Nebraska Football’s 2027 Commits: A Letdown at Linebacker?

Sixth in a series
Previous installments: QB, RB, WR/TE, OL, DL

On Saturday, I wrote about the disappointment of the tight end class after such a promising outlook heading into January. The same can be said for the linebacker class, which also feels underwhelming.

Through five recruiting classes, Rob Dvoracek has proven to be a subpar recruiter. Outside of in-state talents like Christian Jones and Pierce Mooberry, Dvoracek has never been the primary reason behind the Huskers winning a battle for a blue-chip linebacker. Phil Simpson was the driving force behind Vincent Shavers coming to Nebraska, while Jamar Mozee and Matt Rhule were the main catalysts behind Dawson Merritt flipping from Alabama a month before the early signing period two cycles ago.

If it hadn't been for another in-state recruit in last year's class — Jase Reynolds — Dvoracek would have completely whiffed after missing out on every top target on his board. The same thing happened again this cycle.

Over the past year, several blue-chip linebackers visited Lincoln — some multiple times — and were heavily pursued by this staff, primarily Dvoracek. One by one, they committed elsewhere: Kansas City (Mo.) North's Kobe Rhymes (Missouri), Philadelphia (PA) St. Joseph’s Prep's Brandon Lockley Jr. (Oregon), Kansas City (Mo.) Blue Springs South's Prince Goldsby (Ohio State), Shakopee (Minn.) linebacker Blake Betton (Penn State), Iowa City (Iowa) Regina's Tate Wallace (Minnesota), Charlotte (N.C.) Providence Day's Tre Geathers (Florida) and Wyndmoor (Pa.) La Salle College High's Zykee Scott (North Carolina). And those are just the prospects Nebraska prioritized at various points during this recruiting cycle.

When Rob Aurich was hired, he spoke about what he wanted his linebacker room to look like. During Nebraska's Feb. 19 media availability ahead of spring practice, Aurich explained what he saw after observing bowl practices and why adding multiple linebackers from the transfer portal was such a priority.

“We wanted to be bigger. We felt like we needed to be bigger to compete against the big boys in the conference. You look at Dexter Foster, and you look at Owen Chambliss specifically — they're both 6-foot-3, 235-pound backers that can run. Paired with Vincent Shavers, there's a really dynamic group there.”

Yet neither of Nebraska's linebacker commits fits the mold Aurich described in February. Both are solid prospects in their own right, but both stand around 6-foot and project to carry roughly 220-225 pounds.

Eli Harris

Loganville (Ga.) Grayson linebacker Eli Harris saw his recruiting momentum slow somewhat this spring despite a junior season in which he recorded 67 tackles, 17 tackles for loss, 23 quarterback hurries, three sacks and an interception for one of Georgia's premier high school programs. The reason was an ACL injury that limited him throughout the offseason and will sideline him for the early portion of his senior season.

At this time last year, Harris had put himself on the radar of programs like Ohio State, Alabama and Florida while collecting early offers from Michigan, Auburn and Ole Miss. This spring, he emerged as a priority target for Pat Narduzzi and Pittsburgh, while Texas A&M and Ole Miss also remained in the mix, though he was further down their boards.

Nebraska had been monitoring Harris following his junior season but intensified its pursuit in May after several coaches attended Grayson's spring game and evaluated him in person. That attention quickly vaulted the Huskers into his top group. Soon afterward, Harris released a top three and scheduled official visits with Nebraska (June 5-7), Texas A&M (June 10-12) and Pittsburgh (June 18-20).

Harris arrived in Lincoln without a Nebraska offer as the staff continued sorting through its board, but he earned one during the visit. He took his official visit alongside three teammates: offensive linemen Jordan Agbanoma and KD Jones, who were both committed to Nebraska, as well as tight end target Joey Hunter, who was considered a heavy Husker lean and also committed following his trip.

During the visit, Aurich laid out how he envisioned using Harris in his defense. He sees Harris as a Will linebacker capable of blitzing off the edge, roaming the middle and being capable in pass coverage.

Harris announced his commitment during the official visit dinner Saturday evening, June 6, then made it public via Instagram the following morning. He canceled his remaining official visits, shutting down his recruitment, and returned to Lincoln the weekend of June 19-21 to spend more time around the coaching staff and his future teammates before the start of the recruiting dead period.

Caleb Green

Nebraska closed out — at least for now — its linebacker class by flipping uber-productive Lee's Summit (Mo.) North linebacker Caleb Green away from in-state Missouri. As a junior, Green totaled 145 tackles (83 solo), 14 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, two forced fumbles and two pass breakups.

Green originally committed to Missouri on April 26 after receiving an offer from the Tigers in January. He got on Missouri's radar following a standout performance at one of its camps in June 2025 and made several visits to Columbia before announcing his commitment.

Despite having a brother enrolled at Missouri — elite offensive tackle Cayden Green — Caleb never completely shut down his recruitment. He enjoyed a productive spring camp circuit, earning linebacker MVP honors at the Under Armour St. Louis Camp in March, where he ran a 4.66-second 40-yard dash and a 4.23 shuttle while reportedly looking comfortable in coverage.

Michigan State and Iowa State became particularly aggressive despite his Missouri commitment. Outside of those schools, most of the interest came from programs like UCF, Tulsa and Liberty.

In this case, being the younger brother of a high-profile player may have actually hurt Missouri's chances. Green often told his high school coach — former eight-year NFL veteran Elijah Lee — that he wanted to build his own identity and feared there would always be a narrative that there was mutual interest in Missouri simply because of his brother.

As Michigan State intensified its pursuit in March, Green continued the conversation even after committing. Spartans cornerbacks coach Hank Poteat visited Lee's Summit North in May and put Green through a workout that was later reviewed by the rest of the coaching staff. Co-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Max Bullough extended an offer the following week, May 15, and Green quickly scheduled an official visit for June 5-7.

Nebraska commit Caleb Green with coaches and family. | @Caleb_Green18 on X

As luck would have it, in the days leading up to Green's planned official visit, Michigan State landed commitments from a pair of fellow Nebraska linebacker targets — Matthew Brady and Henry Sakalas — who had visited East Lansing the weekend before.

Instead of taking that trip, Green postponed it until June 19-21 and chose to attend Nebraska's second Matt Rhule Football Camp on June 7, where he was one of the standout performers among roughly 200 prospects from 20 states. In addition to impressing the coaching staff during drills, he posted excellent testing numbers, including a 40-yard dash in the 4.5s.

Nebraska assistant head coach Jamar Mozee, who served as Lee's Summit North's head coach from 2016-23 and maintains deep recruiting ties throughout the Kansas City area, already had a long-standing relationship with Green and his family. This wasn't a shotgun marriage. Nebraska had evaluated Green at camp in June 2024 and brought him back for the UCLA game that November before finally extending an offer and getting him back on campus for an official visit June 12-14.

Green committed to Nebraska during that official visit, flipping from Missouri before ever making it to East Lansing. Like Harris, Green primarily played weakside linebacker in high school and projects to the Will spot in Aurich's 4-2-5 defense.

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