On3 Roundtable: Location helped Nebraska land commitment of Carter Nelson

Matt Rhule has Nebraska hot on the recruiting trail but no commitment as big as the pickup of Carter Nelson. An in-state prospect the Cornhuskers had to get, national programs were flocking in to see Nelson. The tight end is a native of Ainsworth, NE, and plays eight-man football, something Nick Saban told Nelson he has never watched film on before.

Ainsworth has a population of just over 1,600 people and still, it was home to the On3 2024 Industry Rankings‘ No. 3 tight end and No. 59 overall player. That’s not something the state of Nebraska is used to seeing.

“I don’t know if there has been a more recruited athlete out of the state of Nebraska in 20+ years,” Husker Online‘s Sean Callahan said when joining the On3 Roundtable. “You have to go back to Ahman Green, Scott Frost. And when Scott Frost was recruited to Stanford, Bill Walsh, fresh off the 49ers, came in to sign him over Tom Osborne in that era. This would have been something similar — small-town Nebraska player.”

Name a big-time program, Nelson had an offer from them. He took official visits to Georgia, Notre Dame, and Penn State on top of his Nebraska one. SEC schools such as Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, and Ole Miss all received unofficials as well.

Callahan said Kirby Smart and Georgia was the biggest threat to pull Nelson out of the state. But ultimately, playing close to home earned Nebraska the victory. A four-hour car ride to Lincoln is an easier trek for Nelson’s family than getting down to Athens on a weekly basis.

“To get Carter Nelson, it gives them a true bell cow to hang their hat on,” Callahan said. “There were a lot of people that thought he was going to go to Georgia. But I think the location, just being close to home.

“Both his Mom and Dad are educators and coaches at Ainsworth. So, for them to get to games, see him play, it would have been really tough anywhere but Nebraska.”

Of the 23 Nebraska commits, six of them are in-state prospects. Three come from Class A powerhouse Bellvue West, moving over to Lincoln from Omaha to begin their college careers. A trend Rhule is looking to make popular in the coming years.

Nelson has built a relationship with a few of the other hometown commits, mainly quarterback Daniel Kaelin. If everything goes according to Rhule’s plan, Nelson might be catching passes from Kaelin in a few years’ time.

“I think Daniel Kaelin, the quarterback recruit from Bellvue West, did a really good job as well,” Callahan said. “Kind of getting the ball over the goal line, building a relationship with him over this last month.”

Thus, scoring the touchdown for Rhule in Nelson’s recruitment. A huge win for the program who will have another in-state star looking to bring the Huskers back to prominence.