Nebraska Football’s 2027 Commits: Wideouts and Tight Ends

Third in a series

Nebraska had a precarious recruiting cycle trying to pair quarterback Trae Taylor with blue-chip receivers.

The Huskers held a brief commitment from Thomasville (Ga.) Thomas County Central four-star receiver Jabari Watkins last fall, but Watkins never visited Lincoln and decommitted in mid-December, just three months after pledging to Nebraska. The staff also landed a commitment from Miami (Fla.) Palmetto speedster Kaden Howard on March 20, roughly three weeks after he visited campus for the first time to watch a spring practice. Howard never shut down his recruitment, however, and continued taking visits, including trips to Miami and Central Florida, before flipping to Georgia Tech on June 7 following his official visit. By then, the decision to part ways had become mutual.

Tay Ellis

The class did get off to a promising start.

Wide receivers coach Daikiel Shorts secured an early commitment from Fort Worth (Tex.) Crowley standout Tay Ellis, a priority target since receiving his Nebraska offer on Jan. 17, 2024. Ellis committed to the Huskers over Texas, Texas A&M and Ohio State just days after making his first visit to Lincoln last November to attend Nebraska's Blackout game against USC.

He returned multiple times during the spring and was on campus for Junior Day and the Red-White spring game while continuing to strengthen his relationship with the coaching staff.

Miami made a strong push to flip Ellis this spring, inviting him to its "Spring Ball Splash" pool party on April 4. Considering how vocal Ellis had been about Nebraska since committing — along with his plans to spend his senior season at Millard South alongside Trae Taylor — the possibility of another visit caught many by surprise.

Wide receiver Tay Ellis was among the recruits at the 2026 Nebraska football spring game. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Ellis ultimately made the trip to Miami, but it proved to be little more than due diligence.

Not long afterward, he announced he had shut down his recruitment and would take no additional visits, reaffirming his commitment to Nebraska. Texas A&M, SMU and several other regional programs also remained in contact throughout the process, but Ellis never wavered.

Ahead of teaming with Taylor this fall at Millard South, Ellis joined 24K's "Cold Hearts" 7-on-7 team, giving Nebraska's future quarterback and one of his future receivers another opportunity to continue building chemistry before arriving in Lincoln. Ellis has also become one of the Huskers' most active peer recruiters on social media, helping Nebraska pursue the rest of its 2027 class.

Justyn Lindsay

The staff also added a high-upside prospect in Blue Springs (Mo.) receiver Justyn Lindsay.

Lindsay first emerged on Nebraska's radar around this time last year during a Friday Night Lights camp, where he caught passes from Trae Taylor. The Huskers immediately extended the first scholarship offer of his recruitment following a standout performance. He returned in September to watch Nebraska take on Michigan and appeared poised to become one of the staff's top receiver targets in the 2027 class.

After Iowa offered a few days later and additional Power Four programs began taking notice, Lindsay's recruiting momentum slowed following a junior season in which he totaled 22 receptions for 352 yards and seven touchdowns. Lindsay spent his first two years at Blue Springs (Mo.) South, transferred to Lee's Summit (Mo.) North for his junior season and will finish his prep career at Blue Springs (Mo.).

Despite the modest production, Nebraska continued to monitor and maintain dialog.

Lindsay returned to Lincoln in June to camp in front of the coaching staff once again after continuing to flash over the past year in camp settings and on the 7-on-7 circuit. Following another impressive showing on June 7, the Huskers scheduled an official visit for June 12-14 and green-lit his commitment, which he made during the visit.

The 6-foot-3 Lindsay possesses all the physical tools to become an outstanding player, but he'll likely need time to develop under Daikiel Shorts. A standout athlete, Lindsay also ran on Blue Springs' Class 5 state-qualifying 4x200-meter relay team, posting a 21.8-second split as the Wildcats finished fourth this spring.

Khalil Taylor

Nebraska closed out its receiver class by landing coveted Gibsonia (Penn.) Pine-Richland standout Khalil Taylor, a consensus four-star recruit ranked No. 71 nationally by ESPN, No. 108 by Rivals and No. 128 by 247Sports.

More importantly, his commitment quieted growing concerns about Nebraska's ability to surround Trae Taylor with elite receiving talent.

The Huskers ultimately beat hometown Penn State for his commitment.

Taylor originally committed to the Nittany Lions in March 2025 but reopened his recruitment after James Franklin was dismissed in mid-October. Georgia, Oregon and Texas A&M quickly entered the picture, while Ohio State, Michigan, Florida State and Nebraska all intensified their pursuit. Taylor visited Ohio State immediately after decommitting before making his way to Lincoln to watch Nebraska defeat Northwestern on Oct. 25.

Ryan Day and Khalil Taylor — Khalil Taylor with Ohio State head coach Ryan Day. | @KhalilTaylor08 on X

When coach Matt Campbell arrived at Penn State in December, he immediately re-offered Taylor and made him a priority. Penn State quickly regained momentum. Taylor visited Happy Valley nearly 20 times throughout his recruitment, underscoring just how difficult it would be to pull him away from home.

Nebraska got Taylor back on campus March 7 for a multi-day visit before securing an official visit for June 12-14. The staff remained in constant contact, gradually closing the gap on Penn State.

After visiting Happy Valley June 5-7, Taylor canceled his remaining official visits and appeared on the verge of recommitting to Penn State. Instead, he honored his longtime plan to announce his decision on July 6 in memory of his cousin, Kevin McKenzie, who was killed in a shooting a year earlier.

Ironically, after canceling his initial official visit to Nebraska, Taylor spent that same weekend competing alongside Trae Taylor at the OT7 Finals in Los Angeles.

Nebraska stayed persistent.

Matt Rhule, Daikiel Shorts and assistant director of player personnel Anthony Johnson continued pressing, while Trae Taylor's relentless peer recruiting helped convince Khalil to give Nebraska one final look.

Khalil Taylor in uniform — Wide receiver Khalil Taylor | @KhalilTaylor08

The Huskers brought him back to Lincoln for the final official visit weekend before the recruiting dead period, June 19-21. Alabama also remained firmly involved, but Taylor canceled a planned trip to Tuscaloosa in order to return to Lincoln instead.

Entering that visit, Penn State recruiting sites unanimously considered Taylor to be a lock to return to the Nittany Lions.

Nebraska rolled out the red carpet.

As the only uncommitted official visitor on campus, Taylor had the full attention of the coaching staff while spending time with six of Nebraska's longest-standing commits and more than 10 additional members of the 2027 class who returned for unofficial visits. The relationships within Nebraska's tightly knit recruiting class ultimately proved decisive.

By the time Taylor left Lincoln, multiple sources expressed confidence that Nebraska had taken control of the recruitment.

Colorado attempted one final push after hosting Taylor for an official visit May 15-17, presenting a significant NIL package shortly before his commitment date. It wasn't enough. Taylor announced his commitment to Nebraska live with Josh Newberg of On3/Rivals.

Taylor was one of Nebraska's top 2027 receiver targets ever since the program extended him just his fourth scholarship offer on Nov. 2, 2023. He would eventually collect more than 30 offers, including Alabama, Indiana, Miami, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, UCLA, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin and several other Power Four programs.

Khalil Taylor posing in Nebraska uniform and ballcap — Khalil Taylor is regarded as the No. 87 overall prospect in the 2027 recruiting class, per the 247Sports Composite rankings. | @kt2woo/Instagram

Taylor, who spent his first two years at Pittsburgh (Pa.) Seton LaSalle before transferring to Pine-Richland, is one of the nation's most versatile athletes. In addition to starring at receiver, he is a dangerous return specialist and has multiple kick and punt return touchdowns to his credit. He's also recorded several pick-sixes as a defensive back, with programs such as Alabama initially recruiting him to play safety.

Daikiel Shorts has compared Taylor to former pupil and Green Bay Packers 2025 first-round pick Matthew Golden, and the comparison seems apt when looking at his tape.

Taylor is also an accomplished sprinter with personal bests of 10.83 seconds in the 100 meters and 21.95 in the 200. He has consistently run in the low 4.4s at camps dating back to his sophomore season.

Even with Nebraska having a deep and talented receiver room that graduates only Janiran Bonner, Taylor is talented enough to compete for a role immediately upon arriving in Lincoln.

One word of caution, though.

A July commitment is significant, but it's not final. Penn State, Alabama, Georgia and Colorado aren't likely to concede this recruitment before December's signing period.

Tight end pursuit isn’t over

Tight end recruiting didn't unfold the way Nebraska envisioned, especially after the momentum the staff built during the winter.

The Huskers appeared to be in the driver's seat for Ahmad Hudson — a recruitment that still isn't over — and were also viewed as the favorites for Pierre (S.D.) T.F. Riggs consensus four-star Cooper Terwilliger, who visited Lincoln multiple times and grew up a Nebraska fan. His mother was raised in Lincoln and still has family in the state.

Instead, Marcus Satterfield spent much of the spring searching for viable contingency plans at a position that needs reinforcements.

Returning starter Luke Lindenmeyer exhausts his eligibility after the upcoming season, while Carter Nelson has battled injuries throughout his first two years that have prevented him from participating in spring practice. The staff is high on true freshman Luke Sorensen, and his development this fall could alter the long-term outlook, but even with those two in the fold, the room remains heavily inexperienced.

Joey Hunter

Nebraska ultimately landed Loganville (Ga.) Grayson tight end Joey Hunter, one of four Rams teammates committed to the Huskers.

A traditional in-line tight end, Hunter has produced little as a receiver but is regarded as one of the better blocking tight ends in the region with the physical tools to become a viable receiving threat. Nebraska zeroed in on him this spring after extending an offer May 9 and brought him to Lincoln for an official visit June 5-7 alongside his teammates.

Offensive line coach Geep Wade initially stopped by Grayson to visit Nebraska's offensive line commits but also spent time evaluating Hunter. Satterfield later followed with an in-home visit before Hunter committed during his official visit over Georgia Tech, NC State, Pittsburgh and Syracuse.

Nebraska also extended a late offer to Las Vegas (Nev.) Bishop Gorman tight end Seager Milholen after Satterfield visited him in mid-May. Milholen received his offer June 1 and was in Lincoln just days later for Nebraska's team camp. The two sides initially scheduled an official visit for June 19-21, but Nebraska ultimately chose to move in another direction before that trip took place.

Now committed to Colorado State, Milholen remains a name worth monitoring should Nebraska miss on Ahmad Hudson later in the cycle.

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