Nebraska Football: Carter Nelson position change makes sense

Nebraska football head coach Matt Rhule offered an update on the status of Carter Nelson on Wednesday. The other tight and will begin his career at wide receiver, according to multiple media reports.

This is certainly an interesting move, given that Nebraska is depth-heavy at the position. Even still, there is no denying that Nelson is a superb athlete. He tallied 5858 total yards over the span of four seasons of ice below. The Ainsworth start played both sides of the football at the high school level, and now he is going to try a new offensive position entirely.

According to head coach Matt Rhule, Freshman Carter Nelson will start as a wide receiver. It's easier to get on the field there. He called Nelson a "difference maker" and an "upgrade" and expects him to play a role on this team right away.

— Sean Callahan (@Sean_Callahan) July 24, 2024

This makes sense for Nebraska football

The wide receiver switch is certainly interesting. For one, Nebraska football has a ton of wide receivers, as they currently have 18 in total on the roster. Secondly, Nelson would be a bigger wide receiver, as he measures in at 230 pounds.

With that being said, his athleticism and his ability to run after the catch certainly make him a good fit for the wide receiver spot. The way he moves is very impressive. He has a unique blend of size and speed that make him a dangerous player to tackle. He is the type of player that can ignite an entire offense.

Couple that with the fact that Nebraska has nine tight ends on the roster, and Nelson may have a better shot to make a bigger impact that the wide receiver spot. This is a situation where you want to put your playmakers on the field at all times. This would be a scenario where I wouldn’t see any issue in terms of burning Nelson’s red shirt. He has the ability to make an impact now.

It will be interesting to see how the positional change works for Nelson. He has all of preseason camp to really get settled in. He may not get a ton of steps initially, but I could see him working his way into the fold by the end of the year. At the very least, this is a good job by the coaching staff of working to get a key component of the future some playing time.

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