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5 takeaways from huge Nebraska Football recruiting weekend

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Syndication: Arizona Republic

This past weekend was one of the biggest recruiting weekends ever for Nebraska football and here are five takeaways now that it’s a wrap.

One thing that’s not debatable at all when it comes to Nebraska football is the fact that this past weekend was one of the biggest recruiting weekends the Huskers have had in recent memory.

There were over 25 recruits on campus for spring visits. That group included No. 1 overall quarterback Dylan Raiola, as well as top-ranked in-state recruit Carter Nelson.

All the top targets or at least most of them were in Lincoln this weekend and here are five takeaways from the big recruiting weekend for Nebraska football.

It was a success

I know there haven’t been any commitments and so far, there was just one crystal ball coming out of the weekend, but people just need to be patient.

It’s still very early in the process. Recruits are going through spring visits and will be looking to take official visits again this summer. Some 2024 recruits have already committed and it was reasonable to expect a commitment or two but this weekend was never going to be about commitments.

It was more about laying a foundation with a number of elite recruits and the Huskers did that. No. 1 offensive tackle according to On3, Brandon Baker, was already talking about a return trip. So is Nathaniel Frazier, a top-10 running overall out of California.

Almost every recruit tweeted something positive and said the visit, “exceeded expectations.” That’s not really anything concrete, but the weekend feels like a success to me.

The Huskers are still near the top with Dylan Raiola

If I had a crystal ball for Dylan Raiola, it would be foggy. Steve Wiltfong has changed his twice since Raiola decommitted from Ohio State, moving from Georgia to USC.

Right now, the Bulldogs are the only team with an official visit scheduled. The Huskers are getting him back for the spring game and the next objective will be an official visit.

I’d love it if they just got a commitment next month and didn’t need to worry about official visits, but I don’t see that being the case. I also don’t see much distance between the top four teams: Nebraska football, Georgia, USC, and Oregon. I think are all right in the mix.

I’m sure the Huskers helped themselves this weekend. However, I don’t know that they did anything to really change the trajectory of this recruitment. It still feels like anyone’s game.

Rhule continues to impress

Players really came away impressed with Matt Rhule. When they talked about him in interviews, they talked about him being “everywhere” during practice. The facilities got a lot of love and I think Rhule has all the recruits believing that Nebraska football has what it takes to be among the college football elite again.

Remember, in two years, we’ll have a 12-team playoff in college football. I see no reason why Nebraska can’t be a regular contender for that. This program really is a sleeping giant and this weekend showed it.

Imagine what will happen if the Huskers can win 8-9 games next season and then land Dylan Raiola? Rhule is doing a lot of this on relationships and faith. Of course, he’s been to multiple conference title games in college football and is a proven winner.

Yet, once Nebraska football is armed with some on-field success to sell, the recruiting is going to go to the next level, which should be a frightening thing for the rest of the Big Ten.

A new priority

As much as Dylan Raiola is the top priority at the quarterback position, it’s clear that Nathaniel Frazier is the top target on the board at running back.

Coming into the weekend, he wasn’t talked about as much as some of the other top-100 guys, but he’s a top-10 running back in 2024 (102nd overall in 247 composite). He also comes out of Mater Dei, which is one of the elite programs in the country, so this is a dude that could play right away.

Rhule wants Nebraska football to run the damn ball and landing a dude like Frazier would really help with that. He’s already talking about coming back and is one of the guys Nebraska made progress with.

Potential commitments on the horizon for Nebraska football

I still wouldn’t be surprised to see the Huskers landed a couple of commitments in the coming weeks and there are two names that make a lot of sense.

Three-star tight end Ian Flynt has ties to Nebraska and visited for the second time in a couple of months this weekend. Gibson Pyle, a three-star offensive lineman from Texas, also took his second visit. Both have started to get projections from 247 sports and On3.com.

You never know when guys are going to actually make a decision. It seems commitments on recruiting weekends don’t happen as much as they used to for a number of reasons. But those guys, along with Mario Buford, have all received crystal ball projections in the past few days, so if you are jonesing for commitments — those are three names to watch after the big visit weekend for Nebraska football.

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Nebraska Football zeroing in on local 2025 LB

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Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

Nebraska football is beginning to make inroads into the 2025 recruiting class, and they will have visitors on campus next weekend. Hosting some local talent. 2025 outside linebacker Zayvion Campbell will be in Lincoln next weekend.

This is notable for a couple of reasons. For one, Ryan Gottula is the head coach at Lincoln Southeast. His son Gunnar is part of the 2023 Nebraska football recruiting class. The family connection could help Nebraska football land Campbell.

Secondly, Nebraska is continuing to recruit in-state. This is something that we have seen in the 2023 and 2024 recruiting classes it appears that in-state recruiting will be a focal point. This is something the coaching staff has zeroed in on as one of their main goals during their time at Nebraska. They are sticking to that goal.

What could he bring to Nebraska football?

Campbell is a very intriguing player. He measures in at around six-foot-three, 200 pounds. He has good pursuit ability, and is able to wrap up and make tackles with ease. Campbell would be able to fit the Nebraska football defense by providing a solid presence inside. Campbell uses a variety of moves in order to get to the quarterback as well.

He would give Nebraska a player that could be used in multiple ways in a 3-3-5 defense. It would be fun to see defensive coordinator Tony White work with him. He has the ability to rush as well as fill gaps on the inside. That type of versatility is what Nebraska football should be looking for defensively with the scheme they have.

At the very least, Campbell is coming to campus to check things out.  It’s important that Nebraska continues to look at multiple candidates at the linebacker position. At the very least,  they need to make an effort to continue the recruiting pipeline in-state. The 2023 and 2024 classes were filled with Nebraska-born players. This is a trend that needs to continue.

For More Nebraska content, follow us on Twitter, like our Facebook Page, and Subscribe to the Husker Big Red YouTube Channel. You can also find our podcast on Apple or Spotify

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Nebraska Football: QB visit canceled and a Carter Nelson update

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Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

Nebraska football is set for its first official visit weekend of June and Kamari McClellan has canceled, plus the latest on Carter Nelson.

One of the big questions lingering about Nebraska football recruiting this weekend was whether or not three-star quarterback Kamari McClellan would make it for his official visit.

It was still on the schedule for this weekend according to the recruiting sites and in a recent interview, McClellan indicated he was still coming. However, with the recent commitment of Daniel Kaelin, it was only going to happen if Nebraska football suddenly decided to take two quarterbacks in 2024.

Anything is possible but the visit has now been canceled according to Sean Callahan of Husker Online. I think McClellan will wind up at Clemson or another team scrambling for a QB. Nebraska football was in that position and the kid is talented, but Kaelin, who is heading to the Elite 11, is a much better get.

Daniel Kaelin will visit Nebraska football again

Speaking of Kaelin, it wasn’t lip service when he said he wants to be around when any recruit comes to visit. The quarterback will take his official visit the same weekend as Carter Nelson.

But he’s now on the list for an unofficial visit this weekend. There are a couple of wideouts expected to visit. Jacory Barney is one and the Huskers lead for the three-star wideout via the On3 prediction machine. He’s ranked 459th overall out of Miami, Florida.

Williams Nettles is also visiting but he could be a cornerback or receiver. Caleb Pyfrom is a three-star in-state tackle also visiting and Kaelin being on campus could help push him toward a commitment, which seems to be where things are trending according to recent crystal balls.

It’s just clear that Kaelin is serious about doing what he can for this class, no matter how many times he needs to come to campus.

Another Carter Nelson visit

Add Penn State to the list of teams to worry about in the Carter Nelson sweepstakes. He’s going to visit the Nittany Lions on June 16th, which will be his fourth scheduled official visit.

Nelson is going to visit Georgia this weekend, followed by Notre Dame next weekend. The Huskers just got a Futurecast projection from Greg Smith of Rivals to land Carter, the top-ranked recruit in the state in 2024 and things seem to be trending in the right direction.

My thought is that Nelson is likely going to take these visits and make a decision sometime this summer, maybe in July or August. That’s just a guess. I don’t see this recruitment bleeding into the season and Nebraska football has put more effort in than any other program.

That doesn’t mean anything on its own. But Carter just took a visit to Nebraska along with Kaelin and that connection seems to be helping. Nelson hasn’t talked about his recruitment a ton, so it’s hard to get a read, but the tea leaves are pointing in Nebraska’s direction.

We’ll see if that’s still true after the next three weekends.

For More Nebraska content, follow us on Twitter, like our Facebook Page, and Subscribe to the Husker Big Red YouTube Channel. You can also find our podcast on Apple or Spotify.

 

 

 

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Nebraska Football trending in right direction with Florida CB

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Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

Nebraska football is having a newsworthy recruiting month to start up June. The program is already trending with four-star corner Mario Buford. Now, it appears that another corner may be in their sights as well.

Amare Sanders is the name to keep an eye on. He is a four-star corner He is ranked numerically at 87.50 according to the On3 recruiting rankings. He plays at Gulliver Prep high school, and is from Miami, Fla.

Sanders is a three-star recruit and measures in at 6-foot-2, 167 pounds. Right now, Nebraska is in the lead for his recruitment according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine. He is also visiting Nebraska this weekend, in what is turning out to be a big weekend for visitors.

Sanders has tremendous athleticism for a corner. He is able to make the proper reads on passing plays, and that allows him to close on wide receivers quickly and break up potential completions. He does a good job of turning his hips, and reading the play in its entirety. This is certainly important to his game and the way he plays. He also is a decent size for a corner, as he measures in at 6-foot-2 167 pounds.

Nebraska football making Florida a priority

It’s clear that Nebraska football wants to establish a stake in Florida. They are trending with wide receiver Jacory Barney Jr, and already have a commitment from Willis McGahee IV. Both of those players hail from Miami Palmetto. Sanders goes to Gulliver Prep, which is another highly-touted school in the state of Florida.

Currently, the 2024 Nebraska football recruiting class ranks 31st overall nationally with seven commitments. They have focused on both sides of the football, and are landing talented prospects both in and out of the state of Nebraska.

It will be interesting to see if Sanders ends up coming to Nebraska. The fact that he is visiting this weekend and is trending towards the Huskers is certainly a positive sign. The program done work in Florida before, but it seems like this time around their efforts will stick. Recruiting in Florida is a key component for success. Nebraska football is trying to establish that.

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