Once overlooked, 2025 Skutt RHP Jace Ziola ready to prove himself at Nebraska
Jace Ziola didn’t start out as the biggest or best kid in the room.
“I just wasn’t very good, I’m gonna be honest,” Ziola said of his early days on the diamond. “I was small and kind of timid.”
But the 2025 right-handed pitcher kept his nose to the grindstone, and with the help of his father Tim along with a major growth spurt, Ziola has parlayed his hard work into a scholarship offer from Nebraska.
On Thursday afternoon, the Skutt Catholic product chose the Huskers.
The 6-foot-2, 170-pound Ziola can certainly bring the heat. His fastball ranges from 85-89 mph with three seasons left to improve. He also has command of a slider between 72-76 mph and a changeup that falls amidst a 75-79 mph spectrum.
Ziola’s father Tim is responsible for fostering his son’s love of baseball from a very young age, coaching him from ages 6-14. Tim Ziola pitched at the University of Texas at Arlington and imparted that knowledge to his son. Jace Ziola said his dad always knew he would improve.
“He was also small, but he hit a huge growth spurt so he knew that I would grow,” Ziola said. “It was just a matter of time I guess because when I was around 14 I probably put on like five or six inches and started working on pitching.”
The process developed further from there. Throughout, Ziola has been in contact with Texas A&M, Oklahoma State and Wichita State, while Tulane was the primary school pursuing the young SkyHawk. Nebraska came into play this summer when the Husker coaching staff watched Ziola close a Nebraska Prospects game in June.
Ziola received an invite to a Husker camp in July and from then on Nebraska was in weekly contact. Phone calls would range in topic from NU’s recruiting process, to Ziola’s recovery program and how his summer was going.
“They wanted to see me at another camp at the start of October,” Ziola said. “I went there and did pretty good. Four days later, they offered me.”
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In many ways, that offer was a relief.
“We travel a lot for baseball and when we’re there, there are all of these colleges that are watching you,” the pitcher said. “You’re kind of scared because if you don’t perform as you should, you’re like, ‘Well, I can’t go there.’ But the decision is already made now so there’s a lot of stress off me, and it’s more motivation to get better and work even harder.”
Ziola has plenty of goals for the time he has left in high school. He wants to compete in the Area Code Games and build his fastball up to 95 mph by graduation. There’s still room for growth physically, too.
“I feel like I can put on probably two more inches,” Ziola said. “By tryouts this year I want to be up to 185 pounds and when I walk out of high school I would want to be somewhere around 210.”
Ziola joins Lincoln East catcher/shortstop Joey Senstock as the second commit in the Huskers’ 2025 class. Yet while thoughts of the future are very much a part of Ziola’s immediate present, there is another enduring and deep-rooted motivation.
“Like I said, I wasn’t very good,” Ziola said. “There’s always been this chip on my shoulder ever since I got good to show all those people that didn’t want me why they are wrong.”
Nebraska wasn’t one to pass Ziola by.
“I feel like it’s every kid’s dream to play for Nebraska when they grow up,” he said. “My grandpa’s a huge Husker fan. Both sides of the family are huge Husker fans. I mean, personally, it’s a huge honor to represent my state. It’s a lifelong dream fulfilled.”
