Big Ten Media Days: Luke Lindenmeyer Touts Nebraska's Offense and Tight End Room

With Nebraska football's 2026 preseason training camp less than a week away, three Huskers spoke Thursday during the Big Ten Media Days: Andrew Marshall, Justin Evans, and Luke Lindenmeyer.

Interestingly, all three have humble beginnings: Marshall was a transfer from Idaho, Evans was a two-star recruit, and Lindenmeyer was a walk-on. All three are now stars, and it was intriguing to hear what the veteran tight end, Lindenmeyer, had to say about the 2026 Huskers.

High Expectations for Luke Lindenmeyer

Matt Rhule called the tight end the "definition of grit" and even said that Lindenmeyer had the capability of being one of the "best tight ends" in the nation. Lindenmeyer caught 29 passes for 312 yards and two touchdowns as the starting tight end for the Huskers in 2025. He will enter 2026 as the definite TE1 and will come in with high expectations after a strong 2025 season.

In an interview with Avarie Howard of Hail Varsity, Lindenmeyer said about the tight end room, "We can do it all, from Eric Ingwerson, Luke Sorensen, a new freshman, we can run, we can catch, we can run through people's faces in the run game. Like, there's nothing we can't do." With Anthony Colandrea transferring from the UNLV Rebels, the need for effective tight ends in the passing game and in the running game is definitely important.

Offensively, Nebraska has the potential to be elite with its depth and talent. Lindenmeyer also said when asked to describe the offense: "Dynamic, gritty, and always focused on execution." Nebraska's lack of offensive consistency hurt them in 2025, especially in losses to the Minnesota Gophers and the USC Trojans, where Nebraska made way too many mistakes.

Against the Gophers, poor offensive line play and poor execution led to a 24-6 blowout loss. Against USC, a bad turnover and again a poor offensive line led to a 21-17 loss that ended all playoff hopes. With more consistent offense, Nebraska might easily have been 8-1 instead of 6-3 at the time of the loss against the Trojans.

Jacory Barney Jr. and Luke Lindenmeyer — Nebraska wide receiver Jacory Barney Jr. carries the ball as tight end Luke Lindenmeyer leads the way against Cincinnati last season. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Why the Offense Can Be Dangerous

When defending an opposing QB, a dual threat is much more confusing and potentially harder to defend than a pocket passer. Dylan Raiola literally posed no threat on the ground, allowing teams to rush three defenders or fewer and easily get away with a stop on a critical third down.

Now, with Colandrea, a defense can't even be conservative on 3rd-and-10. This obviously makes the offense potentially more dangerous, and combine that with a big, talented offensive line, and you have both a good passing game and a good running game. The running back room is easily the Huskers' biggest question mark, but with the amount of talent it has and the offensive line it will run behind, it shouldn't scare Husker fans too much.

When it comes to the passing game, there's no reason Colandrea shouldn't have inflated numbers with his big three of Nyziah Hunter, Jacory Barney Jr., and Kwazi Gilmer. Nebraska's WR room wasn't what it was supposed to be in 2025, but this one is better with the addition of Gilmer and the depth it offers. Not to mention, the tight ends also give Colandrea some nice options.

Through the air, Nebraska will be dangerous, even without Raiola, who was supposed to be the key to it all for Nebraska. Now, the offense will fall into the hands of Colandrea, but the good news is simple: Colandrea could easily be better than Raiola for Nebraska. After all, Nebraska has had more success with dual-threat QBs in the past.

Lindenmeyer, Marshall, and Evans all represent some pretty cool stories for the Huskers. But even cooler is the fact that each is a critical star for the Huskers. The way Lindenmeyer spoke about the tight end room is good news for Husker fans who may have their doubts about the offense. But, simply put, the only reason this offense should be amazing isn't its talent. The real question is: what can Matt Rhule do with the most talent he's ever had in Lincoln?

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