Top In-State Kids Don't Want To Play Football At Nebraska. Now What?

This past Saturday, I was at my home doing what I usually do on Saturday afternoons, eating, tweeting & playing Madden. I was online ordering food from Wingstop & something told me to check Twitter (You should definitely follow me by the way, @akeloroberts) so I did. Upon opening the mobile app, I refreshed the page & there I saw it.

I then went through the 5 stages of grief.

Denial: "Nah man, this can't be true. They must have omitted us by accident! Someone get Barrett Ruud on the phone!"

Anger: "Fuck them kids (Bernie Mac voice.) Devon is overrated as hell, he's just fast! He isn't a good football player!!! Deshawn's film is basic as hell, he doesn't stand out against the competition! Leave if you want to!!!!!"

Bargaining: "OK, OK, they aren't considering us now but when the NCAA lifts the recruiting dead period they will come & visit, commit to Nebraska and we are gonna go 15-0 this year & win a natty & ice cream & cake & sprinkles!!!!"

Depression: "Nebraska will never be back!!!! Why did we fire Bo??? The triple option!!! The I-Backs!!!! Blackshirts!!!!! Where is the next Grant Wistrom!!!!!! I hate Mike Riley!!!!! God punished us when he sent us Shawn Eichorst!!!! Ahman Green!!!!! Carlos Polk!!! Is this punishment for Lawrence Phillips??? Why did we leave the Big 12???? Fullback trap!!!!!!"

And finally, acceptance. The fact is, barring an act of God, the top 2 football players in the state of Nebraska for the class of 2022 will not be playing for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. It is a fact. With losing records in 5 of the last 6 seasons, we aren't particularly attractive to kids with dozens of options.

So what next? The fact is, we have to find players who want to play for the Big Red. The coaching staff have proven themselves to be solid recruiters during their tenure in Lincoln. We may not get players as highly rated as Woods & Jackson, but we can find damn good players outside the state that will love to be here & don the scarlet and cream. Bellevue West WR & Husker legacy Keagan Johnson chose the Hawkeyes over his father's alma mater in the 2021 recruiting cycle. We still ended up with a great haul at receiver that I'm sure will produce for us in their time here.

Woods & Jackson are phenomenal players. Devon is a speedy LB that would perfectly fill Jojo Domann's role. Woods is an elite athlete & superb offensive lineman that would almost certainly be a pivotal piece to the Pipeline™️. It is now time for our staff to show their talent evaluation skills & recruiting moxie and bring in some talent to replace those two guys. It hurts, but we've got to move forward. Go Big Red!

If you are depressed, there is always help to aid you in the fight. You do not have to go through the struggle alone. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals. Contact them at 1-800-273-8255.