When it comes to the current Nebraska football coaching staff and recruiting, it can feel as though any player they really set their sites on is eventually going to end up in Lincoln. That's especially true after landing someone like Dylan Raiola.
That's why it's a bit of a surprise that the Huskers have seemingly lost quite a bit of ground when it comes to Alex Manske. The Iowa-born quarterback has long been thought to be the Huskers' top target at quarterback for the 2025 cycle.
There hasn't been any kind of solid indication that the Nebraska football team is backing off Manske. It does look, however like the pro-style quarterback is having some severe second thoughts about the Huskers. Considering how "in the lead" Rhule and company seemed, that's indeed a bit of a surprise.
Surprising or not, it appears that the Huskers are no longer the odds-on favorite to reel in Alex Manske. One might suppose it's a bit of a relief that NU isn't going to be losing out on the talented signal-caller to a conference rival like the Hawkeyes. It's the Iowa State Cyclones that have stepped to the forefront.
Nebraska football loses ground to former conference rival
It might be hard to stomach that the Cyclones would manage to beat out Nebraska in a recruiting battle. Especially for a quarterback, but all the major recruiting sites are in agreement.
On3 has Iowa State sitting pretty with 52.7 percent chance of getting Manske's commitment. The Huskers are a close second with 40 percent. That essentially makes it a two-horse race. But NU is falling behind.
For its part, 247Sports has three Crystal Balls for Iowa State. Two of those came last month but Allen Triue entered one of his own just a few days ago. There are no Crystal Balls predicting the Cornhuskers.
Rivals makes it 3-for-3 as their FutureCast rating currently heavily leans towards Iowa State.
The good news here of course is that Nebraska football wants to get back in the race they have plenty of time. Matt Rhule and company are accustomed to a quarterback battle going down to the wire.