Tag: Riley Van Poppel

Nebraska Countdown to Kickoff: No. 44 DL Riley Von Poppel

Only 44 days remain until Nebraska’s 2024 season begins.

The countdown to Nebraska’s season opener on August 31 against the University of Texas at El Paso Miners is down to just 44 days, bringing Huskers sophomore defensive lineman Riley Von Poppel in today’s player spotlight.

The 6-foot-5, 275-pound Van Poppel was a frequent sight on the field last season in his first year with the program, playing in each of the Huskers’ last 11 games. On the season, the Argyle, Texas native recorded five tackles, one tackle for loss, and half a sack.

An understudy to nose tackle Nash Hutmacher, Van Poppel is expected to once again have a rotational role for the Huskers in 2024. He’ll get frequent playing time and could take a big step forward from his freshman season if all progresses well.

Following this fall, Van Poppel would be in line to become the Huskers starting defensive tackle as Nash Hutmacher is expected to exhaust his eligibility this fall.

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Nebraska commits react to the hiring of Matt Rhule

The Nebraska Cornhuskers hired former Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule. Some of Nebraska’s commits reacted to the news.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers have found their new head coach. After a lengthy process, they have hired former Carolina Panthers head coach Matt Rhule. Rhule enjoyed great success as a collegiate head coach at both Baylor and Temple.

In 2013, Temple had a 2-10 record in Rhule’s first season. He quickly turned the program around, and they won 10 games in 2015 and made it to the Boca Raton Bowl.

In 2017, Rhule became the head coach at Baylor, and his tenure followed a similar pattern. They had an abysmal 1-11 record in his first season. In 2019, the Bears went 11-3 and made it to the Sugar Bowl.

Some of Nebraska’s 2023 commits reacted the hiring. Let’s take a quick look.

How 2023 Husker football commits are faring so far

If the Huskers can hang onto this group of commits, the future looks bright.

Despite the loss of former head coach Scott Frost, the Nebraska Cornhuskers have 13 commits in their upcoming recruiting class. That bunch have been putting up strong numbers so far with most states’ high school football seasons just past the midway point.

Leading the way in Nebraska’s class of 2023 are 4-star recruits Omarion Miller, a 6-foot-2 wide receiver out of North Caddo (Vivian, LA) High School and Riley van Poppel, a 6-foot-4, 270-pound interior offensive lineman from Argyle (Argyle, TX) High School.

Both are ranked in the top 30 nationally at their position, according to 247 Sports, but they are far from the only future Huskers making an impact. Obviously, the world of recruiting is never 100% stable, especially after the firing of a head coach, so Mickey Joseph and the rest of the Huskers coaching staff will need to have good conversations with their commits to ensure they plan to stay.

Each recruit’s highlights and stats (if applicable and available), are listed below:

Son of former MLB pitcher commits to the Nebraska Cornhuskers

Big get for Scott Frost’s 2023 class.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers and head coach Scott Frost received some good news on Monday. Riley Van Poppel of Argyle, Texas, committed to the Huskers.

He is ranked as an offensive lineman according to 247Sports composite rankings but listed as a defensive lineman. The four-star prospect is ranked as the No. 21 interior offensive lineman in the country. The commitment comes just three days after his visit to Lincoln.

Van Poppel is the son of former Major League Baseball pitcher Todd Van Poppel. His father played for six different teams which included two different stints with the Texas Rangers. The younger Van Poppel now becomes a member of the 2023 Nebraska Cornhuskers recruiting class.

Van Poppel is still listed to visit the Michigan Wolverines on June 23. In 2021, he recorded 14 TFLs and 7 sacks according to 247Sports. Van Poppel is the highest-rated member of the class for Nebraska. So far they have a total of eight commitments.