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 Huskers continued their major overhaul of the secondary on Sunday. That’s when Alabama transfer safety Kaine Williams joined the team. Williams is the eighth player to join defensive backs coach Travis Fisher’s room since the end of the 2021 season. Williams (6-2, 205) spent a season with the Crimson Tide where he played sparingly on special teams.
Hail Varsity Radio host Chris Schmidt caught up with Reggie Rogers on Monday. He was Williams’ coach at John Ehret High School. Schmidt spoke with him about the state of his program and how the Huskers were able to land Williams. Rogers’ program has just finished up spring practice in Louisiana.
Rogers is able to use spring football to help get his new players used to varsity speed. Nebraska high schools don’t have spring football with so many other sports going on. It’s interesting to hear that Rogers had almost 70 players out for spring football.
Williams was in the class of 2021 out of high school. He picked Alabama over his other 25 scholarship offers. Rogers says that Williams has many attributes that stood out to colleges initially.
“When you see Kaine, he stands out initially. He’s a big, tall rangy kid,” Rogers said. “Then when you see him play he has the ball skills. He gets to the ball and he will hit you. He has great hands so he stands out and pops immediately when you turn on the film.”
Rogers found out on social media like everyone else that Williams was transferring. That didn’t stop colleges from calling him to gather information on his former player. Rogers noted that a lot of the schools Williams considered had a previous relationship with the defender. The Huskers did not offer Williams out of high school but LSU did. Wide receivers coach Mickey Joseph and special teams coach Bill Busch were his two main recruiters at LSU.
Joseph had a big impact on the recruitment being a legend from the same town as Williams.
“His presence is felt and he’s always welcome home,” Rogers said. “He and Kaine are close. It was a no brainer that Mickey would try to recruit him again and try to get him to come where he’s at now. I think it’s a good fit. Mickey is a great guy and mentor for Kaine.”
It doesn’t sound like Williams will be the last player from Rogers’ team that the Huskers recruit. He has a pair of sophomores that he says are heavily recruited already that have Nebraska’s attention. Those players will give Nebraska some interest because of Joseph’s reputation.
Rogers still believes in his former player’s potential. Things didn’t work out for Williams at Alabama but there is plenty of opportunity in Lincoln. The Huskers will have three new full-time starters in the secondary this year. There is playing time up for grabs.
“I do believe that he will earn one of those spots,” Rogers said. “We will see him playing on Sundays. I believe he has that type of talent and ability. With the right people behind him I think we will see his name called in the NFL Draft when it’s his time.”
Recruit Watch
>> Bellevue West 2024 quarterback Daniel Kaelin was offered by Rutgers on Monday.
After a great conversation with @GregSchiano and @Coach__Gleeson , I am extremely excited to receive an offer from Rutgers University! pic.twitter.com/hdDMrvqySd
— Daniel Kaelin (@DanielKaelin5) May 16, 2022
>> Priority Nebraska EDGE target Maverick Noonan announced his official visit to Nebraska.
GBR ☠️ pic.twitter.com/5e49vRRBXA
— Maverick Noonan (@MaverickNoonan) May 17, 2022
>> Recent Nebraska offer out of Georgia Jalon Kilgore continued his fast rise up recruiting boards. He was offered by Clemson on Monday night.
After a great conversation with @CoachConn I am truly blessed to receive an offer from the university of @ClemsonFB @WesleyGoodwin @PCWAREAGLES @RecruitGeorgia #AGTG pic.twitter.com/hv1ow5SbB9
— Jalon Kilgore (@JalonKilgore) May 17, 2022
>> Nebraska priority 2024 running back Titus Cram was offered by Wisconsin.
Blessed to receive an offer from @BadgerFootball thank you for the love. All glory to him. @BallySportWI @BadgerFootball @adamgorney @jeremycrabtree @CoachWhitted. pic.twitter.com/SOOER0VdWP
— T6️⃣ (@Titus_Cram6) May 16, 2022
ICYMI
>> In the latest episode of the Straight Up Breakdown podcast I was joined by Erin Sorensen to discuss how the NCAA can push things forward.
>> Steve Marik has you covered on schedule talk by looking into Nebraska’s three most intriguing games of 2022.
>> Jacob Padilla has the NFL outlook for the Huskers’ undrafted free agents this year.
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.
