After Nebraska's 54-35 win over Illinois, there were still many fans talking about the defense's performance. That will be a sticking point for a long time for many fans who want to go back to the dominating low point total games of the '90s. This isn’t the time to debate if that is realistic with an offense that runs as many plays as the Huskers’ does.
Instead, I would like to explore a question I received in response to Derek Peterson’s fantastic post-game column.
As much as Frosty wants to recruit guys for his O, shouldn't like 7 of the top 10 targets next year be D? Are they recruiting this way @GregSmithHV
— Kyle (@Kalkwarf24) November 11, 2018
The short answer is not really. First, Nebraska won’t really shift away from an emphasis on recruiting offensive players because like it or not, this is an offensive-led program now. The day that Scott Frost was hired, it became that way. That’s not a bad thing either. Frost was hired for many reasons but close to the top of that pile of reasons is the fact that he’ll make Nebraska very fun by putting up a lot of points.
Secondly, I’m sure Nebraska’s overall board will have plenty of defensive players like defensive tackle Nash Hutmacher, cornerback T Lee, linebacker Justin Flowe and others. However, they likely won’t have an overall top board that consists of just mainly defensive players because they will want to continue recruiting big time offensive talent as well.
None of this means Nebraska won’t continue recruiting top defensive talent. The staff certainly will. The Blackshirts have improved in Year 1 with defensive coordinator Erik Chinander. But even when the defense starts performing better on Saturdays, the offense is now the star of the show in Lincoln.
Recruit Watch
>> Huskers running back commit Rahmir Johnson is having a terrific season for Bergen Catholic in New Jersey.
@rahmir_johnson becomes our first 1000+ yard rusher in a season since 2010 (Tanner McEvoy '11 – 1196 yds) and becomes our first RB to rush for 1000+ yards in a season since 2007 (Nick Gerst '09 – 1322 yds). Rahmir currently has 1120 yds on the season.
— Bergen Catholic FB (@BergenCathFBall) November 10, 2018
>> It looks like one of Nebraska’s junior college linebacker targets will not visit Lincoln. Caleb Johnson was deciding between Oregon and Nebraska for his final visit next weekend.
https://twitter.com/CalebJohnsun/status/1060365330650779649
>> Arlen Harris, a 2022 running back from Missouri, made his way to Lincoln for the game against Illinois and had a great time.
BIG RED on the mind! Great visit & environment. Thx @CoachRHeld @CoachTFisher @coachwilhite for the opportunity to visit & congrats on the W. I’ll definitely be back! 🔴⚪️ pic.twitter.com/od8UbDFGcv
— Arlen Harris Jr. (@arlenharrisjr33) November 10, 2018
ICYMI
>> JoJo Domann knows why he is in Lincoln and told his story to Derek Peterson.
>> Brandon Vogel explained how the high-scoring Huskers kept the cold out on Saturday.
>> Jacob Padilla broke down Devine Ozigbo’s 66-yard touchdown run, which was the play of the game.
>> Erin Sorensen wrote about Mick Stoltenberg and the seniors leading the charge for Frost.