This is the third installment of ‘Getting to 105’. In the first two installments I covered the defensive line and the linebackers. As I stated in the other articles, to get to 105 you must first determine how many players are needed at each position. I decided on the following, 16 defensive linemen, 14 linebackers, and 20 defensive backs for a total of (50).
Previously I discussed new defensive line coach Terry Bradden and linebacker coaches Rob Dvoracek and Phil Simpson. Well, you can’t talk about defensive backs without talking about John Butler, Addison Williams and even Evan Cooper. Addison Williams is the new defensive backs coach and comes to Nebraska from UCF, where he was the defensive coordinator in 2023 and 2024. Including Phil Snow, that makes him the fourth coach on this staff with defensive coordinator experience.
When you talk about any of Rhule’s staff there are always dots to connect. The same is true with Butler and Addison. They worked together at South Carolina under Stever Spurrier. Butler was the special teams/linebackers coach and Williams was a graduate assistant on defense. You can bet Butler has kept an eye on Willimas’s career.
With Butler and Wiliams running the room one can already see a shift in recruiting. Size looks to be something they are targeting as all six guys they added through recruiting and the portal are over six foot and close to two hundred pounds. We’ve seen teams over the last two years pick on some of Nebraska’s smaller defensive backs. If there is any targeting done in the future it won’t be due to size.
When Evan Cooper was here, he didn’t so much recruit defensive backs as he did talent. Which wasn’t an issue when you could carry 150 players and had time to develop. Under Cooper we saw guys like Jaidyn Doss and Brice Truner shift back and forth between receiver and defensive back, looking for the position that best suited them. With the 105-man roster limit there is no longer time for that. We’ve already seen Rhule’s desire to be a developmental program shift. Moving forward you’ll see Butler and Willimas recruit true cornerbacks and safeties. Guys that can come in ready to play a position they’ve already excelled at.
Cooper loaded up on defensive backs while here, he brought in over 15 guys in two recruiting cycles. The room is loaded with bodies. Now it’s up to Butler and Williams to sort through the talent. We will also see how well Butler and Willimas can retain players. Retaining players on your roster is now as critical as recruiting them.
As always, I won’t spend much time on guys that are gone. The Huskers lost 2 players to graduation, Tommi Hill and Isaac Gifford. They had 5 players enter the transfer portal, Syncere Safeeullah, Koby Bretz, Dwight Bootle II, Mason Jones, and Cooper Wilson.
The Huskers added 4 high school players and 3 transfer portal players to match the 7 that are gone. Additions are as follows:
Recruits
Caden VerMass, 6’0”, 196lbs, Omaha, NE
Tanner Terch, 6’2”, 185lbs, Littleton, CO
Jeremiah Jones, 6’4”, 200lbs, Murray, KY
Bryson Webber, 6’3”, 175lbs, Missouri City, TX
Portal Players
Andrew Marshall, 6’0”, 185lbs, Sr, Idaho
Justin Rhett, 6’2”, 200lbs, So, Georgia
Jamir Conn, 6’0” 180lbs, Jr, Southern Illinois
After losses and additions, the Huskers stand at 31 defensive backs. By my numbers, they need to get to 20. Of the 31 players on the roster there are 7 seniors, 2 juniors, 8 sophomores, 10 redshirt freshmen, and 4 true freshmen. As for experience, 4 of the 6 seniors, Singleton, Wright, Buford, and Hartzog have started and played in multiple games. Both juniors, Conn and Marshall, are transfer portal additions with Marshall more than likely a game one starter. The seven newcomers will have to compete to make the roster. If all seven make the roster, that leaves 13 available spots for the 24 players listed below.
Current Roster
Ceyair Wright, 6’0”, 180lbs, Sr |
Blye Hill, 6’4”, 190lbs, So
Larry Tarver Jr, 5’10”, 175lbs, RFr
Rahmir Stewart, 5’11”, 210lbs, So
Braylan Prude, 6’4”, 200, Jr
Caleb Benning, 5’11”, 200lbs, RFr
Rex Guthrie, 6’1”, 200lbs, RFr
Marques Buford Jr, 5’11”, 190lbs, Sr
Mario Buford, 6’0”, 175lbs, So
DeShon Singleton, 6’3”, 210lbs, Sr
Malcolm Hartzog Jr, 5’9”, 180lbs, Sr
Donovan Jones, 6’1”, 195lbs, So
Amare Sanders, 6’1”, 175lbs, RFr
Evan Taylor, 6’2”, 185lbs, RFr
Jeremiah Charles, 6’0”, 170lbs, So
Brice Turner, 6’0”, 185lbs, So
Jaidyn Doss, 6’0”, 195lbs, So
D’Andre Barnes,6’0”, 195lbs, So
Kahmir Prescott, 6’1”, 200lbs, RFr
Preston Okafor, 6’2”, 180lbs, RFr
Thomas D’Onofrio, 6’1”, 185lbs, RFr
Derek Branch, 5’11”, 195lbs, Sr
Taveon Thompson, 6’3”, 215lbs, Sr
Blake Clossman, 5’9”, 195lbs, Sr
If the season were to start today, my 2-deep would appear as follows:
CB – Ceyair Wright, 6’0”, 180lbs, Sr – Blye Hill, 6’4”, 190lbs, So
ROV – DeShon Singleton, 6’3”, 210lbs, Sr – Caleb Benning, 5’11”, 200lbs, RFr
S – Andrew Marshall, 6’0”, 185lbs, Sr – Marques Buford Jr., 5’11”, 190lbs, Sr
S – Rahmir Stewart, 5’11”, 210lbs, So – Malcolm Hartzog Jr, 5’9”, 180lbs, Sr
CB – Donovan Jones, 6’1”, 195lbs, So – Justin Rhett, 6’2”, 200lbs, So
The return of DeShon Singleton for a seventh season is big. Singleton was the second leading tackler for the Blackshirts last season with 71 total tackles, 1 interception, and 1 fumble recovery. In my estimation Singleton plays the run better than the pass. Does that mean he’ll move to Rover? If you noticed, that’s where I projected him to start on my 2-deep. Speaking of Singlton, you may have noticed I didn’t list Marquis Groves-Killebrew as a transfer portal addition. Groves-Killebrew, who had committed to Nebraska decided to remain at Arizona. The announcement of Singlton returning may have played a role in his decision.
I also anticipate transfer portal edition Andrew Marshall to be a starter. Coming from Idaho, there was some question about the competition he played against. However, Marshall had what may have been his best game of the season against former five-star Oregon receiver Evan Stewart, holding Stewart to 3 catches for 15 yards while making 9 solo tackles. The real hidden gem in Marshall is he’s a talented kick returner as well. That’s something every Husker fan can get excited about.
With 31 players in the defensive back room, one must believe the coaching staff has recruited over some of the current roster. The question is, how many of those guys will be recent additions? It will tell you a lot about the talent level in the defensive back room if new additions don’t see a path to playing time and jump back into the portal. There is competition at every position on defense, but the competition in the defensive back room will be fierce. Once again, that’s a good thing.
As I previously mentioned, there is some good talent that the coaches aren’t going to be excited to let go. With so many guys in this room it wouldn’t be a surprise if someone moves to linebacker. We’ve seen it happen in the past with Bullock and Wright.
Up next, I’ll move to offense and start with the offensive line. A position that is young, inexperienced and has several questions.
Go to Off The Cob for more on Husker football.