Nebraska Recruiting – Updating the Huskers Recruiting Board 8/27

Huskers Recruiting – Updating the Big Board

Welcome to HC’s Thirsty Thursday (okay, its Friday) where we help quench your recruiting thirst by providing an in-depth update on the Huskers recruiting board. Each week we will highlight the big changes, break down the “most wanted”, and touch on topics near and dear to Husker recruiting.

Last week we took a break from addressing all of the B1G drama but if you’re paying attention today the case to go ahead with some type of fall season is heating back up. Changes in the ability and time it takes to get back a COVID test appear to be making an impact on Kevin Warren and the Presidents thought process.  Pressure from the players and parents certainly have helped out as well.

There’s also lingering questions around how the NCAA will treat early enrollee’s from the 2021 class if things head into the spring semester that still need to be answered.

But enough of the season drama, the Huskers landed a cornerstone commitment this week from local tight-end Thomas Fidone. If you haven’t done so already make sure to check out Danny’s breakdown of his commitment in the link above and check the homepage for a few other articles about what his commitment means to Nebraska.

Suffice to say, landing a player of Fidone’s caliber at any position is a massive win for coach Frost and company. I expect Fidone to have a similar path to playing time that Wan’Dale Robinson had in 2019.  Expect to see him early and often after he spends a spring and summer bulking up with S&C coach Zach Duval and learning the playbook.

If you’re curious how Frost will use an NFL caliber tight end like Fidone, look no further than 2017 UCF tight-end Jordan Akins who racked up over 500 yards receiving and is now a part of the Houston Texans NFL roster.

Nebraska Recruiting – Movers and Shakers –

Mover –

Without a doubt the biggest mover this week was the commitment of 4-star Thomas Fidone who rocketed the Huskers class up to the 20th in the country, per Rivals.

But why stop there? Another talented tight-end is rumored to be making his commitment later this week as well. Omaha Creighton Prep’s AJ Rollins is believed to be close to making a decision which could come at any point.

Rollin’s isn’t Thomas Fidone, but he’s a really nice tight-end in his own right that is well deserving of his own place in this recruiting class.  He’s got a 6’6 220lb frame and a quick 4.8 40 yard dash.

Shaker –

There haven’t been any departures this week so lets take a minute to congratulate Norris HS tight-end James Carnie on his ratings bump up to a 3-star tight end. We talked about Carnie last week in our big board breakdown and there some smoke to the fact that Nebraska COULD take a third TE in the 2021 class to develop behind Fidone.  Carnie doesn’t have the same level of suddenness and hands that Fidone has but he clocked few whiskers faster 40-yard dash time than Fidone at the recent Warren Academy showcase over the summer.

If Nebraska is looking for a good mix of tight-ends to develop in this class Fidone, Carnie, and Rollins would be a terrific foundation to work with.

It’s worth pointing out that the Husker Video team has been dropping some really innovative videos of the last few weeks that have shaken the cobwebs off as well. Kudos to these guys as they are some of the hardest working people behind the scenes.

Check out some of their most recent work here:

– Put yourself in a recruits shoes and take Virtual Official Visit to Nebraska

– Ride along with coach Scott Frost and Larry the Cable Guy in this “Cruisin with the Huskers” video

– Someone please tell me where I can cop the hat Wan’Dale wore in this cool  “first day of school” video

– No seriously, where can I get that hat?

Who is the next commit for Nebraska?

Crystal balls all point towards Nebraska adding Rollins and/or Carine here in the near future. If I had to put my poker chips in front of any recruit, it would be AJ Rollins committing to Nebraska sometime in the next week.

Huskers Recruiting Most Wanted Board

By now you must have gotten the message. Nabbing Fidone was a big one and the Huskers aren’t done yet at tight-end in this class.  But a few of the guys from last week have trailed off the board so let’s look at the updated board .

Tight End – 1

AJ Rollins – A local out of Creighton Prep in Omaha, Rollins sports more of a traditional tight end build and speed set but maintains soft hands and good body control.  He likely redshirts in order to refine his skills and add a bit of bulk. I see Rollins fighting for playing time on the 2-deep by 2022, if there is any turnover at the position it could be even sooner.

James Carnie– The recent recruiting rating bump will definitely draw a little more attention towards Carnie and it’s deserved. That said, I don’t see him sticking with his Miami U commitment if the Huskers want him in this class. Carnie clocked in at a 4.6s flat at the Warren Showcase ahead of Fidone. With a year or two of development under Sean Beckton they could be a pretty speedy TE duo.

I would still love to see how Carnie progresses between his junior and senior seasons. With some nice tape I could see a few more schools trying to get in and snag the speedy TE if Nebraska slow plays him or asks him to walk-on/greyshirt

Dametrious Crownover – I’m going to pull Crownover off the big board at this point. There’s no doubt that he would be a big addition to the TE room, but with Fidone on board I think Nebraska will stick with local guys to fill out this class.

Defensive Line – 2

Madela Tobin – This is where my TV is tuned moving forward with the defensive line. As noted last week, Tobin is set to release his top 5 teams on September 1st and I still expect Nebraska and Kansas to be two of those 5 teams listed.

He’s a little bit of a project and COVID could make this recruitment interesting if Tobin can’t get out for a visit but I put Nebraska in serious contention to land Tobin when its all said and done. Check out our notes from last week on what Tobin brings to the table.

"Tobin carries a 6’4 270lb frame but maintains a terrific burst at the LOS. He’s very is similar to former Husker DE Khalil Davis who is turning heads this week in Tampa Bay’s preseason camp in that he could rush the passer while still having the bulk to control the LOS against the run."

Inside Linebacker – 1

Wynden Ho’ohuli – A Hawaii native, Ho’ohuli is a physical insider linebacker that the Huskers are courting hard.  Distance is definitely a factor with his recruitment but through the early summertime period the Huskers looked good.

Ho’ohuli has been doing his best to keep in touch coaches since COVID has made in-person recruiting obsolete and has been talking to coaches nearly every single day:

"“We’ve been having calls, FaceTime, they’ve just been showing me around the campus and stuff, building a good relationship. Just talking about what they have to offer me and what I could potentially do when I get to the school or school-wise what I might pursue.” He told KOHN2 in Hawaii"

The Huskers are primarily battling Virginia, Washington, and Utah for Ho’ohuli but LSU is keeping a close tabs on him as well. If he cannot take any visits this fall, I think he may choose to stay closer to home on the West Coast.

Deshauwn Alleyne is another name to keep an eye on out of Florida.  The Huskers have made a lot of noise in Florida in their last few classes and Frost’s clout from his time at UCF still perks up a few ears in the Sunshine State.

It will be tough to pull Alleyne out of SEC country but if the NCAA opens up official visits this fall/winter I think the Huskers have as good of a shot as anyone with Alleyne.

Wild Cards – 1

Geno VanDeMark – OL- Committed to Michigan State last week.

The Huskers are loaded with offensive linemen who are redshirt freshman with 6 guys total competing for playing time in the future, PLUS CSU transfer Nouredin Nouili who I believe will get a waiver to play this fall. I think the Huskers pivot towards the LB and CB positions to fill this wild card slot at this point as the cupboard is quite full on the offensive side of the ball.

Huskers Recruiting Board- Current Commits

Offense (9)

QB – Heinrich Haarberg

RB – Gabe Ervin

WR- Shawn Hardy

WR – Latrell Neville

ATH – Kamonté Grimes

TE – Thomas Fidone

OT – Teddy Prochazka

OT- Branson Yager

OG – Henry Lutovsky

Defense (6)

OLB – Randolph Kpai

OLB – Patrick Payton

OLB – Seth Malcom

DB – Marques Buford

DB – Lardarius Webb Jr.

DB – Malik Williams