3 Nebraska football players with surprisingly good spring games

While guys like Jeff Sims were expected to be good on Saturday, there were a couple of Nebraska football players who stood out because they surprised.

Their performances were not only excellent, but they were players that hadn’t gotten a ton of run before the game kicked off. In fact, it’s safe to say that the players that really shone on Saturday were ones that quite a few Nebraska football fans might have even forgot were on the roster.

When looking at this short little list, one player that almost made the cut was none other than Billy Kemp. The wide receiver transfer from Virginia is likely going to be one of the big weapons for the Huskers this spring. However, he’s someone who hasn’t gotten a ton of run in the media during spring practice.

It appears the biggest reason why he hasn’t gotten a ton of run is simply that he’s kept his head down and done his job with little fanfare. On Saturday, he got a bit of fanfare when he showed up early in the first half with a couple of very nice catches. He finished with just two catches for 39 yards as he sat out most of the second half.

That drove down how much impact he could really have on the game, but when he was in the game, he looked every bit the potential top target for whoever is the quarterback in 2023.

Speaking of receivers that could stand up and stand out, Marcus Washington hauled down three catches of his own for 42 yards. He’s back with the Nebraska football team after showing off what he could do in spurts in 2022. With Trey Palmer gone, both those guys could end up having big impacts this fall. However, neither were the kind of “surprises” that these three players ended up being.

Nebraska football spring game surprise number one: Janiran Bonner

Fullback
Redshirt freshman

Janiran Bonner signed with the Huskers in 2022 after mostly playing wide receiver in high school. However, he redshirted and didn’t play a down for Scott Frost or Mickey Joseph, and there was some talk that he might move to tight end under Matt Rhule.

Instead, it appears that the new staff has a new role intended for her entirely. It’s been called a kind of hybrid position, but on Saturday, it was very clearly just a fullback position, and he played it quite well.

Bonner had the first carry of the game, a fullback trap that went for seven yards. After that particular play, the game was stopped so that the ball could be handed to Frank Solich. But that wasn’t the only time that Bonner was able to make an impact.

He actually ended up carrying three times for 13 yards and also caught a pass for 11 yards. It’s safe to say that some Nebraska football fans wondered if offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield was just blowing smoke when he talked about bringing back the fullback position, but the spring game showed it’s a real thing for the Cornhuskers, and Bonner showed he might be quite a weapon at the position as he also laid a couple of excellent blocks.

Nebraska football spring game surprise number two: Princewill Umanmielen

Defensive Line
Freshman 

While Janiran Bonner at least had a year to get used to playing college football, Princewill Umanmielen is brand new to Nebraska football. The defensive lineman was one of the top gets for Matt Rhule in the 2023 recruiting class and then he was an early enrollee. That allowed him to be part of spring practice and at least for one day, he stood out as one of the best players on the field.

The Texas high schooler was causing all kinds of havoc all over the field on Saturday, including a play where he beat the offensive line badly and was able to get into the backfield, where he hit Heinrich Haarberg for a 16-yard sack. That wasn’t the only tackle for loss the true freshman recorded in the spring game, either. He finished the day with four tackles and three of those were for loss.

It’s hard to say that a spring game performance is ever going to translate to how a player will do once the games count in the fall, but it sure feels like Princewill Umanmielen is a name that Nebraska football fans are going to hear more about in the coming years.

Nebraska football spring game surprise number three: Rahmir Johnson

Running back
Junior

The last man who really shone on Saturday is the only veteran of this particular group. It’s also perhaps the most significant sign that Nebraska football fans probably shouldn’t read a ton into spring performance. Rahmir Johnson has been a kind of lost figure for the Huskers the last couple of years, but Matt Rhule and company have said that they see big things coming for him.

On Saturday, Johnson very obviously had the best day of any running back in the spring game as he rushed for 35 yards on just six carries. Perhaps the most interesting tidbit is that he didn’t get those yards in one big gulp. His longest run of the day was just nine yards. But it’s clear that every time he touched the ball, he was making positive gains.

The same can’t be said for the other running backs. While there were several decent runs, nobody really exploded on the scene. It’s too early to tell whether that’s because the Nebraska football offensive line is still finding its footing or because the defensive front was flying around the football.

For the white team, Anthony Grant had more yards (47), but he also carried twice as many times. Johnson did also have a catch, but that was stuffed for a five-yard loss. It appears that the Nebraska football team could indeed have a Weapon X on its hands with Rahmir Johnson.