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.
Every school has a little different formula about how to rebuild the program. At a school like North Carolinam you may need to do a better job of convincing talent in the area to give you a chance. It’s pretty simple at Miami: find a way to keep the Miami and Florida talent home. The examples are slightly different everywhere.
At Nebraska there needs to be a mixture of recruiting and development. Because the local talent base is generally not as strong, you must rely on recruiting nationally. At the same time, the team has to stay relevant to players nationally while trying to rebuild. So the Huskers have to be good at identifying the right players. Above all else the Huskers need to be good at developing players. This is how teams like Wisconsin, Iowa and Northwestern—to a degree—are able to stay in the mix.
Coach Scott Frost was asked on Monday about the depth behind Dedrick Mills at running back. He elaborated on the answer though to talk about the need for veteran players.
“We feel good about it,” Frost said. “You know we’re going to be little green at a few positions. As a coach, I think you want to get old and stay old. Have experienced guys. Veteran guys.
“Seems like this is going to be the third year now where we have a few positions where we just don’t have very many veterans running backs.”
It takes a little longer to build a program this way. Mostly because to get to the point of having an older team, you need years to develop that depth. You also need time to recruit behind those players. Nebraska does have a couple positions that are becoming good examples of this.
Inside linebacker is set up nicely this way. Seniors Collin Miller and Will Honas are the two main guys. Sophomore Luke Reimer will work in the rotation. So will junior college transfer Eteva Mauga-Clements. Redshirt freshman Garrett Snodgrass is also in the mix. So is Nick Henrich if he doesn’t spend more time out outside linebacker. In the 2021 season the players replacing Miller and Honas will have some experience.
It could be set up this way in the secondary as well. The Huskers will need to find ways to get Myles Farmer and Noa Pola-Gates on the field this year. That way they are ready to hit the ground running. They’ll be next up to replace Marquel Dismuke and Deontai Williams next season. At cornerback, the Huskers will lose Dicaprio Bootle after this season. Yet, Quinton Newsome, Tamon Lynum and the recovering Braxton Clark will have all had game experience by that time. Newsome and Clark will be juniors in 2021.
The Huskers are slowly but surely making their way toward getting old and staying old. It can’t happen soon enough for Frost who is intent on building the program for the long haul.
Recruit Watch
>> The 2021 All-American Bowl will not be played this year. The Huskers had two players—Thomas Fidone and Kamonté Grimes—who were slated to partipate.
Important message regarding the 2021 All-American Bowl pic.twitter.com/kFv93Khboz
— All-American Bowl (@AABonNBC) October 20, 2020
>> Hunter Deyo, a 2022 standout defensive tackle at Lewis Central, picked up an SEC offer on Tuesday.
After a great phone call with @DLTough I am beyond blessed to announce to receive an offer from the University of Arkansas pic.twitter.com/9BocTtsQUU
— Hunter Deyo (@DeyoHunter) October 20, 2020
>> Skutt Catholic two-way 2021 standout Sam Scott was offered by Wyoming on Tuesday.
After a great conversation with head coach @CoachCBohl I’m excited to say I’ve received a scholarship offer to play @wyo_football. Also huge thanks to @CoachABohl and the rest of the coaching staff throughout this process! @GCAFootball @greg_scott_ @CoachMartin52 @Steve_Warren96 pic.twitter.com/ECDiOzD4RF
— Sam Scott (@SamScott_124) October 20, 2020
ICYMI
>> In the latest episode of the Straight Up Breakdown Podcast, Jay Foreman and I celebrate making it to game week by answering the biggest questions we have about the season and much more.
>> Derek Peterson dove into Nebraska’s green running back room and a more “hard-hitting” run game.
>> Nebraska’s depth chart is coming into focus ahead of the season opener with Ohio State.
>> The Moore To It Podcast offers up a Nebraska-Ohio State preview this week.
>> As everyone agrees, special teams is key for the Huskers this season and it must get fixed.
>> The Red to Black Podcast with Pat Stafford and Chris Gorman has Matt Vrzal on talk through his journey in the business world.
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.
