Lineman in 2008 Recruiting Class Could Be Championship Group
5 comments so far
April 9, 2007 by
You could say great execution by quarterbacks is a common element among championship teams, but another one is outstanding lineman. Take any Husker national championship team, and you’ll find All-American offensive linemen.
Despite my genuine enthusiasm for how recruiting has gone under Callahan, for much of 2006 I feared that Nebraska wasn’t bringing in enough top lineman. I would share my concern with other BRN staffers only to get a polite, “the sky aint falling Henny-Penny, calm down”. I’m probably especially prone to worry about this because of the O-line hell that Nebraska fell into under Solich. The Huskers went from having some of the best offensive lines in the country, to having a group that could not execute against the better teams in the Big 12.
With only a short time to recruit in 2004, Callahan did an admirable job of getting guys like Lydon Murtha, Andy Christensen, and Mike Huff. But only Murtha had the All-American pedigree and so far he hasn’t lived up to it.
The class of 2005 had a pair of highly rated offensive line recruits in Craig Roark and Rodney Picou. But Picou left the program and Roark was moved to the defensive line. Jacob Hickman remains but on paper he doesn’t look like an All-American. Matt Slauson, a late addition to the 2005 class definitely has standout potential, but he also doesn’t appear to be the second coming of Will Shields either.
The class of 2006 included Carl Nicks , a top-rated junior college player and transfer Chad Roark who was also highly rated. But Nicks has only one year left at Nebraska and Roark left with an injury. D.J. Jones was the blue-chipper among a good crop of prep lineman but as the Huskers entered the 2007 recruiting season he appeared to be perhaps the only All-American type talent on the roster.
I was encouraged by the recruitment of Jaivorio Burkes in the class of 2007, along with Marcel Jones who was another quality prospect. But I still wasn’t feeling quite as though I’d seen the Pipeline rebuilt. Nebraska also missed out on an Omaha talent in Harland Gunn.
Now I look at the good Easter weekend news that Nebraska has added a third lineman (Elkhorn’s 6’5” 300-lbs. Trevor Robinson) to the class of 2008 that is listed among the early 100 best football recruits in the nation. That sounds like a pipeline! It may be 2011 or 2012 before we really get to see this latest group dominate, but at least we’re now seeing these kind of lineman accumulate in the program.
If you asked me if I thought Nebraska was approaching national championship caliber talent before Burkes and the early class of 2008 committed, I wouldn’t have been able to give a very confident yes. With these guys now coming on board, it becomes much easier to foresee. There are no guarantees, of course. But these are the types of recruits that a Matt Leinart or Vince Young got to play behind and now we’ll see future Nebraska quarterbacks (like maybe Patrick Witt) operating behind a group of guys with comparable upside. The 2000’s may not have been Nebraska’s best decade, but the 2010’s are looking promising.
Related: Read Husker Mike's take
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Andrew Apr 09 07
Got to love them big ole hog mollies!
Once again Steve I am in total agrement with you, not to be cliche, but it all starts up front!
Like to give a shout out to all the boys from Life In the Red! ZE, Pacer, Flim Flam Fan! Ze your computer most be worn out with all them post! By the way this is Navy Sker!
darren Apr 09 07
The offensive line momentum they have going now has me very encouraged.
Take a class with DJ Jones, Williams and Barrett, follow it up with Burkes (and Marcel Jones) and you start to see a nice young core of offensive line talent. Yes Steve, the first true "core" since BC arrived. Sigh...
But, this group of big boys that is potentially coming in 2008 - jeez, they are something. These are three of the best 100 players in the country, regardless of position. THAT is saying something.
If those recent classes got a flame started, these guys add massive fuel to the fire.
darren Apr 09 07
While we're talking O-line - I think this year we may turn a corner and see NU being able to control the LOS against just about anyone (not just the ISU's of the world). I offer this comment from Joe Ganz via the LJS...
- Ganz marvels at the size of Nebraska’s first-string offensive line, which includes 6-5, 330-pound Carl Nicks, 6-5, 340-pound Matt Slauson and 6-7, 305-pound Lydon Murtha. “My freshman year, they weren’t that big,” Ganz said. “I mean, I thought they were big because I was coming out of high school. But now I look at how big these guys are. ... Now, we’ve got Slauson and those guys blocking out the sun.” -
Jeremy in MPLS Apr 09 07
One thing I love about these three linemen isn't only their personal stats like height, weight and pedigree (Dean Steinkuhler's two sons on the squad. Dean Steinkuhler himself! The pride of all Burr, NE!), but also the TIMING of their commitment. What a recruiting tool!
"Yes indeed (Insert touted RB/QB/WR name here), if you matriculate at Good Ol Nebraska U, you'll be behind the best-assembled group of OL commits in the nation this season."
You talk about the second coming of Will Shields, Steve. We've got the LITERAL second coming of Dean Steinkuhler!
Bob Apr 11 07
While I sat in the Rose Bowl and watched the Huskers get blown out by Miami, it was obvious the Huskers' talent level was far below Miami's. Solich could not recruit so I am glad to see Callahan and his staff are getting some quality people each year. Now I have hope for the future.