National Signing Day Most Important Day of 2012 for Nebraska Cornhuskers

National Signing Day could be the most important day on the calendar for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. In recent years head coach Bo Pelini has been able to land good players, but he has yet to sign an All-American-caliber player. Pelini and his staff need some talent on their team if they want to compete for the Big Ten Championship in the future.

Most of Nebraska’s needs in recruiting this year fall on the defensive side of the ball. Nebraska’s Balckshirts defense loses defensive tackle Jared Crick, linebacker Lavonte David, cornerback Alfonzo Dennard and safety Austin Cassidy. Replacing those players with recruits is impossible, but Nebraska must find some talent to come in and compete with the players already on the roster for those open positions in 2012.

Nebraska has already had commitments from players who can step in and contribute on defense.

Defensive back Mohammed Seisay is one of Nebraska’s best recruits they have committed for the 2012 season. Seisay is rated a 4-star recruit by Rivals.com. He is from Eastern Arizona Junior College and will be expected to contribute immediately for the Cornhuskers. I do not think Seisay will be able to fill Dennard’s shoes, but at least he will provide some competition in Nebraska’s secondary.

Zaire Anderson is another commitment that will be important for the Cornhuskers in 2012. Anderson is a 4-star recruit by Rivals.com. Anderson comes from Riverside Community College in California. He will be expected to compete for the open linebacker position left on Nebraska’s team with the graduation of David. David came in as a junior college player and immediately improved Nebraska’s defense. Maybe Anderson will do the same.

Nebraska has yet to sign a defensive tackle to take the place of Crick. Nebraska is expecting that their recruit from last season, Todd Peat, can fill in for Crick in 2012.

The Cornhuskers do have a commitment from defensive end Greg McMullen. McMullen is a 4-star recruit by Rivals.com. Unlike Seisay and Anderson, McMullen is a high school recruit. Pelini recruited McMullen from the area he grew up in, Akron, Ohio. McMullen will add depth to Nebraska’s defensive end position in 2012.

Nebraska is in better shape on the offensive side of the ball in 2012. The key players Nebraska loses on offense are Brandon Kinnie, Marcel Jones and Mike Caputo. Kinnie could not catch so his lost will be no big deal for Nebraska. Replacing Jones and Caputo are the areas of concern for the Cornhuskers.

Nebraska is trying to sign offensive lineman Andrus Peat. Peat is the brother of Nebraska’s defensive tackle Todd Peat. Andrus Peat is a 5-star recruit by Rivals.com. Andrus Peat is said to have his list of schools trimmed down to Nebraska, USC and Stanford. Signing Peat will be the biggest catch for Nebraska in the 2012 recruiting class. If Peat signs with the Cornhuskers, he will most likely take over Jones’ offensive tackle position.

If Nebraska is unable to sign Peat, the Cornhuskers will have to settle for Paul Thurston. Thurston is a 4-star recruit by Rivals.com. He is from Arvada, Colorado and will be a good addition to Nebraska’s team. If Nebraska were to land Peat along with Thurston, the Cornhuskers will have two starters on the offensive line for years to come.

Two of Nebraska’s major commitments for 2012 season are on the offensive side of the ball. Nebraska has commitments from quarterback Tommy Armstrong and wide receiver Jordan Westerkamp. Armstrong is a 3-star recruit by Rivals.com and Westerkamp in a 4-star recruit by Rivals.com. Westerkamp could compete for a starting wide receiver position, while Armstrong will most likely back up quarterback Taylor Martinez.

Nebraska has put together a good recruiting class so far in 2012, but good recruiting classes do not win championships—great ones do. Nebraska needs to land some big names and National Signing Day could be the day Nebraska becomes an elite program. Nebraska fans will be watching to see what tricks Pelini has up his sleeve for Wednesday. Hopefully a 5-star recruit pops up out of nowhere for the Cornhuskers.

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