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Three & Out: Big visit weekends, OV strategy & baseball signee reactions


HuskerOnline.com‘s feature in which recruiting analysts Nate Clouse and Mike Matya give their weekly takes on topical issues concerning Nebraska football, baseball and recruiting.

Today we run our next installment of “Three and Out.”

Two big recruiting weekends developing

There’s a mad scramble going on by college football programs across the country to get visitors locked in for after June 1 when the NCAA recruiting dead period is set to expire.

It’s been a long year or so without any unofficial or official visits to college campuses for football recruits, and it’s going to be important to get as many prospects as possible to visit in a short amount of time.

At this point, you don’t know if the NCAA is going to allow any type of recruiting visits whatsoever during the summer months of July and August. You’re going to have to “make hay while the sun shines,” as the saying goes.

What we’ve been able to determine so far through confirmations is that two upcoming weekends will be big recruiting events for the Nebraska coaching and recruiting staff.

We don’t have a clear picture yet as to how many recruits are going to attend Saturday’s open practice in Memorial Stadium, but there is an impressive group of visitors building for the May 1 Red-White spring game.

Those visits for the spring game will not technically be unofficial visits, but instead recruits attending the game just like the rest of the general public. Among those visiting players will be two of Nebraska’s top three quarterback targets for this 2022 class, along with perhaps their top quarterback target for the Class of 2023.

Nebraska linebacker commit Ernest Hausmann will also be in attendance, as well as Hays, Kansas teammates Jaren Kanak and Gavin Meyers.

It looks as if June 4 will be the first allowable official visit recruiting weekend in well over a calendar year, and the Cornhusker coaches are stacking officials with several of their top prospects.

We have already confirmed five official visits for that weekend, with four of them being defensive recruits and the fifth an athlete who could play on the defensive side of the ball. There are undoubtedly other official visits for that first weekend of June in the works right now, and we will add those as they are confirmed.

Keep referring to our 2021 Spring & Summer visitors list pinned to the top of RSS for our confirmed list of visitors to Lincoln throughout the coming weeks.

– Mike Matya

2022 cornerback Mumu Bin-Wahad out of Georgia is one of the latest prospects to have set up an official visit with the Huskers in June.

2022 cornerback Mumu Bin-Wahad out of Georgia is one of the latest prospects to have set up an official visit with the Huskers in June. (Rivals.com)

Official visitor strategy 

After well over a year, the end of the recruiting dead period is officially happening at the end of May. That means official visits will be able to begin in June and the Huskers are wasting no time setting those up with some of their top targets.

There’s a certain level of strategy that is involved when it comes to setting up these official visits though. The Huskers have to walk a thin line of whether to bring in prospects as soon as they possibly can in June or hold off and wait until the fall when a player can visit for a home football game. So far we’ve not seen too many, or any at all, of the latter.

For the most part, it seems as though Nebraska is trying to secure official visits from a lot of their highly valued targets for June. Most of the players that we have been able to confirm are taking official visits to Lincoln once the dead period is lifted are prospects that are already very high on the Big Red and either have them as a leader or as one of their top favorites.

A lot of these prospects seem to fall into the category of needing validation that the Huskers’ program, coaching staff, facilities and city of Lincoln are what they think it is before they go ahead and make a decision. I would fully expect most of the confirmed official visitors to be players that end up making a decision before the start of the football season next fall.

If a prospect falls into that category you obviously don’t want to want around and miss out on a chance to have brought them in for an official visit during the month of June. So, for the time being, I believe that we’ll continue to see a flurry of official visits being set up for June while the in-season official visits will likely start to be confirmed once we actually get into the summer months.

– Nate Clouse

Almost half way through the season, Nebraska remains in 1st place in the conference baseball standings.

Almost half way through the season, Nebraska remains in 1st place in the conference baseball standings.

Baseball signees react to Nebraska’s season

The Nebraska Cornhusker baseball team has not lost a conference series so far in this 2021 season, and they are currently in 1st place in the Big Ten standings. The Huskers are also starting to appear in some of the national polls for the first time in quite a while.

Several of the Huskers’ freshmen players have been making significant contributions to the team’s success. The Big Red’s Class of 2021 signees is an impressive group of potential contributors next season, and they have been following Nebraska’s progress closely.

HuskerOnline.com caught up with those incoming scholarship prospects to get their thoughts on NU’s season through 21 games.

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“They are doing really good right now, coach Bolt has them working as one and playing their best baseball. Everything from their offense to the defense and pitching is at its best. They have put in the work, and now they are showing everyone that they aren’t messing around.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“High school is good. We are 25-0. And as of right now, on the mound in 26 innings, I have 42 strikeouts, 9 hits given up, walked 4 and given up 1 run. I play first a little but I’m mostly just focusing on pitching.”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“It’s super great to see! That team can really hit. I can’t wait to get to campus and be a part it. The coaching staff is doing a great job at growing the program back to being College World Series contenders in years to come.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“Due to fall sports being moved to spring, our season hasn’t started yet. We start in a couple weeks.”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“I think it’s something that people who are a part of the program aren’t surprised by. The culture being developed by the great coaching staff is a winning one, and it’s being shown through this first half of the season. I think it shows the hard work of the team and is super exciting for Nebraska.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

In 17 games, the right-handed pitching Christo has thrown 20 innings with 40 strikeouts and 11 walks. He is 2-1 with a 0.70 ERA. He has only given up seven hits so far this season. At the plate, he is batting .356 with nine extra-base hits and 25 RBI. He has a slugging percentage of .711.

How much interest have you been getting from MLB scouts?

“As of now, it’s just been a lot of casual convos. They just wanna know when I’m pitching and beyond that there’s not a ton of communication.”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“It gets me even more excited to start playing with Nebraska across my chest. It shows how much work they put in during the offseason and that the boys have been eager to play following a canceled season. Coach Bolt and the assistant coaches did a great job preparing them and I know it’s just getting started for them!”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“I try not to look at statistics while I’m in season, but I would say things have been going great offensively and on the mound. Our team is just scratching the surface and to show everyone who doubted us how good we really are feels great, too. I am surrounded by awesome teammates and coaches that all have the same winning mindset and we are primed to do big things.”

How much interest have you been getting from MLB scouts?

“I know a lot of teams have been in to watch me pitch. Right now, though, I am focused on winning a state championship and then getting ready to go to Nebraska.”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“I think the boys are playing top tier ball right now and showing everyone what they got to say. Can not wait to get down there and play with them next season and be a part of such an awesome atmosphere.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“Haven’t got to start our season yet. We just entered another month-long lockdown.”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“I am pretty excited about it. I have been able to watch a lot of games on BTN+ and have gone to two at Haymarket and I love the way the team plays. They all play really hard and seem to be having tons of fun. I love seeing them at the top of the standings and can’t wait to get down to Lincoln.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“I actually have not been playing. I fractured my thumb in the off-season and got my cast off March 29. Playing in my first game Monday [April 12].”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“I think it’s super exciting especially watching them and seeing all the guys work together. I can’t wait for next year.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“I wasn’t cleared to play spring baseball. I tore my ACL in football.”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“It’s awesome to see the guys back out on the field with a lot of fight, and to be able to attend games again with my last year as a spectator. They are right where they expected to be.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“My last season at Southwest is going good. I’ve added a new weapon to the offense, and it’s getting walked. I’ve also added some speed, so that helps on the base paths. Unfortunately, I do not have any stats.”

What are your thoughts on Nebraska’s season so far?

“They’re off to a good start. There’s a long ways to go, but I like the direction they’re going in for sure. I like their offense and the energy they bring. Max (Anderson) is doing a terrific job, and it just shows that the better player is going to play, even if you’re a freshman. You’re going to get a chance to play and show your abilities.”

How has your spring high school season been going for you?

“We’re 10-7. We’ve had a couple of rough games recently, but overall we’re doing pretty solid. I know I have quite a few doubles, like 16 doubles or something like that.”

– Mike Matya



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