What have the voices in the cornfield been whispering?

Good morning Husker Faithful! Recruiting information is a bit scattered at the moment, but that doesn’t mean everyone doesn’t need an update. Let’s see what wheat can be gleaned from the chaff, or perhaps what corn can be shelled from the cob, shall we?

Recruit Interest

This topic has been difficult to get a handle on. First of all, Fearless Leader Scott Frost uses the Oprah Winfrey method of offering prospects, only with offers, not cars. This isn’t Ole Miss, you know. There are currently 261 offers reported on 247, and the number is only going up.

The staff has admitted they are behind on 2019 assessment and recruiting. In the whirlwind push to put together a viable class for 2018, 2019 recruiting was sacrificed. Additionally, the big recruiting events, the Junior Days and the Spring Game all happen in April. Recruiting will pick up, but is slow right now. One must wait for the soil temperature to rise before a crop will grow, recruiting or otherwise. Here is the scuttlebutt on some notable recruits:

Five star Georgian Owen Pappoe is the top-rated outside linebacker in the nation. He has real, legitimate interest in the N, but all signs are pointing to in-state Georgia at this point. His commitment date is May 5, but he has repeatedly stated he is taking an official visit to Nebraska in the fall. The staff may have to play the long game here. Pappoe attends Grayson, an elite football school in the Atlanta suburbs. No less than seven recruits from Grayson have offers from Nebraska.

High three star strongside defensive end Mosai Newsom recently completed an unofficial visit to the Lincoln campus. He has strong interest in Nebraska and is being recruited by most of the B1G west schools. He has confirmed a return visit for the Spring Game. This is a quality recruit who is poised for a breakout senior season. Look for his recruiting to take off in the fall.

St. Louis continues to be a tough nut to crack. Five star athlete Isaiah Williams was trending N at one point, but Illinois appears to be the team to beat now. Something’s going on in Illinois. Illini head Coach Lovie Smith hired the coach of St Louis high school football powerhouse Trinity Catholic Cory Patterson as a tight ends coach. All of a sudden a bunch of national recruits are trending Illinois. Former Husker commit Marquez Beason has committed there as well. I’m looking at this situation all squinty-eyed. It’s a long time until February for a school like Illinois to hold on to elite recruits. This one’s not done. The one area prospect the staff is making progress with is three star defensive back Bryce Childress. I don’t know if he is a game-changer type of player, but at least it’s a foot in the door.

500 mile radius dual threat quarterback Max Duggan has been viewed by some as a must-get recruit. However, everything is trending Gopher at this time. Maybe he’s afraid the Husker scarlet will clash with his carroty-orange hair. It’s a valid concern. This ship looks to have sailed. Or, rowed away, I guess.

Skill players are still a point of emphasis for the 2019 class. Among the top receiver targets is California powerhouse Mater Dei’s Braedin Huffman-Dixon. This extremely talented pass catcher will be a hard pull from the West Coast, but has legitimate interest in Nebraska. Another top WR target from California, Calabasas player Mycah Pittman has Nebraska in his top ten. Pittman is leaning Florida, but his father is a former teammate of Coach Frost’s at Tampa Bay. It’s who you know! Four star Texan Darwin Barlow is among the top running back targets.

What about the locals? Tight end recruit Chris Hickman will ultimately sign with Nebraska. Linebacker Nick Henrich, unfortunately, just isn’t feeling it. Without anything concrete to point to, my magic 8-ball is saying Notre Dame. Four out of five N? That’s OK for year one. Win and they will come.

Nobody cares about anything written thus far. Let’s get down to the nitty gritty. Who are the linemen? Notable offensive guard prospects with Nebraska high on their list are Florida’s Will Putnam and Texas’ McKade Mettauer. Mettauer is coming for an official in April; he very well may return home a Husker. St. Louis Trinity Catholic offensive tackle Ira Henry is talking often with O-line coach Greg Austin. Jack Buford is another St. Louis prospect returning Husker interest. Coach Austin has some work to do to restore the pipeline. Line recruits on both sides of the ball are still gun shy. Defensive Line offers have went out, but I don’t have any good data for you today. Soon. In the meantime, here’s a live shot of one’s vs one’s in spring practice:

As the visitor list for the spring game starts to granulate, that information will be forthcoming in a future article. Stay tuned as more information becomes available. GBR!