The summer of official visits continues this weekend for Nebraska. The program is fresh off a weekend of hosting 13 official visitors in the biggest visit weekend of the Scott Frost era. The Huskers picked up a pair of commitments last weekend, and one from a June 3 official visitor. Kansas City wide receiver Jaidyn Doss committed on Friday to kick the weekend off. Scottsbluff offensive lineman Brock Knutson joined the class on Monday. The team will follow that up with six official visitors for the June 10 weekend.
The lone commitment coming in for an official visit this weekend is Pierce tight end Benjamin Brahmer. It’s easy to lose track of Brahmer (6-6, 215) in this year’s deep in-state recruiting class. He’s been committed since April of 2021 but he’s looking forward to being back on campus.
“I’m looking forward to seeing all the other recruits there and getting to know them,” Brahmer told Hail Varsity.
The tight end will have his pick of uncommitted targets to bond with this weekend. The player most likely to commit this weekend has to be Texas defensive lineman Riley Van Poppel. The defender (6-4, 270) has been high on the Huskers through his entire recruitment. The Huskers solidified their spot toward the top of his list during a spring visit. He was able to see defensive front coach Mike Dawson work up close.
“I’ve talked to him on the phone, text and all that stuff but getting to see him actually coach was eye opening to me,” Van Poppel said. “I got to sit in a meeting with him, watch how he goes through meetings. I got to stand on the field. I got to watch how he coaches in live action, so I loved seeing that.”
Van Poppel was at Tennessee for an official visit last weekend. Another defender making his way to Lincoln is Pennsylvania linebacker Phil Picciotti. The defender became a national recruit as a junior when he racked up 144 tackles and 19 tackles for loss. He’s a true sideline-to-sideline linebacker that teams across the country covet. This is his second visit to Nebraska as he was in town for the spring game. Picciotti has a busy June lined up. He visited Oklahoma June 3 and will visit Michigan and Auburn.
OV Locked In 🔒 @HuskerFBNation #GBR #Huskers #blackshirts #lincolnnebraska #gobigred #huskerfootball pic.twitter.com/In85TU6s14
— P³³ (@PhilPicciotti) May 19, 2022
The one surprise official visitor for many this weekend is defensive end/linebacker Teitum Tuioti. It’s a unique situation since his father is no longer on Nebraska’s staff. It is notable that Tuioti (6-3, 220) is coming out for an early official to Nebraska. There seems to be interest on both sides still despite the awkward situation. It’s his first official visit, so the Huskers have a chance to impress even though he’s been to campus many times.
The Huskers also have a pair of big offensive linemen coming to town. Recruiting at the position is going well but the Huskers will add at least one more to Donovan Raiola’s first haul. JR Sia (6-8, 310) is a sleeper prospect out of Herriman, Utah. The Huskers have made a push into Utah recently dropping several offers in the state. Sia hasn’t taken an official visit yet and the Huskers are one of four offers for him.
“One thing I’m really looking forward to is really getting to know the coaches better and also the players,” Sia said. “I just want to make sure that everything feels right to me!”
@NEB_Recruiting @DonovanRaiola 🔥 🔥 thank you coach!! pic.twitter.com/YVuHGkFTg0
— Jr Sia (@JrSia2) May 3, 2022
The other lineman the Huskers have coming to town is the highest-rated of all the players on the visit list. Class of 2023 4-star offensive tackle Zalance Heard (6-5, 300) will make the trip from Louisiana. Wide receivers coach Mickey Joseph is part of the Husker group working on him. He’s from the same high school as 2022 running back commit Ajay Allen so Bryan Applewhite is also part of the recruitment. Nebraska has a compelling case to make for one of the nation’s best offensive line prospects this cycle. This will be his first official visit and is the only one he has scheduled right now.
Stay tuned to Hail Varsity for more coverage of the huge recruiting weekend for Nebraska.
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.
