Nebraska Football: Early Grades for the 2016 Recruiting Class

Nebraska football fans know that even though the 2015 season is still months away, important work is being done involving the 2016 recruiting class. New head coach Mike Riley and his staff are beating the bushes (and social media) looking for the next crop of talented players to don the scarlet and cream.

Currently, according to 247Sports, Nebraska’s 2016 recruiting class is No. 34 nationally and No. 7 in the Big Ten. But with a total of just six commitments, there’s plenty of room for the class to grow.

Based on what we know now, here’s a snapshot of how Nebraska is looking for next year’s class.

Offense

Nebraska currently has five commitments on offense:

Name	Position	Height	Weight	Star	Composite
John Rairdon	OG	6’4”	260	4-star	.9651
Bryan Brokop	OT	6’5”	273	3-star	.8888
Jared Bubak	TE	6’4”	235	3-star	.8538
Terry Wilson	QB (DUAL)	6’2 ½”	187	3-star	.8407
Patrick O’Brien	QB (PRO)	6’4”	225	3-star	.8456

There are two big takeaways from this list even at this preliminary stage. The first is the commitment of Rairdon, who would be Riley’s highest-ranked recruit at Nebraska by 247Sports’ criteria. Landing the 4-star’s talent on the offensive line would be a big coup for Riley and a huge boost for Nebraska’s offense in the years to come.

The second fascinating takeaway is the commitment of dual-threat quarterback Wilson. For his own talents as a 3-star prospect alone, Wilson is a good get for Nebraska. But more interestingly, Wilson’s commitment means that Nebraska is still actively recruiting dual-threat quarterbacks. That was an open question with Riley given his pocket-passing, pro-style offense from Oregon State.

Then on Thursday, Nebraska secured a commitment from 3-star pro-style quarterback prospect O’Brien. Having both quarterbacks in the 2016 class, in addition to the five scholarship quarterbacks currently on the roster who would have eligibility in 2016, suggests that at some point there will be attrition at the position (perhaps sooner rather than later, as Nebraska is still three over the 85-scholarship limit for 2015).

Notable among the offers out for Nebraska is 4-star running back Devwah Whaley, who, according to the Omaha World-Herald, has NU in his top 10, and junior college O-line prospect Malcolm Pridgeon, who, according to the World-Herald, stands at 6'8"(!) and weighs 303 pounds.

Grade: A

Defense

At present, Nebraska only has one defensive commitment:

Name	Position	Height	Weight	Star	Composite
William Johnson	OLB	6’3”	220	3-star	.8617

The position is important, as Nebraska currently has only five scholarship linebackers outside the players signed in the 2015 class.

New defensive coordinator Mark Banker’s quarters defensive scheme relies on having three linebackers on the field most of the time, so Nebraska will have a great need for depth at linebacker going forward. Adding a junior college transfer like Johnson should help Nebraska with ready-to-play talent next year.

Defensive tackle will also be an area of particular need for Nebraska in 2016, with Kevin Williams graduating and juniors Vincent Valentine and Maliek Collins potentially leaving early for the NFL if they have big 2015 campaigns. (Collins is included in the “others considered” category of the early 2016 first-round draft projection of ESPN’s Mel Kiper.)

Of course, there’s plenty of time for Nebraska to grow its defensive haul for 2016. Linebacker/defensive end prospect Quayshon Alexander is widely expected to pick Nebraska, although Sam McKewon of the World-Herald reports that Alexander is “slowing down” his recruiting process.

Grade: C

Overall

It’s a little scary to see Nebraska rated No. 7 in the Big Ten and No. 34 overall for the 2016 class. Ending up there would be a frightening sign of things to come.

But there’s plenty to be encouraged about between the decisiveness at quarterback and the early handling of a position of desperate need on defense.

It’s way too early to panic about results, and there are enough good things happening to offer some comfort this early in the process.

Grade: A-

All measurables and prospect rankings are from 247Sports.

This column first appeared at The Double Extra Point, which you can follow on Twitter at @DblExtraPoint.