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.
New Wrinkle Added To 2019 Recruiting
Now that it's official that Nebraska will play 12 straight weeks after adding Bethune-Cookman to the schedule on Oct. 27, there are various important talking points to hit on.
One of those new talking points is in my wheelhouse: recruiting. Typically during a bye week, teams send their coaches all over the country to check out high school games of top prospects and make their presence felt. That idea is especially important to a program like Nebraska that needs to go out and recruit nationally and has a national brand.
Without that clear-cut time to be able to send coaches out, Nebraska will have to get creative which is something Scott Frost addressed on Monday.
“Recruiting is important, I think we can see it as a coaching staff we have to continue to try to get more good players on the football team," Frost said. "That’s going to be the lifeblood for us going forward, we’re going to miss out on the bye week, so if there’s some chances to get coaches out on Thursdays or Fridays before games we’ll do it. We’re not going to do it at the cost of getting our team ready to play.”
As Frost alluded, they may have to send coaches out on Thursdays or Fridays where they can. That can be done without too much problem within the region. With the use of private planes, they can head up to Minnesota to see 4-star offensive lineman Bryce Benhart if they want. It becomes a little trickier to make it out to Gilbert, Arizona, to see 4-star safety Noa Pola-Gates though.
This is just another example of something unexpected for the coaching staff to deal with in this wacky season.
Recruit Watch
>> Nebraska picked up its second walk-on commit for 2019 on Tuesday when Riley Moses accepted a preferred walk-on spot.
What an opportunity 🔴⚪️🌽 #GBR #HOMEGROWN pic.twitter.com/OLq58J9IeP
— Riley Moses (@RileyMoses53) September 25, 2018
The Fillmore Central lineman stands at 6-foot-3, 265 pounds and is slated to start out on the offensive line.
>> Staying with the offensive line theme, yesterday we talked about 3-star (HV Rating: 83.5) Dohnovan West including Nebraska in his top five. If you want a quick look at why Nebraska is recruiting him and had him out for an official visit, check out his highlight tape that he released on Monday.
https://www.hudl.com/video/3/4052319/5ba85170d45e79077cc3857d
West does a really nice job of pulling and getting out in space. He also finishes blocks well. He could be a sleeper to keep an eye on this cycle.
>> Due to Nebraska’s rough start, the question will inevitably come up about if Nebraska’s commits are getting nervous about the direction of the program. If the tweets are any indication, there isn’t a lot of wavering going on.
Trust the process … #GBR ☠️🌽 pic.twitter.com/LBTK4O7uSb
— 6 (@Qnew_2019) September 24, 2018
🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐 https://t.co/4Wl6TgLruC
— Matthew Anderson #72 (@mateoanderson37) September 24, 2018
Typically, commits will stay the course through a bumpy Year 1 because excitement is still high that the new staff just needs to install their systems or need new players to get things straightened out. Other teams will use the rough start against Nebraska but one thing the Huskers have consistently sold on the recruiting trail is that prospects have the ability to come in and compete for playing time right away.
I’d actually be more concerned about the 2020 class if this season is very rough. Nebraska is in great position with a number of really good prospects in that class and that momentum could stall if improvement isn’t shown by the end of the season.
ICYMI
>> Safety Deontai Williams has that dog in him that Travis Fisher likes.
>> Jacob Padilla spoke with the coach of the latest Nebrasketball commitment and he had great things to say about the guard.
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.
