All Nebraska football eyes on top safety target in Evan Cooper fallout
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While the Nebraska football team is dealing with the fallout of defensive backs coach Evan Cooper’s resignation, it appears the coaching staff is working quickly. Now that John Butler is all but official, the next step is nailing down its secondary recruiting work.
Just how well the Huskers have limited the damage is going to be obvious very quickly. The Cornhuskers are hoping to land one of the top safeties in the class when he announces his commitment next week.
Safety Aiden Manutai, who took a #Huskers OV in June, to announce commitment on 247Sports' YouTube Channel next Friday. https://t.co/9qS4ZaheDi
— Brian Christopherson (@Husker247BC) July 5, 2024
Aiden Manutai is picking between his final five teams on 247Sports’ YouTube channel on Friday, July 12. When he does make that decision, the Nebraska football team is among the contenders and was at one point, considered the top contender.
Nebraska football waiting for Evan Cooper fallout
The Huskers, as well as the Arizona Wildcats, Tennessee Volunteers, Washington Huskies and Cal Golden Bears are Manutai’s candidates for commitment. At the moment, it’s a very tight race.
This is where Evan Cooper’s departure comes into play. While most people view John Butler’s hiring as a good one, he obviously doesn’t have a relationship with the 3-star safety out of Hawaii.
Aiden Manurai could pull trigger for Cal
According to On3, the Golden Bears are the front runners at the moment with a 25 percent chance to get the commitment of Manurai. Washington comes in a close second at 21.5 percent, followed by Arizona and Nebraska all very close.
One has to think the Huskers have lost a bit of ground with Cooper being gone. He was one of the best recruiters the Cornhuskers have. He was also considered one of the best talent evaluators.
Nebraska football playing catchup
While you can’t take the decision of Aiden Manutai as gospel on where the Nebraska football team stands with Cooper gone, it will at least be a decent gauge.
Should the safety pull the trigger for someone else, it could demonstrate that there’s work to do. Especially with other defensive targets coming close to their pledge dates.
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