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Jeremy Pernell: There’s a Lot to Like in Nebraska Football’s 2024 Recruiting Class
The more I listen to Matt Rhule speak, the more impressed I am with Nebraska football's first-year head coach. When he talks about his process as a coach, there’s an authenticity and confidence that's contagious. You won’t find a more passionate communicator, and his interpersonal skills make him a great recruiter and culture builder.
On June 7, Nebraska's 2024 recruiting class was sitting at seven members. Over the ensuing 24 days, the Huskers added 16 commitments. It's been a culmination of work that began for this staff when they arrived last November. With 23 current commitments, Nebraska is now tied with Georgia Tech and North Carolina for having the fifth most in the country.
June has become the time when most official visits happen, and the Huskers brought in 35 during the hectic month. Because Rhule prefers to have his coaches fully present on recruiting visits rather than having them multitask and spend time scattered around the country at camps, most of Nebraska’s June visitors came on two specific weekends: June 2, the weekend prior to the start of their satellite camp tour, and June 23, which was their tentpole weekend.
It was an intentional move by Rhule to host the major weekend of visits at the end of the month after the conclusion of his Husker Camps. He wanted to have his entire staff's full attention on the 2024 class. Nearly all of Nebraska's prior commitments came that weekend to be around other priority targets. With the family culture Rhule is building, I loved that strategy and it has proven to be effective. The staff has enjoyed a tremendous hit rate with their June visitors so far, with 22 of the 35 visitors having pledged to the class. There are also a handful still on the board.
The 16 additions represent a wide array of targets. There were longtime, top-of-the-board targets the staff had been recruiting since they arrived like CB Mario Buford, WRs Isaiah McMorris and Dae'vonn Hall, RB Kewan Lacy and the big-prize, in-state TE Carter Nelson.
There were also high-priority targets the staff started pushing hard for this spring like DL Carlon Jones, DB Evan Taylor and WR Jacory Barney Jr.
Then there were the guys the staff largely identified during May evaluations who they subsequently saw at a satellite camp or invited to Lincoln for a Husker Camp.
Those players include DB/LB Braylen Prude, OL/DL Jake Peters, DB Callen Barta, OL Landen Davidson, DB Donovan Jones, DB/LB Rex Guthrie, WR/TE Quinn Clark and punter Kamdyn Koch.
Outside of Landen Davidson, who had offers from Iowa State, Kansas, Washington State and in-state Colorado, the Huskers were the only Power Five offer for the seven other players. That's been a source of some consternation among some fans who are worried about the number of under-the-radar players this staff has pivoted to after missing out on other targets.
I've received several emails asking my opinion of this, so I'll answer those here.
First off, I can see the concern. The hit rate for recruits is generally in the 50-60% range. If you're at the higher end of that spectrum, you're typically doing quite well as a program. Empirical evidence shows us unequivocally that higher-rated players are more likely to pan out.
There's also a mantra I've always believed in. As a rule of thumb, you don't want to be the best offer a kid has when he commits to you. There's nothing wrong with being first, but the summer before a kid's senior year is really late in the game to not have a Power Five offer elsewhere if you're indeed a Power Five talent.
I'm not saying all these kids are huge reaches. I am saying you would feel a lot more comfortable if other Power Five programs had also vetted them and were actively recruiting them.
The flip side of that coin is Matt Rhule and Evan Cooper have well-earned reputations for finding diamonds in the rough with uncoachable verified physical and athletic traits and developing them. They absolutely deserve (have earned) the benefit of the doubt.
I've always preached that not only is it vital to recruit elite athletes, but just as important is making sure their skillset fits what you're going to ask them to do in your scheme.
For example, if a kid excels as a press-man corner but you're going to ask him to play drop coverage, are you really getting the most out of what he does best? Scheme fit is huge, so having these coaches work hands-on with these kids is an underappreciated metric in their recruitment. It's one of the reasons Matt Rhule values camps so much.
Nebraska missed on several of its top targets this spring. I touched on that a bit on Tuesday. The Huskers also took swings at some guys who visited in early June but quickly pivoted after they determined they weren't going to land them. Defensive backs Callen Barta and Donovan Jones were camp performers the staff took after Peyton Morgan, William Nettles and Dontae Carter focused on other teams.
I think there was a concerted effort by Rhule to take some guys who may be a little more underdeveloped, but still had benchmark physical and athletic traits. I think he wanted to have the bulk of the class finished so that he and his staff could emphasize coaching the team during the season. It also allows coaches and recruiting staffers to put more of their focus on the 2025 and 2026 classes. Nebraska wanted to get ahead, and locking up a class quickly allows for that.
Now at 23 commits, Nebraska's recruiting class is complete for the most part, but the staff will continue to push for players.
Despite having seven commitments who are listed as defensive backs by recruiting services, the staff will continue to target Amare Sanders, Caleb Benning and Malik Esquerra. Keep in mind, Braylen Prude, Roger Gradney and Rex Guthrie could ultimately end up at linebacker. In Tony White's 3-3-5 system, speed and versatility are nonnegotiable. You can be sure this staff is taking some guys who might start on the third-level of the defense, but project nicely at the second-level down the road.
With three interior offensive linemen committed, the staff would like to add one or two tackles. Preston Taumua and Grant Brix are at the top of their board, with Taumua set to announce his commitment this Saturday among a final group that includes Nebraska, Oregon, Auburn and Arizona. Brix doesn't have a commitment date announced, but Nebraska is a finalist with Kansas State, Alabama and Oklahoma.
If the staff misses on either, they could pivot toward Utah teammates Nuku Mafi and Semisi Tonga. The pair visited in the spring and are planning to return for official visits together for the Michigan game.
Along with offensive tackle, the biggest need in the class is edge defender. A couple names to keep track of are Jayshawn Ross and Devoux Tuataga. Ross is teammates with Husker commit Keelan Smith and accompanied him on an unofficial visit June 14. This past Saturday, Ross announced a top five of Nebraska, Oklahoma, Michigan, Penn State and Tennessee. Look for the Huskers to push for an official visit, perhaps for the Michigan game.
Tuataga had planned on visiting in June but pushed his plans back. He's now scheduled to be in Lincoln the last weekend of July when the dead period momentarily lifts. Oregon is considered his leader with Utah, Tennessee, USC, Arizona, BYU and Oregon State also pushing. The Huskers are in the thick of it.
Coaches are also still pursuing top-of-the-board wide receiver Gatlin Bair, whom the Huskers have been recruiting since Rhule was hired and before he blew up nationally. Bair released a top five of Boise State, Michigan, Nebraska, Oregon and TCU in April and has remained locked on those schools despite heavy interest from Georgia and Alabama. Bair visited TCU, Oregon and Michigan in June and plans to visit Nebraska and Boise State this fall.
Another name to monitor is consensus four-star running back Caden Durham. Despite having four-star Kewan Lacy on board, the staff is pushing to add Durham as well. He's scheduled to visit for the Michigan game in September, but that could change. He's scheduled to commit on Aug. 25, with Oklahoma, LSU, Alabama, Texas A&M and Michigan State the leading contenders. Could Rhule still get a visit after he commits elsewhere?
So what do I think of the current class? I'm glad you asked.
For all the worry about some of the kids being under the radar, 10 of the 23 commits are currently rated as a four-star prospect by at least one recruiting service. And one of those still rated a three-star, Gibson Pyle, was just chosen to play in the prestigious All-American Bowl.
Talent aside, I really like where the kids are coming from. The staff has seven commitments from the Lone Star State. In fact, coming out of June, Nebraska has more Houston-area players committed to them than any other Power Five program.
How important is Texas recruiting to Nebraska now that Matt Rhule's in town? Earlier this year the Lincoln airport introduced Go Fly Red as an option at an event that also featured Rhule during the unveiling. There are now direct flights into Lincoln from Austin, Dallas and Houston.
Regardless of the coach, I've always felt Texas should be the primary focus for the Husker program in regard to trying to build a pipeline into a talent-rich area. Historically and geographically, it makes the most sense. The fact Matt Rhule has tremendous ties to the region and wants to exploit that is perfect. I guarantee you he has more success pulling talent from Texas - and retaining it - than Mike Riley did in California and Scott Frost did in Florida.
The Huskers averaged 4.2 signees each year from Texas in the 12 years leading up to its departure from the Big 12. That number dwindled to 1.9 players from 2012 through 2022. In five recruiting classes, Frost signed only eight Texans. In his transition class, Rhule signed six Texas players, the most at Nebraska since 2011. I really like where this trend is going.
When Matt Rhule was hired, he spoke of prioritizing in-state kids. In fact, his first order of business was setting up a recruiting event for in-state players a week after he was hired. He has continued to put his money where his mouth is regarding in-state recruiting.
Nebraska has six in-state commitments in this class with a good chance to finish with seven if they close on Caleb Benning. They've extended offers to 11 players, which is more than any other Husker coach in the modern era. They've already extended five offers to the 2025 class: LB Christian Jones, DL/OL Tyson Terry, DB Caden VerMaas, TE Chase Loftin and RB Conor Booth, with Terry and VerMaas having already committed.
As it stands now, Rhule has 14 in-state commitments in his first two classes. Scott Frost signed a total of 16 in his five recruiting classes.
The Huskers have commitments from the four highest-rated prospects in Nebraska, with Benning (No. 5) also still in play. Frost signed the top five players in 2019 when the shine of his hire hadn't been tarnished by his perpetual losing. Between the 2020-22 classes, however, the hometown Huskers signed just six of the 15 players who ranked as the top five in each class.
Another thing Rhule is addressing is the lack of traction the Husker program has had recruiting the Omaha metro area. When he arrived, he maintained the commitments of Maverick Noonan and Sam Sledge, while adding Jaylen Lloyd, Mason Goldman and Tristan Alvano. It's important for the Husker program to have a presence in the Omaha Public Schools system. Scott Frost signed Nick Henrich and Chris Hickman in the 2019 class. The Huskers then went four years without landing another player out of the OPS.
It's vital to put a fence around the state. There's been a noticeable uptick in talent inside the borders in recent years, and those players need to be the foundation. In-state players have generally grown up loving the program. They are the players who hold everyone else accountable and embody the culture. They set the standard and make sure out-of-state kids strive to do the same.
Nebraska also has commitments from six players who are legacies: Mario Buford, Isaiah McMorris, Keelan Smith, Quinn Clark, Kamdyn Koch and Ian Flynt. Again, that lends itself to having players in the program who are inherently passionate about the place.
I also like the representation of important border states like Missouri, Colorado, Iowa and Kansas. As Matt Rhule starts putting more notches in the win column, Nebraska should strive to be the preeminent destination program in the region. A lot of things factor into a recruit,s decision, but location will always be a huge consideration.
No other school in the area can match the history, tradition, support or resources at Nebraska. If the Huskers can start winning consistently again, there's no reason they shouldn't be the most prominent offer in the region. If there's a blue-chip player in Nebraska, Iowa, Colorado, Missouri, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota or the Dakotas, an offer from the Huskers should be sought-after. A program - when it's humming - that's second to none that offers parents the chance to drive to their kids games. That's a major selling point.
But let's not get too far over our skis. Rhule is going to rebuild this program the right way. It may take a few years, but we've seen the work ethic, vision and blueprint this staff has. They'll get there.
