Nebraska spring football storylines: Roster crunch, defensive reboot, young O-linemen and more

LINCOLN, Neb. — Let’s be clear, Nebraska coach Matt Rhule savors spring football.

During his 28 months with the Huskers, he has often said that this time on the calendar rates as his favorite. Even as talk has surfaced in the sport to eliminate March and April practices — or move them to the summer and adopt an NFL-style version with organized team activities — Rhule’s affinity for spring practice remains.

“I think (eliminating spring practice) would be a complete and total mistake,” Rhule said. “There’s a lot of players here that don’t know how to properly tackle at this level; don’t know how to block at this level. You coach in the NFL. You train players in college.”

It’s only the spring game for which Rhule has developed a distaste. In step with the third-year coach, Nebraska replaced its annual end-of-spring scrimmage next month with a day of food trucks and facility tours for its fans.

Mark your calendars on April 26th for The Husker Games presented by @fnbo. 🏈🏐⚽️

The action-packed day features @HuskerFootball activities in Memorial Stadium, @HuskerSoccer vs. Wyoming at Hibner Stadium + a @HuskerVB match against Kansas at Devaney.

Fans can also participate… pic.twitter.com/ykSunKDCCH

— Nebraska Huskers (@Huskers) March 6, 2025

The tackling and blocking of spring practice is alive and well in Lincoln. With the Huskers back from spring break, the first of 15 practices is set for Monday.

Rhule has added six assistant coaches, shifting and solidifying all three coordinator spots. Thirteen of the 20 recruits who signed in December and 16 transfers are on campus for spring practice.

There is plenty for the Huskers to accomplish and much for the public to learn about the direction of this team over the next month.

Here are five storylines to watch this spring:

The roster crunch is real

It’s more real now than ever, in fact, as Nebraska barrels toward its Aug. 28 opener against Cincinnati at Arrowhead Stadium. Thirty players transferred out of Nebraska after last season. Included were several productive pieces who the Huskers preferred to keep, such as defensive end Jimari Butler (transferred to LSU) and tight end Nate Boerkircher (Texas A&M)

As of Monday, the roster includes 133 players. It must get to 105 by the start of the 2025 season, pending approval on April 7 of the terms in place for the NCAA v. House Settlement.

“You have to make decisions based on production and professionalism, not potential,” Rhule said.

Reasonably, there are five-to-10 spots up for grabs, with about 35 players vying for the positions. This spring looms large in many of the decisions. To complicate matters, 18 Huskers are out with injuries or limited in spring practice — including five or six who seemingly reside near the cut line.

And that doesn’t factor in any portal additions the Huskers might bring in later.

The evaluations of new general manager Pat Stewart are sure to impact the roster cutdown. Nebraska hired Stewart from the New England Patriots and will pay him $800,000 annually, in the same class as its top assistant coaches.

Young offensive linemen must meet the moment

The injury list this spring includes O-linemen Turner Corcoran, Gunnar Gottula, Henry Lutovsky and Teddy Prochazka, all returning with experience as starters.

Nebraska added projected left tackle Elijah Pritchett from Alabama and experienced right guard Rocco Spindler from Notre Dame. Veteran Justin Evans returns as a starting option at left guard or center. Walk-on Grant Seagren fits as a solid reserve piece at tackle.

Sophomores Jason Maciejczak and Sam Sledge have played limited roles in the interior. They lead a group of second- and third-year linemen whose time to impress has arrived.

Up next: Tyler Knaak, Grant Brix, Preston Taumua, Brock Knutson, Gibson Pyle and Jake Peters.

“They’ve all waited their turn,” Rhule said. “And while there have been some big portal moves, for the most part when you look at college football, people are building their offensive lines still through recruiting.”

Are there two rotational players for 2025 in that next group? If so, it relieves pressure on the likes of Corcoran and Prochazka, who are coming back from multiple injuries.

The true look of Dana Holgorsen’s offense remains a mystery

What we saw from the Huskers against USC, Wisconsin and Iowa — even in the Pinstripe Bowl against Boston College — was a version of the Holgorsen offense limited by his lack of time to do much of anything beyond game prep and the basic learning of personnel.

That Nebraska played its best offensive game of the season on Nov. 23 against the Badgers in a 44-25 win, less than 20 days after Holgorsen joined the operation, speaks to his skill.

Expect new wrinkles and perhaps significant adjustments with an offseason for Holgorsen to get comfortable. He’ll have had plenty of time by August to work and tinker without a game on the horizon.

“He’s really a unifying force,” Rhule said of the 53-year-old former Houston and West Virginia coach. “He works with everyone.”

Holgorsen is an innovative coordinator. He’s an imaginative play caller. With the makeover of Nebraska’s pass catchers and the addition of wide receivers coach Daikiel Shorts, who played and has coached for Holgorsen, some change will be noticeable this spring.

A total defensive refresh

At every level of the defense, change is afoot.

Up front, it’s a new day without Ty Robinson, Nash Hutmacher and Butler. Enter returnees Riley Van Poppel, Elijah Jeudy and Cam Lenhardt. At linebacker, Vincent Shavers and Willis McGahee IV return after breakout seasons as true freshmen. Newcomers Marques Watson-Trent and Dasan McCullough will help remake the group. Seventh-year senior Javin Wright is a bonus if healthy.

In the secondary, the expected emergence of Donovan Jones and Mario Buford, with the portal addition of Andrew Marshall alongside Ceyair Wright at cornerback, should allow Marques Buford and Malcolm Hartzog to play their more natural safety spots next to returnee DeShon Singleton.

Perhaps the most notable change, though, involves the defensive coaching staff as John Butler takes over as coordinator. Only linebackers coach Rob Dvoracek returns to his spot from last season. Terry Bradden, Phil Simpson, Addison Williams and Phil Snow are new.

We’ll get a look at the altered dynamic soon. Parts of three practice sessions — the first set for Thursday — are open for media members to observe.

The Forging 😤#GBR x #WhatsNExt! pic.twitter.com/ld1kTLTiS4

— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFootball) March 15, 2025

The impact of Mike Ekeler

It’s far-reaching if you buy into the talk that follows Ekeler from Tennessee. The Huskers’ new special teams coordinator is here to change the culture around the Nebraska kicking game, which has been sagging for several years.

Snow vetted candidates for Rhule in the search to fill this position, and he sees Ekeler as a home-run hire. Rhule is apparently convinced, too, after he felt some skepticism initially. Rhule said that Ekeler offers a kind of balance within his coaching staff that hasn’t always existed.

Ekeler delivers constant positivity and energy. If Ekeler’s methods translate, his addition at Nebraska stands a strong chance to rank as the most important of the offseason. Thirteen of Nebraska’s first 25 games under Rhule were decided by one score. Nebraska won three of the 13.

Games at this level are won “in the margins,” Ekeler said.

He’s not interested in what happened at Nebraska on special teams before his arrival. Ekeler is instead excited, he said, about working as part of a team with excellent speed, a “phenomenal” strength program and a great leader in Rhule.

“I promise you this, the standard here is to be the best,” Ekeler said. “ So we’ve gotta giddy-up and go, or we’re going to find people to bring that are going to hit that standard.

“That’s just RLS. Real life shizzay.”

(Photo of Matt Rhule: Dylan Widger / Imagn Images)