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.
Over the weekend, the Huskers picked up their first commitment of the weekend. Columbus linebacker Ernest Hausmann joined the class. That was important for many reasons. It’s great for Nebraska to get on the board in the 2022 class. The fan base was starting to get anxious about the goose egg in the commit column.
In this particular case, it’s good that Nebraska got one of the in-state recruits to commit early. It’s going to be a fight for any in-state 2022 commit that the Huskers earn so each should be celebrated. Now that the Huskers have a player in the boat, it will begin a domino effect.
The 2022 recruiting class is likely to be the smallest Coach Scott Frost has taken at Nebraska. The thought currently is that schools around the country will have less spots in this class. That may be the effect once the dust settles on the eligibility freeze in 2020, so that’s one source of the squeeze recruits could face in this cycle.
The other one is specific to Nebraska. The Huskers took four high school linebackers and one transfer linebacker in the 2021 recruiting class. Four of the five linebackers from the 2020 recruiting class are still on the roster. There won’t be a lot of room for linebackers in this 2022 class. We could be looking at four total spots for linebackers, including Hausmann.
There are several linebacker targets that the Huskers are after. Kansas native Gavin Meyers and Florida native Edwin Wilson Tara Kolenge are a couple inside ‘backers that the Huskers are in contact with. Meyers says he hears from Nebraska frequently. He’s got a good relationship with inside linebackers coach Barrett Ruud.
“He’s an awesome guy,” Meyers said. “He’s fun. He’s cool to talk to. I really enjoy phone calls with him later in the day. He’s just an upbeat guy and I really enjoy that.”
A few of the outside linebackers towards the top of the wish list are located within the region. Illinois native Jared Badie, Indiana native Popeye Williams and Missouri native Ikenna Ezeogu are a few names to know currently. Williams is very interesting. The Huskers are battling Michigan State and Penn State for him.
The Huskers have been trying hard to reshape the linebacker rooms on the team. I expect the effort to continue in the 2022 recruiting class. Now with Hausmann has the ball rolling at the position. We’ll see how that impacts the other targets Nebraska is recruiting.
Recruit Watch
>> Chris Brooks Jr., a 2022 wide receiver target from Missouri, was offered by Penn on Monday.
Blessed and humbled to receive my fifth offer from UPenn! @PENNfb @CoachFranklin48 @SLUHfootball @Clint_Cosgrove @AllenTrieu pic.twitter.com/qBkzJwwtle
— Chris Brooks Jr. (@chris_brooksjr2) March 8, 2021
>> Georgia athlete Tyler Griffin was offered by the Huskers on Monday.
After a great talk with @CoachBeckton BLESSED TO RECEIVE A OFFER FROM NEBRASKA UNIVERSITY❤️@SeanDillonNU @SEB_Football @CoachBOsborne @ChadSimmons_ @Mansell247 pic.twitter.com/vtmHKsGulE
— Tyler Griffin (@TylerGriffin0) March 8, 2021
>> Nebraska tight end target from Bellevue West Kaden Helms was offered by Wisconsin on Monday night.
Extremely blessed to have received a scholarship offer from The University of Wisconsin! @CoachTurnerUW pic.twitter.com/jhTyew6uxC
— Kaden Helms (@KadenJHelms) March 9, 2021
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