Cover Five: Sizing up Nebraska football’s roster, recruiting timeline entering the summer
The Nebraska football team’s spring didn’t end with the clock hitting zero, but rather with a wing-eating contest.
After three quarters of scrimmage action during last Saturday’s practice, head coach Matt Rhule limited the fourth quarter to a goal-line situation to move along the event.
Spring Game conclusions have long been anticlimactic — Memorial Stadium would often begin to empty out in the second half with backups in the game — but Nebraska’s roster was eager to see if it could beat a team of coaches and a team of alumni in a battle of stomachs, not skill.
With players sitting on benches and their teammates cheering them on nearby, it was a spectacle which had rarely graced the Memorial Stadium turf.
The defense took home the win, ushering in a nearly three-month break from the practice field for Nebraska. Let’s drop into coverage:
1. Transfer portal, roster update
Even after the transfer portal has closed for entries, the movement continues in college football.
It’s involved both additions and subtractions for Nebraska too, with kicker Kyle Cunanan joining the Huskers from California this week. It’s a move that could be with an eye toward kickoffs — former punter Brian Buschini handled the responsibility last season — and toward a fall kicking competition.
Nico Ottomanelli is moving on and John Hohl was unable to practice, leaving Tristan Alvano as the only remaining kicker which Nebraska was able to evaluate this spring. Hohl kicked well in his opportunities last fall and will be given the chance to win the job, but so will Cunanan.
The outgoings include two reserve defensive backs, D’Andre Barnes and Evan Taylor, from a crowded secondary which is the biggest position group on the roster.
Both players were high-potential additions in need of development — Nebraska’s 2023 and 2024 recruiting class were filled with such players — and the Huskers also stood by Taylor after he suffered a serious knee injury in high school.
NU let Taylor rehab at its facility, work his way back and put in the reps on the practice field; in the roster limit era, that level of patience with a recruit no longer seems possible.
Other recent portal entrants include offensive lineman Grant Seagren, who had a strong spring, and tight end Ian Flynt.
Quality linemen are hot commodities in the portal, and Seagren has already drawn plenty of interest; he’s reported receiving offers from Kentucky, Rutgers, Washington State and Wisconsin.
Flynt never broke through at tight end for Nebraska, having been recruited to Lincoln by former Husker assistant Bob Wager. Also having been recruited for his physicality and blocking rather than his pass-catching, Flynt tried his hand at playing along the defensive line this spring.
Presuming all of Nebraska’s transfer portal entrants move on — players could potentially withdraw from the portal and return to the team depending on how roster limits are implemented — Nebraska’s roster now stands at 123 players entering the summer.
2. Impactful commitment
It’ll be a long time before the Class of 2027 makes an impact in a Nebraska uniform, but don’t discount the importance of the Huskers landing their first commitment in the class.
That came from quarterback Trae Taylor, whose long-term potential in the Husker offense is tremendous.
It’s hard to know how the next few years will play out at the quarterback position and who will end up succeeding Dylan Raiola as NU’s starter — TJ Lateef and 2026 commit Dayton Raiola will also factor into things — but there’s a reason why Taylor is one of the top-ranked recruits in his class.
Not quite a traditional pocket passer, Taylor fits the mold of what coaches look for in a modern quarterback. Taylor’s sophomore season of film at the high school level shows his high-level understanding of the game, athleticism and arm talent.
He’s capable of extending plays and throwing from outside of the pocket, and those traits are why Taylor feels he may have a similar playstyle to NU’s current starting quarterback.
It was, however, surprising to see some of the online reactions from Illinois fans to Taylor’s commitment.
The recruiting pump fake, in which a player puts on one school’s hat only to swap it for another or reveal a different shirt underneath a jacket, is not an uncommon move.
You can debate whether or not it’s a move worth pulling, but Illinois is hardly the first fanbase to get the short end of the stick.
Something to keep in mind that while fans might’ve been anticipating Taylor’s commitment, his prospective coaches would’ve known in advance. No one within the Illinois football coaching staff would’ve been surprised by Taylor’s announcement — so why the intense reaction online?
It’s never wise to paint an entire fanbase with the same brush — some Illinois fans will undoubtedly support the home-state quarterback in his next endeavor — but isn’t a worse look to spread vitriol over the pump fake than it is to pull the move to begin with?
3. In-state recruiting update
While the upcoming 2026 recruiting class doesn’t look like it’ll have many in-state additions for the Huskers — Elkhorn North linebacker Jase Reynolds currently appears to be the likeliest — early returns on the 2027 class indicate that it’s loaded with talent.
That includes a quarterback who Nebraska is unlikely to recruit, Omaha Westside’s Braylen Warren.
Having effectively pass up on the chance to recruit the top 2026 quarterback in the state, Millard South’s Jett Thomalla, in favor of Dayton Raiola, Nebraska appears to be doing the same with Warren after landing Taylor as its 2027 quarterback.
Warren is a high-caliber recruit who recently earned offers from California, Illinois and Iowa, while Ohio State is doing its homework too; the Buckeyes watched Warren throw last week.
Omaha Central’s Tory Pittman III, who Nebraska offered as a 14-year-old, is a current four-star recruit who’s among the nation’s best secondary prospects.
Since earning his first offer from the Huskers in 2023, Pittman has added Florida State, LSU, Miami, Penn State, Tennessee and USC to his list of prospective schools.
Pittman’s teammate, running back Kylonn Haynie, is picking up momentum on the recruiting trail. Nebraska was also the first offer for Haynie, while Iowa State, Kansas and Kansas State all offered Haynie within the last week.
Those programs all recruit the state well, and they’ve shown interest in Millard West offensive lineman Matt Erickson. Alongside recent offers from Kansas and Kansas State, Erickson also earned an offer from Minnesota last week.
4. Slow-moving 2026 class
Just over seven months out from when the Class of 2026 will sign with schools in December, Nebraska’s next recruiting class remains a work in progress.
With just three commits, Nebraska’s 2026 class ranks roughly 60th in the nation at this point — but the Huskers aren’t alone in slowly building the next crop of incoming players.
Consider the current uncertainty over roster limits, with schools still waiting on the exact guidelines they’ll need to follow in the coming years. How schools approach this period depends on their roster construction, with schools that are over the current projected limit knowing they’ll need to limit incoming additions.
Nebraska falls in that group, having still recruited the Class of 2026 heavily without stacking up commitments in recent months.
Things could be more normal for 2027 recruits after roster sizes are more established. For now, the Class of 2026 is getting the short end of the stick as there’s some natural hesitancy toward adding a large group of high school commits at this point.
Expect plenty of developments in June and July after Nebraska hosts several official visit weekends, but a much smaller recruiting class than in years past remains possible.
5. A prediction for the road
The prediction: Jacory Barney will lead Nebraska in receptions this fall.
It’s perhaps not a bold pick to say NU’s top returning wideout will again lead the team in catches but consider how the picture around him has changed.
With Dane Key and Nyziah Hunter joining the fold, they’ll expect to rack up targets too, with all three players hauling in a similar number of passes last year — 55 for Barney, 47 for Key and 40 for Hunter.
Key and Hunter will likely feature more heavily on the perimeter, while offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen is undoubtedly tinkering with creative ways to get the ball into Barney’s hands.
Barney’s connection with Dylan Raiola and his potential for quick passes over the middle will also keep him as a consistent source of offense.
How about his first career receiving touchdown, too? Barney found the end zone three times as a runner last season but is still waiting to haul in a touchdown pass
