. Recruiting analyst Greg Smith recaps all things Nebraska recruiting news, analysis and more so you never miss a thing.
Quarterback recruiting can be its own beast. Coach Scott Frost and quarterbacks coach Mario Verduzco have done well landing top choices at quarterback since they have been in Lincoln. The biggest so far was the first one: Adrian Martinez. He was a player that they liked while at Central Florida and became their top priority once the staff moved to Nebraska. From there, they landed Luke McCaffrey in the 2019 recruiting class and Logan Smothers, the Huskers’ 2020 quarterback, is set to arrive on campus this month.
Nebraska is on quite the run of adding quarterbacks. It is also worth noting that the Huskers added transfer quarterback Noah Vedral along the way too. The quarterback room is in as good of shape overall in Lincoln as it has been in quite some time.
All that success and remaining years of eligibility make things tricky for Frost and Verduzco as they search for the 2021 “cube.” It makes sense if signal-callers look at Nebraksa’s group and take another opportunity.
Let’s take a look at the quarterbacks that the Huskers have offered for 2021 so far and their commitment status:
- 3-star Peter Costelli: Uncommitted
- 4-star Ty Keyes: Uncommitted
- 4-star Dematrius Davis: Virginia Tech commit
- 4-star Jake Garcia: USC commit
- 3-star Santino Marucci: Wake Forest commit
- 4-star Jalen Milroe: Texas commit
- 4-star Preston Stone: SMU commit
- 4-star Brock Vandagriff: Uncommitted (recent Oklahoma decommit)
Quarterbacks tend to make early college choices. Most of the early targets are already off the board. Costelli and Keyes are both notable uncommitted prospects and the Nebraska staff is high on both. Costelli, a California native, has been to Lincoln twice already. Keyes, a Mississippi native, has yet to visit Lincoln but has expressed interest in doing so.
This could be a great year for intriguing local quarterback Heinrich Haarberg. The Kearney Catholic standout is 6-foot-5 and is a great athlete. He completed almost 59% of his passes this season (10 yards per attempt) with 23 touchdowns and four interceptions. He ran for 5.5 yards per carry on just over eight attempts per game and scored four touchdowns on the ground. He had two 100-yard rushing games this season and has runs of 64 and 65 yards during his career.
I don’t think Frost and Verduzco will want to sit out quarterback recruiting completely in the 2021 cycle. I also wouldn’t count Nebraska out from landing a preferred target this cycle. I’d expect new names to pop up and more offers to go out as the staff gets out on the road once the dead period end.
Ultimately, the Huskers are in good position on the team at quarterback but that could have some consequences this coming recruiting class.
Recruit Watch
>>Bishop Dunne (Texas) 4-star linebacker Brennon Scott has reopened his recruitment. We’ll see if the Huskers get involved with the defender from the same school as the Daniels brothers.
— Brennon Scott 🗯 (@BrennonScott9) January 7, 2020
>> The Huskers made the top five for 2020 Georgia linebacker Chris Paul Jr. Nebraska is in great shape for an early official visit from Paul.
My recruitment is still open and I WILL BE SCHEDULING MY OFFICIAL VISITS this Spring and Summer…with that being said, AS OF NOW, my TOP 5 Schools are..
📍Nebraska 🌽
📍Cincinnati 🐻🐱
📍MSU 💚⚔️
📍TCU 🐸
📍West Virginia 🔷🔶No particular order🎯
— Christopher “POOH” Paul Jr. (@PoohPaul4) January 7, 2020
>> Walker Howard, a priority 2022 quarterback target, picked up an offer from Arkansas on Tuesday.
Blessed to receive an offer from the University of Arkansas! #WPS @kendalbriles pic.twitter.com/hxpv9db9YS
— Walker Howard (@Walker_Howard4) January 7, 2020
>> Thomas Fidone, a Huskers tight end target in Iowa in 2021, has been hot lately. He’s gotten offers from Arkansas, Georgia and Florida all this week.
After a great phone call with Coach @UFCoachLScott I am extremely blessed to say I have received a scholarship from University of Florida! #theswamp pic.twitter.com/LKDJFpNyWc
— Thomas Fidone II ²⁴ (@ThomasFidone) January 7, 2020
ICYMI
>> Fred Hoiberg wants more physicality with Iowa coming to town, writes Jacob Padilla.
>> We still have our rolling updates for who is expected in town (Premium) for the Huskers’ Junior Days this month.
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.
