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.
What is the one trait that coach Scott Frost and quarterbacks coach Mario Verduzco value over everything? As we learned last season, it’s being a “fast-blinker” or, more simply put, the ability to process information quickly. So far at Nebraska each quarterback Frost and Verduzco has brought to Lincoln has passed that test.
Last spring, it was Adrian Martinez. This spring, the early reports are that Luke McCaffrey is doing a great job learning the playbook. How surprising is McCaffrey’s ability to Verduzco?
“Maybe a little bit,” Verduzco said. “We expected that same sort of thing with Adrian when he got here in spring . . . If you are here for that amount of time, you should haven’t issues with that [playbook] if you’ve been working at it. Luke’s done a nice job of it though.”
On the recruiting trail, a coach can see if a quarterback has a quick release or throws the ball accurately. It is more difficult to assess just how fast a prospect can process information.
“That’s one of the questions that I always ask because you know how important that is for us––if a young guy is a quick-blinker and can he process information,” Verduzco said. “You are never quite sure until they get here. That’s a question we ask and it’s been right on the mark with the last couple guys that we’ve brought in specifically, Adrian [Martinez], Noah [Vedral] and Luke [McCaffrey] are all sharp in that way.”
Nebraska already has its quarterback for the 2020 class, Logan Smothers. He is the son of a coach and runs a similar offense to what the Huskers run. It’s safe to assume that the staff has seen that same “quick-blinker” trait in him. As the coaching staff works ahead on 2021 recruiting, it’s worth noting that a highly-touted 2021 quarterback Dematrius Davis was on hand for practice on Monday.
The Texan racked up 3,350 passing yards with a 71.6 completion percentage and 43 passing touchdowns as a sophomore. He led North Shore High School to a state championship as well. Eye-popping stats are great, but Frost and Verduzco must feel good about his ability to process information.
He was offered a scholarship on Monday.
Recruit Watch
>> Colorado offensive lineman Reese Atteberry included the Huskers in his top five on Monday. Nebraska is battling a solid group of schools for his signature.
Thank you to every coach that has taken the time to recruit me and everyone that has helped me get to this point. 🔵〽️🌽☘️🙆🏼♂️ (These are my top 5) @savageedits15 @SixZeroAcademy @raptorathletics pic.twitter.com/zl5EPYkeaR
— Reece Atteberry (@atteberry5573) March 11, 2019
>> The No. 1 junior college player in the country, Jordan Davis, picked up offer from Nebraska. The outside linebacker is currently committed to Tennessee.
https://twitter.com/jlpdavis99/status/1104913184492867585
>> Ali Gaye, a JUCO pass rusher from Garden City Community College, appreciated this edit from the Huskers.
https://twitter.com/Ali_TheGreat94/status/1105211083738906625
ICYMI
>> Maurice Washington is back in California, the pace is up on offense, and more practice notes here from Derek Peterson.
>> Watch the sights and sounds of the open portion of practice from Erin Sorensen.
>> The Hail Varsity staff shared observations from practice on Monday.
>> Scott Frost took to the podium on Monday, you can see the entire video here.
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.
