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Nebraska Eyeing Edge Help After Spring Practice Period Concludes

The Big Red's latest transfer interest hints at unfinished business on the defensive line.
Trevor Tarr|
Missouri State edge DJ Wesolak remains without a home.
Missouri State edge DJ Wesolak remains without a home. | @deandrewesolak/Instagram

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Nebraska Cornhuskers

Spring practice may be over, but Nebraska’s roster evaluation clearly isn’t.

After becoming the first Division I program to open spring ball in 2026, the Huskers wrapped up the period with Saturday’s Red-White scrimmage. With 16 transfers and 12 high school additions since the end of the 2025 season, there were plenty of new faces, coaches, and schemes to evaluate.

Even so, Nebraska may not be finished making additions, particularly along the defensive line. Here’s who the Huskers are reportedly eyeing and what it says about the current state of Rob Aurich’s defensive line post-spring.

The Transfer Portal is Over, Right?

That statement is partially correct, but only after making a slight adjustment. The window for college football players to enter the transfer portal closed on Jan. 16, but individuals who have yet to find a new program are still open game on the recruiting trail.

For a program like Nebraska that has already finished up its spring training, that distinction matters. Matt Rhule and company afforded themselves the luxury of evaluating their team earlier in the process than nearly every other school in the country, which many initially thought was an attempt to flush an uninspired limp to the finish line in 2025. Though it did do that, the latest reports from Pete Nakos of On3 suggest the Big Red may also be looking to add to its ranks.

Now this staff knows what they have, at least more so than before the spring. Those 15 practices they completed from February 21 to March 28 gave them a gauge of what the team looks like heading into 2026. By now, you've likely gathered that in select position groups, NU's staff may believe that what they have isn't enough.

Who They're Eyeing

D.J. Wesolak, formerly of Missouri, Oregon State, and Missouri State, is the name to watch moving forward. Under the previous Husker staff, NU offered the at-the-time four-star defensive end in the 2022 class. The Missouri native would go on to commit to the in-state Tigers out of high school.

One year later, he would enter the transfer portal after not seeing the field, yet before he transferred to Oregon State, Rhule and company sniffed around. The 2023 offseason was a different time, both for Nebraska and even the transfer portal itself. The Big Red, of course, would not go on to bring him in, but the forming of a relationship was there. So much so that once again in 2024, the Huskers resurfaced. Yet, like the year prior, nothing ever formulated before he chose another school.

Now, heading into his final season of college football, for Wesolak, the third time could be the charm. To this point in his career, he's totaled 40 tackles and 4.5 sacks, and a buy-low, sell-high scenario could be in the works. Even so, they won't be alone in this recruitment if they so choose to proceed.

Huskers' Edge Outlook in 2026

Nebraska ended the spring with nine edge players listed on the roster, predominantly emphasizing an underclassmen group. Five of those defenders are sophomores by class, and there is not a single freshman on the team. That leaves two juniors and a pair of seniors at the position, yet three of the four are unproven products wearing the scarlet and cream.

Because of that, it's no shock the Huskers staff is exploring options still available in the transfer portal. Williams Nwaneri, Kade Pietrzak, and Cam Lenhardt were retained from last fall, but even so, their production does not stand out. Players like Willis McGahee IV and Jordan Ochoa played linebacker in 2025, and will-be junior Mac Markway came to Lincoln as a promising tight end.

That leaves UCLA transfer Anthony Jones in a group with rising junior Conor Connealy and soon-to-be sophomore Ethan Duda as players yet to play meaningful snaps on defense for the Big Red in their careers. Seeing that, the lack of returning production/experience from a group that by all means underachieved a season ago, in comparison to the players they added, doesn't appear to move the needle all that much.

Edges on Nebraska Roster:

  1. So: Williams Nwaneri
  2. So: Kade Pietrzak
  3. So: Willis McGahee IV
  4. So: Jordan Ochoa
  5. So: Ethan Duda
  6. Jr: Mac Markway
  7. Jr: Conor Connealy
  8. Sr: Cam Lenhardt
  9. Sr: Anthony Jones

What NU's Interest in Wesolak Means

In simple terms, Roy Manning's first-year group in Lincoln has a lot of question marks attached to their names. Nwaneri and Pietrzak, two of Nebraska's most promising players on the edge, stepped up a year ago, but even so, their 44 combined tackles and 4.5 sacks essentially equal Wesolak's production in 2025 alone (38 tackles, 4.5 sacks).

Rising senior Cam Lenhardt earned Honorable Mention All-American honors as a true freshman in 2023, but has yet to be as productive as he was in his first year, even with a bigger role. Markway has never played a collegiate snap on the defensive side of the ball, and Jones' final season of college football will be with his fifth school.

Others expected to contribute are linebackers by trade and will be asked to go against the best tackles in the country while weighing less than 250 pounds. Sure, they're athletic, but so too are Oregon, Indiana, Ohio State, Washington, and Iowa's left and right tackles. That being said, the Huskers' edge group doesn't scream recipe for success.

NU's interest in Wesolak likely means they're seeing it play out on the field. The Big Red failed to sign a big-name defensive end out of the transfer portal back in January, which already raised concern, but now it appears to be confirming what many already presumed. They're not good enough up front.

Do They Need Another Transfer?

Likely, yes. Losing Keona Davis to the transfer portal didn't help, and now they'll need to replace arguably their most promising player at the position with an unproven, less experienced guy. Essentially, Rhule's 2026 roster swapped Davis for someone who likely has yet to play a snap at Nebraska in their career.

The transfer portal has a give and a take, and the Huskers appear to have lost more than they gained at the most impactful position on the defensive line. Even if they were to secure Wesolak late in the year, his best collegiate season came against FCS competition, not in the Big Ten.

Ultimately, it wouldn't hurt to bring him in, but even so, how much does it help? His 4.5 sacks last fall would've led the team, but there's likely a reason he transferred down, and even more so why he's still available to be picked up. The odds he provides Nebraska what it needs are slim, yet in most cases, it's better to try. Time will tell what happens in this recruitment, but don't be surprised if the Huskers continue to provide patchwork up front post-spring.

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Trevor Tarr
TREVOR TARR

Trevor Tarr is the founder of Skers Scoop, a Nebraska football media outlet delivering original coverage through writing, graphics, and video content. He began his career in collegiate athletics at the University of South Dakota, producing media for the football team and assisting with athletic fundraising. A USD graduate with a background in journalism and sports marketing, Trevor focuses on creative, fan-driven storytelling in college football.

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