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 2019 recruiting cycle was productive on the offensive line for the Huskers. Greg Austin’s group signed four linemen in the class, including one of the Huskers top overall targets: Bryce Benhart from Lakeville, Minnesota.
Playing on the offensive line as a true freshman is a tall order. As Austin explained during an appearance on Sports Nightly Tuesday night, it is pretty certain that Matthew Anderson, Michael Lynn and Jimmy Fritzsche are all heading toward a redshirt season. Benhart, on the other hand, is a player that Austin says the Huskers will depend on sooner rather than later.
"I don't know if it's this year, or if it's his redshirt freshman year, but certainly the kid has all the measurables, he has all the weight, the mindset is there," Austin said. "And now it's, 'All right, hey, how quickly can you learn it? How quickly can you get your technique down and how quickly can you learn from your mistakes?' That's where if he can close that gap between how quickly (he) can learn from his mistakes, that will be the telltale as to how quickly he can get on the field.
“I think he's done everything that he's been asked thus far so he's well on the way to being the guy that we recruited him to be."
Since players have arrived on campus this summer, Austin has also added two more players to his room that were recruited for other positions: Ethan Piper and Brant Banks. Austin noted that Piper will start out fall camp playing center and is already impressed with his knowledge.
"At that center position, you're the one who has to bark out the calls, the initial calls of the offense," Austin said. "He's been picking that up really well. Smart kid. So really, it's not surprising, but it is surprising just from the standpoint of his football IQ. He's a very cerebral kid. Certainly, a delight to coach."
Given Nebraska’s youth on the offensive line with six scholarship true freshmen, two scholarship redshirt freshmen and two scholarship redshirt sophomores, the team could be well set into the future if the staff is correct in their evaluations and player development. That’s before you mention players like redshirt sophomore Trent Hixson, who is not on scholarship but on pace to see significant playing time.
Once we get through fall camp and into the season, we could see the effects of all that youth on how many additional offensive linemen Nebraska pursues to go along with Turner Corcoran and Alex Conn.
Recruit Watch
>> Texas 2020 athlete and Husker target Frank Brown Jr. posted a hype video for his upcoming season.
https://twitter.com/iamFrankBrown1/status/1154091266961002497
ICYMI
>> The pre-Italy trip practices are valuable in many ways for the Nebraska basketball team, writes Jacob Padilla.
>> Check out the photo gallery from Tuesday’s open hoops practice.
>> While in Chicago, the Husker players mentioned some players that have impressed them this offseason.
» The Hail Varsity staff is back to answer your questions in the mailbag including our thoughts on the Husker hype.
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.
