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.
A breath of fresh air has come through Nebraska’s recruiting operation.
Nebraska special teams coach Bill Busch was last a full-time assistant at Nebraska in 2007. He has been in coaching during his time away from Lincoln. Those stops include Utah, Utah State, Rutgers, Ohio State and LSU. Busch carries the reputation of being a top recruiter and has a long history of landing top talent. His evaluation wins at Nebraska date back to the 2007 recruiting class. That year he landed six players from Arizona, including Prince Amukamara and Eric Haag. Amukamara was the last first round pick for Nebraska in 2011. Busch was the lead recruiter that got quarterback Alex Smith to Utah. He was responsible for getting Joe Burrow to LSU. It’ll be exciting to see what victories Busch can help lead the Huskers to on the trail.
A lot has changed over the years with recruiting. Busch noted that relationships will always be key during the Nebraska assistant coaches’ roundtables.
“Well, it’s changed a little bit, but I still say this, ‘recruiting is recruiting’,” Busch said. “What I always try to do first thing out of the gate is to have likeability. Try to get the recruit to like you. That way you can talk to him. That way they answer your call. That way they text you back. That gives you a chance to get things going for us.”
Relationship building will get your foot in the door with prospects. Those relationships are built differently now. Coaches are allowed to interact with recruits a lot more now than when Busch was last in Lincoln as a recruiter. As Busch said last week, you have to have “a lot more in the tank” to talk about and present to them.
Another key difference is how coach Scott Frost divides responsibilities for the assistants.
“So, the difference for us now is there is probably more position recruiting, more so than when I was [previously] here,” Busch said. “I recruited offensive linemen, I recruited every position that there was, and I was coaching on the defense at the time. There were a lot of different spots.
Adapting in college football is something that all schools are having to do. It’s what good recruiters do. There is no “off button” on recruiting anymore. To do it successfully you have to adapt to how things are done now or your competition will win out. That’s the exact type of mindset you’d expect from someone with his reputation.
“It’s the most important thing you do on the team,” Busch said. “Period. It haunts you every day. If you have a whatever’s good, whatever’s bad [day], it usually comes back to one thing: it’s recruiting.”
We have seen Busch’s enthusiasm and skill on the recruiting trail paying off for the Huskers already. He hit the ground running during the contact period visiting several schools in Kansas and Missouri in search of recruits. Those trips paid off for the Huskers. Several players from Kansas and Missouri have been to campus for visits. Busch has helped raise the bar for energy and effort on the recruiting trail for the Huskers.
Recruit Watch
>> Check out this clip from Missouri athlete Jeremiyah Love in seven-on-seven.
lil clip from last weeks 7v7 tournament with St.Louis boom pic.twitter.com/gM3ytr3msk
— Jeremiyah Love (@JeremiyahLove) March 10, 2022
>> Lincoln High 2023 athlete Beni Ngoyi was offered by Wyoming on Wednesday.
After an amazing phone call with @CoachABohl i’m extremely blessed to receive an offer from the University of Wyoming!! #GoPokes @CoachCBohl @CoachMikeGrant @adamgorney @Rivals_Clint @AllenTrieu @LHSLinkFootball pic.twitter.com/YRhh7ghEsl
— 𝐵𝑒𝓃𝒾 𝒩𝑔𝑜𝓎𝒾 📍 (@beni_ngoyi) March 10, 2022
>> The Huskers offered a scholarship to 2023 Texas 4-star defensive back Tay’Shawn Wilson.
After a great conversation with @CoachTFisher I am thankful and blessed to receive a offer from the University of Nebraska @CoachJensen3 @rashadbobino44 @Jalil_Johnson21 @Coach_Kellz_ATC @theBeast_squad @MikeRoach247 @Perroni247 @MikeWestHTX pic.twitter.com/xGvjwTm38D
— ⛓Tay’Shawn Wilson⛓ (@TayShawnWilson6) March 10, 2022
ICYMI
>> Logan Smothers is embracing competition at Nebraska which is where he wants to be.
>> Northwestern ended Nebraska basketball’s season with a second-half rally.
>> Sloppy defense haunted Nebraska baseball in a loss to Kansas State.
>> Casey Thompson has gotten a crash course in what’s like to be a quarterback at Nebraska in a short period of time.
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.
