Nebraska Cornhuskers news: Brandon Baker projected to Texas, plus key injury updates

Top Nebraska football recruiting target Brandon Baker has set a decision date, plus some key injury updates.

Nebraska football fans have been holding out hope that the Huskers would be able to win the recruitment of five-star offensive tackle Brandon Baker.

Baker took two visits to Nebraska football this spring. He’s also supposed to visit the Nebraska Cornhuskers for an official visit on Sept. 16 (next weekend).  So that leads one to believe the Huskers still have a chance.

However, it was reported by Chad Simmons of On3.com on Thursday that Baker has set a decision date. He’ll be announcing a commitment on Sept. 24, shortly after his visit to Nebraska.

Yet, I wouldn’t take that as a sign the Huskers are trending up. According to Simmons and a new projection via the On3 prediciton machine, Texas is now the team to beat.

The Longhorns have a 47-percent chance right now to win the commitment of Baker via the On3 prediction machine. But it’s possible the Nebraska Cornhuskers could flip things around on his official visit to Lincoln.

For now, though, the focus should remain on Grant Brix, another top-5 offensive tackle in the 2024 class. He’s expected to make a decision soon, maybe in the next week. As long as the Huskers get one of the two, that will add the cherry on top of a solid 2024 recruiting haul.

Key injury updates for Nebraska

Husker fans have been wondering about the status of left tackle Teddy Prochazka and Matt Rhule offered a key update on Thursday, saying Teddy could see action this week against Colorado.

Nebraska HC Matt Rhule says Jimari Butler, Nick Henrich and Teddy Prochazka are all available for NU's game at Colorado.

On Prochazka, Rhule said the left tackle "could see some action" this week. #Huskers

— Luke Mullin (@LjsLuke) September 7, 2023

Jimari Butler and Nick Henrich also sound ready to play. Having those guys back will help too, but after watching how Turner Corcoran struggled at left tackle last week, earning a zero pass grade from Pro Football Focus, another option would be great and Prochazka is the best pass protector on the team when healthy.

Prochazka was a top-100 recruit for a reason. He’s close to 6-foot-10 and has long arms, plus pretty good feet for a dude that big. Hopefully, he can play the way he did early in his Nebraska career because he looked great in the first few starts.

The injury was a major setback. Rhule said he’s healthy and I’d love to see him on the field on Saturday, especially if Corcoran continues to struggle.

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.