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.
The 2020 recruiting class has officially ended. The Huskers did not come away with any new scholarship signees during the late signing period. The team hosted only one official visitor during January. Alabama wide receiver Kris Abrams-Draine made the trip to Lincoln then picked Missouri. The heavy lifting—all the lifting—was done in December. That’s when all 23 Nebraska signees put pen to paper which was good for a top-20 class for Coach Scott Frost and his staff.
Frost elected not to have a press conference on Wednesday. Typically, that press conference is reserved for talking about the new players added to the roster, but there wasn’t any recruiting information to talk about. Frost did join Husker Sports Nightly on Wednesday evening to speak about quite a few topics, recruiting included.
"I want to give a lot of credit to Nebraska fans and the people of this state because that makes an enormous difference in recruiting for us," Frost said. "When people see the support of fans, when they get follows and likes on Twitter and when they see the stadium full every week. A lot of credit has to go to Nebraska fans.
"We're going to recruit well every year at Nebraska is because of what Nebraska is and what Nebraska has to offer . . . But we don't want to be about winning signing day, we want to be about winning games. We're starting to get the type of players in the program that hopefully we'll be able to do that."
The Frost hat tip to Husker Nation was both savvy and correct. I hear from recruits about how active the fan base is on Twitter. Of course, there are those that take it too far, but there are respectful fans out there who want to show support for their team. That support on social media is only backed up when prospects come out for visits.
“Oh man, I had a great time as always,” quarterback signee Logan Smothers told Hail Varsity in September. “Finally getting to see the atmosphere with the fans at game time. That was pretty huge for me. That’s one of the big things I was looking forward to because I’ve heard all about it. At the spring game, I got to see a little there but finally being in an actual game and it being Ohio State, that was pretty incredible. I was in awe when I walked out and saw the packed house. That was huge.”
Reaction to the Husker class in December and again yesterday centered around how well Nebraska did in the 2020 cycle being a surprise. Frost seems to take some exception to that notion. I don’t disagree with him that Nebraska should be expected to recruit like it did this cycle at least, yet there is room for some nuance. It is accurate to say putting this class together while winning nine games in your first two seasons.
On the flip side Frost and Husker fans would like the program to be more known for victories on the field not in December. If those start happening more I imagine Nebraska recruiting going to another level.
Recruit Watch
>>Kearney Catholic quarterback Heinrich Haarberg put out the new Huskers edit for the 2021 class.
https://twitter.com/HKHaarberg10/status/1225199604339265541
>> Priority 2021 linebacker target Chris Paul Jr. also showed off a different edit the Huskers put together for him.
👀👀👀🌽🌾🌽🌾 Thank you @BarrettRuud @CoachChinander @NEB_Recruiting #21UpNext #GBR #OurRedShinesBrighter🔴⚪️⚫️ pic.twitter.com/QUMrEjYmHK
— Christopher “POOH” Paul Jr. (@PoohPaul4) February 5, 2020
>> The late signing day was quiet for the Huskers but they were working the phones for 2021. Outside linebacker Travion Ford got a call from the Huskers staff.
S/O @HuskerFBNation @coach_frost @CoachChinander for reaching out to me today on Signing Day 💯🔥🔥#GBR pic.twitter.com/uHfpgT0KKr
— Travion Ford ® (@Tre_Got_Skills) February 5, 2020
ICYMI
>> With the page fully turned to 2021 I took a look at Husker targets to know (Premium) from Nebraska.
>> Tom’s Time is back to remind you of one last sting to end the Huskers’ 1990 season.
>> Nebraska released contract information for Matt Lubick and other assistants.
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.
