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.
Camp season is ending for the Huskers this summer. The team has hosted several camps this month with hundreds of prospects coming to campus. The summer has given the Huskers a great opportunity to get hands-on with prospects of all ages. There is value in working directly with college coaches. It’s something that prospects consistently say is the best thing about attending a team-specific camp. Senior director of player personnel and recruiting Vince Guinta noted the value of camps.
“Camps are critical because as much as you want to put on film, that is great, but to get young men here on to campus and to watch them compete, to watch how they take coaching, to see the look in their eyes when they’re out on that field – you can feel it,” Guinta said. “It’s a totally different vibe than you can replicate on film and it says a lot if a young man is willing to come here and perform for you, right? Because that’s what they’re doing, they’re coming here to perform.”
Wisconsin 2023 offensive lineman Brandt Rice was one of the campers at the Adidas Pipeline Camp on June 18. He’s been to Lincoln before for an unofficial visit. Rice wanted to return and work directly with offensive line coach Donovan Raiola and he thought it was a great experience.
“It went great,” Rice said. “I learned a ton that will play a huge part in my high school season and will bring my game to the next level.”
It doesn’t happen often but Nebraska also had a multi-day unofficial visitor in town that competed in camp. Louisiana 2023 EDGE Matthew Fobbs-White is a player to watch from Neville High School. Fobbs-White (6-3, 230) was spotted on the sidelines during Friday Night Lights. He’s from the same high school as his cousin Ajay Allen who signed with Nebraska in the 2022 class.
Fobbs-White competed on Saturday during the pipeline camp after taking in the scene for Friday Night Lights. He was a standout performer at the camp and received a lot of attention from the Nebraska coaching staff. That included defensive coordinator Erik Chinander and defensive front coach Mike Dawson.
“I enjoyed it and had fun,” Fobbs-White said. “It was very impressive. I enjoyed seeing the scene.”
The defender did leave Nebraska without getting an offer from the program. It’ll be interesting to see where his recruitment goes from here. He holds double-digit scholarship offers including Baylor and Oklahoma State.
The Huskers also hosted a few unofficial visitors this weekend that did not take part in camp. I spotted running backs coach Bryan Applewhite hosting a pair of Texas prospects. Class of 2024 offensive lineman Willie Goodacre and 2024 defensive lineman Pelumi Olanipekun. The pair are teammates a Guyer High School in Denton, Texas. Goodacre was impressed with what he found in Lincoln.
Had an amazing visit to Nebraska 🔴⚪🌽@HuskerFBNation@BryanApplewhite@DentonGuyer_FB @mike_gallegos16 pic.twitter.com/zW1v5lELUB
— Goodacrewillie (@goodacrewillie) June 18, 2022
“I loved it, it got me fired up,” Goodacre said. “I really liked the environment. It just felt like they loved football and the players there.”
Nebraska also had a young prospect to watch on campus for the pipeline camp and Friday Night Lights. Class of 2026 offensive lineman Preston Clark is a player to watch from Georgia. The Huskers are keeping an eye on the Buford High School prospect early and he enjoyed the camp.
Friday Night Lights at UNL. #readytowork #bufordfootball @bigka54 @Fitness6Hawk @AlPopsFootball @buford_football @CoachBeckton @RecruitGeorgia @_DeMackk @DonovanRaiola @247Sports @247recruiting @XPPastorKen pic.twitter.com/5oyAcafMxw
— Preston “BIG P” Clark (@PrestonClark51) June 17, 2022
“I really enjoyed the competition of the one-on-ones and seeing how I stacked up against the upperclassmen,” Clark said. “It was also really cool to learn from and connect with some of the current Nebraska linemen.”
The Huskers had a wide variety of players in town this weekend for camps and visits. There are several ways to maximize these weekends and the Huskers appear to be doing all they can to get players on campus. That type of work will pay off in the long run for the program.
Recruit Watch
>> Nebraska wide receiver target Barry Jackson Jr. has moved his commitment date back a bit.
I’ll be Changing my committed day from June 30th to July 2nd at Cedar Grove High at 1pm be there 💯
— Barry Jackson jr. (@Barryj4k) June 19, 2022
>> Creighton Prep running back CharMar Brown was offered by North Dakota State over the weekend.
After a great camp and talk with @Coach_Entz I am excited & blessed to receive an offer to play for @NDSUfootball!!!🦬🦬@JoeBeschorner @CoachKMorgs @PetersNDSU @Coach_Roehl pic.twitter.com/UTGzxqIfoI
— CharMar Brown AKA Marty (@BrownCharmar) June 18, 2022
>> The Huskers extended a walk-on opportunity to Millard South specialist Simon McClannan.
After a great workout and conversation with @Coach_BuschGBR and @coach_frost I am blessed to have earned the opportunity to kick for @HuskerFBNation. @HKA_Tanalski @MSouthFootball @Coach_Wiz3 pic.twitter.com/O881Xs9Pp9
— Simon McClannan (@McclannanSimon) June 17, 2022
>> The Nebraska Elite group was well represented this weekend at Nebraska’s camps.
Thank you @HuskerFBNation @daboot02 @CoachChinander for such an awesome camp!
It was great to see some of our athletes showcasing their talent last night. #1Team1Family #GBR 🎈 pic.twitter.com/6DHwl5MflR
— Nebraska Elite 7v7 (@NELITE7v7_) June 18, 2022
ICYMI
>> Nebraska volleyball landed a commitment from 2024 outside hitter Skyler Pierce on Sunday.
>> Steve Marik is here to take is through how October could unfold for the worst version of Nebraska’s season.
>> Donovan Raiola took center stage on Saturday at the OL/DL Pipeline Camp. I have more on that and other observations from the day.
>> Drake’s Takes are back to talk about the NBA Finals and NBA Draft.
>> Check out the photo gallery from Friday Night Lights and my thoughts from the event.
>> Marik and I also gave our thoughts on Friday Night Lights on the Hail Varsity YouTube channel.
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.
