Nebraska football could have a secret weapon in pursuit of 5-star OT

Nebraska football in the running for 5-star OT Jackson Cantwell, with a secret weapon: allowing dual-sport athletes, a rarity among top programs.
Bruce E Stidham Special to the
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While it hasn’t resulted in many high-profile commitments yet, Nebraska football has made a habit of being in the thick of the race for several of the top offensive line prospects in the country.

It looks like the Huskers are once again among the top contenders for a 5-star offensive tackle out of Nixa, Missouri. It also looks like, even though Jackson Cantwell only narrowed his list down to 14 finalists, NU might have a secret weapon.

The Nebraska football team has managed to attract some of the best talent in the country because it allows dual-sport athletes to stay dual-sport athletes. A couple of Cornhuskers analysts believe that will be key in getting Cantwell and could give Matt Rhule and company a leg up.

Nebraska football could have a secret weapon in fight for Jackson Cantwell

Rivals’ Tim Verghese and Hurrdat’s Ravi Lulla were discussing what could be a secret weapon in the race for Cantwell. While the 5-star offensive lineman has a bright football future ahead of him, he’s also a stud track and field athlete.

In the discussion, Lulla asked Verghese if Nebraska might have an in. The analyst responded in the affirmative.

“Yes I do. He wants to do both sports. He’s a son of two Olympians, he’s the sophomore record holder in the shotput and so he wants to throw at the next level and Nebraska has shown you can do both sports here and have success and we know how to maintain your schedule and we know what we’re doing.”

He went on to explain that the Huskers have already gotten him into meetings with guys like Jeremiah Charles. He added that at a lot of the schools Cantwell is looking at, they don’t have an example of someone who has had success in two sports on campus. 

The Cornhuskers have several.

He believes Nebraska football could use that to stand out among the crowd of 14. They’re still going to need to fight off Miami, USC, Oregon, Texas A&M, Arkansas, LSU, Missouri, Florida, Georgia, Ohio State, Alabama, Michigan, and Ole Miss.

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