Nebraska Recruiting: 2023 walk-on class breakdown
The Nebraska recruiting class was announced on Wednesday by head coach Matt Rhule. In that class was four different announced walk-on player.
Here is a complete breakdown of the Huskers walk-on recruiting class announced this past week. The question now is how many more walk-ons will they add to the program by August?
RELATED – Nebraska recruiting class breakdown – Offense
2023 Nebraska walk-on class breakdown
HOL take: Elkhorn South’s Cole Ballard is the exact type of in-state player Nebraska needs to target as a walk-on, especially in the NIL era. There are so many local NIL opportunities that NU should be able to make it work for players like Ballard.
The 6-foot, 190-pound Ballard was an All-Nebraska and Super-State selection in 2022. He rushed for 1,491 yards, had 275 yards receiving, and scored 38 total touchdowns. He tied a state record this past season with seven touchdowns in a game, and he was Class A’s leading scorer.
As a junior, Ballard had 1,208 yards rushing and 23 touchdowns, and 830 yards and 16 touchdowns as a sophomore. Besides football, Ballard also plays basketball and track at Elkhorn South.
HOL take: Like Ballard, you won’t find a much more productive player in the Cass A ranks than Gretna linebacker Korver Demma.
Over the last two seasons, Demma racked up 132 total tackles, 23 sacks and 44 tackles for loss. He also had six pass breakups, three forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, two blocked punts, two interceptions and two defensive touchdowns. He was a first-team all-state selection.
Demma competes in both wrestling and track as well. His mother Megan played volleyball at Nebraska and lettered from 1996-1998, earning All-Big 12 honors.
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HOL take: Bellevue West tight end Cayden Echternach transferred from Burke as a senior.
Over his career, Echternach had 27 catches for 420 yards receiving. He had 17 catches for 200+ yards and two touchdowns this past season. While at Burke, he was also a baseball player. Echternach walks into a tight end room at Nebraska with plenty of opportunity.
HOL take: Oakland Craig’s Grant Seagren is the perfect type of walk-on you take a chance on. At 6-foot-6, 250-pounds he has a great frame to build on.
He played both tight end and on the defensive line, but Nebraska projects him as an offensive lineman. He had seven catches for 186 yards and four touchdowns this past season. Defensively he had 27 tackles, including four for loss and a sack.
Seagren is a three-sport athlete that also competes in basketball and track. He averaged 10.8 points and 7.5 rebounds a game as a junior and was a state qualifier in the shot put in 2022.
Seagren’s older brothers were also both college athletes. His brother Garrett played basketball at Division II Chaminade for three seasons before transferring to Concordia in Seward. His other brother Wyatt played football at South Dakota State in 2020-2021, and now is a member of their track team.
