Will the Husker D-line Make a Beeline for Success In ’23?

Nebraska assistant Terrance Knighton must find a way to coach his mostly green group of players into a winning force this fall.

There's no point in belaboring the fact that Nebraska's defense was one of the worst last season. First year D-line coach Terrance Knighton is going to earn every bit of his paycheck this fall when he tries to coach up a group of mostly inexperienced players. They'll need to be fast learners if they hope to learn all the nuances of a brand new 3-3-5 defense. They also must learn how to stop offenses like that of Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan and Wisconsin.

D-line

Coach: Terrance Knighton (First year at Nebraska)

Nose Tackles

The Husker NT position has the most talent and experience this fall. Ty Robinson 6-6, 310 (JR) and Nash Hutmacher 6-4, 330 (JR) are two of the bright spots. The other NTs include Ru' Quan Buckley 6-6, 290 and true freshman Riley Van Poppel 6-5, 275. Neither has any career starts.

Defensive Tackles

Much of the green can be found in the DT room. Cameron Lenhardt 6-3, 245 from the IMG Academy in Florida is a freshman and Elijah Jeudy 6-3, 300 (SO) is a transfer from Texas A&M. The coaches see a lot of potential in both, but those two players are still unproven at Nebraska. To make matters worse, Brodie Tagaloa 6-3, 260 (RSFR) has been ruled out this fall due to an injury he sustained in a one car accident in the off season.

Defensive Ends

At DE, Princewill Umanmielen 6-3, 245 (FR) may find himself in a starting role even though he is just a freshman. Converted tight end A.J. Rollins 6-6, 220 (SO) might be another player to see action this fall. Once again, neither has even one career start.

Blaise Gunnerson 6-6, 250 (SO) and JUCO transfer Kai Wallin 6-5, 235 (SO) should provide depth and experience.

If the D-line can somehow become formidable this fall, Coach Knighton should get a huge pay increase.

Linebackers

Coach: Rob Dvoracek (First year at Nebraska)

Outside Linebackers

This room has some talent, but three of players are first-year transfers: MJ Sherman 6-3, 250 (JR) from the University of Georgia, Chief Borders 6-4, 250 (JR) from Florida and Jimari Butler (SO) from Florida State.

Middle Linebackers

At MLB, the leader of the pack is Luke Reimer 6-1, 225 (SR) who returns for his final year at Nebraska. Luke led the Huskers last year in tackles. 86 (Total), 48 (Assited) and 38 (Solo). He is the heart and soul of the Husker defense. He'll likely be backed up by John Bullock 6-0, 210 (JR) and Mikai Gbayor 6-2, 220 (SO).

Weakside (Jack) Linebackers

The WLB spot is led by Nick Henrich 6-3, 225 (JR). Last year, his season was cut short by yet another injury. Despite that setback, he managed to make a number of tackles: 37 (Total), 2 (Assisted) and 15 (Solo).

Other linebackers who might see action this fall include Grant Buda 6-0, 205 (SO), Grant Tagge 6-1, 200 (JR) and newcomer Maverick Noonan 6-3, 245 (FR).

The Huskers did lose a couple of players during the offseason including Ernest Hausman (54-18-36), who transferred to Michigan and Eteva Mauga-Clements (39-23-16) who used up his eligibility.

How ’Bout Them Huskers

The top story Will and I discuss is Oregon and Washington joining the Big Ten. We also talk about the demise of the Pac 12 conference and what impact that might have on the game of college football. In addition, we review the Husker linebacker room.