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.
California outside linebacker Will Schweitzer is the latest Husker commit. The 3-star (HV Rating: 88.5) joined Chris Schmidt on Hail Varsity Radio Thursday fresh off a trip to Lincoln to see campus. The trip was productive so that he could see the town and what it has to offer. Schweitzer knew what he had in Nebraska’s coaching staff. He wanted to see where he’d be going to college in person.
“I kind of knew that with all the COVID stuff that I wouldn't be able to take visits,” Schweitzer said. “I kind of understood that I might have to make a commitment to a place that I hadn't seen yet. I felt like there's only a handful of schools that I could do that with and I knew what I was getting out of it.
“I've lived in Chicago before so I knew what the Midwest weather was like. That wasn't a factor for me. I knew I loved what Coach Frost is doing with the team. Coach Chinander and Coach Dawson, I really liked them as people and coaches. So, I just made the move and I feel like that's the place that I can develop and the person I want to be.”
The defender has actually lived all over the world. He was born in California but has lived in Chicago and London. He’s glad that he moved around and said that it helped him learn how to make friends. He also said he was never afraid to leave California and can’t wait to get to Nebraska. Before he does though, he’s got one more year of high school where he stars as an inside linebacker. He’s already preparing for the change to outside linebacker.
“I'm just working on the pass rush especially,” Schweitzer said. “I play middle linebacker in high school and I'm projecting to be an outside linebacker in the 3-4 defense in at Nebraska. I feel like my pass rush is really strong but I'm going to continue to develop that. I feel my coverage skills and my open field tackling has improved a lot over the past few years. I'm just going to be working on getting to the passer and putting pounds on.”
Outside linebackers coach Mike Dawson came back to Lincoln in the middle of Schweitzer’s recruitment with Nebraska. Dawson made sure to call him once or twice a week. Defensive coordinator Erik Chinander would text him every single morning and just say good morning. That stood out to the defender.
“It really meant a lot to me because it means that he cares to check on me every day,” Schweitzer said. “Coach Dawson's recruiting style was a little bit different. We didn't text as much but he would call me at least once or twice a week. We just had talks about football and life. I really liked them as people as well as coaches. That was really important to me. Coach Frost as well. They are great guys and great guys make great football coaches.”
Schweitzer was an LSU fan growing up since that’s where his mom went to school. He always noticed the Tigers’ passionate fan base. That is something he feels like his new school definitely has.
“I know Nebraska is a huge tradition winning five national championships,” Schweitzer said. “I heard Lincoln on game day, the whole town and the stadiums full. That's just always something I wanted to be a part of. In the beginning of my recruitment Nebraska was my second offer. Since then, they've really been on my radar hot and I like what they're doing there.”
During quarantine, the linebacker commit has done as much lifting as possible. He’s also eating a lot, including protein shakes before bed. Right now, he’s about 215 pounds. He knows he needs to add weight properly to maintain his speed which is his best attribute.
“It's such a big thing in my game my speed so I'm not sacrificing that at all,” he said. “But I plan to try to come into Lincoln at least 225 or 230. I know they want me to play at 240.
"That should be an easy goal once I'm there on their nutrition plan.”
Recruit Watch
>> The Huskers made the top eight for Utah defensive end/outside linebacker Logan Fano.
Alma 37:37 🙏🏽🖤 pic.twitter.com/6vMHxiod6S
— Logan Fano (@LoganFano) June 18, 2020
>> JUCO wide receiver Jaylon Griffin showed off a cool edit that the Huskers did for him. Griffin attends the same school in Texas that Omar Manning came from.
University of Nebraska Showing Love As Always… #GBR 🌽 pic.twitter.com/f46hEqe5VJ
— Jaylon R Griffin (@TheJG__) June 18, 2020
>> One-time defensive end target Nathan Rawlins-Kilbonge committed to Oklahoma on Wednesday.
@OU_Football pic.twitter.com/P71LWIEyWr
— Nathan Rawlins-Kibonge (@KibongeRawlins) June 17, 2020
ICYMI
>> The Huskers saw their 2021 commit list shrink by one on Thursday when linebacker Chris Paul left the class.
> > Defensive end Ru’Quan Buckley is still liking what he hears (Premium) from the Nebraska coaches.
>> Frost says that for the first time since he’s been at Nebraska the culture is where he wants it.
>> Buy or Sell has returned to look into the 2020 Maryland Terrapins.
>> Frost and basketball coach Fred Hoiberg are donating a portion of their salaries to Nebraska athletics.
>> Tom’s Time is back to look at another big crowd and big game miss in Seattle.
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.
