Big year for talent in Nebraska
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There are good years in Nebraska and there are bad years in Nebraska. Then there are years like this year where the talent at the top of the newly released Rivals.com Nebraska top 10 is unmatched in the past.
For the first time since Rivals.com has been in existence, there is a player from Nebraska that's ranked as a five-star player. That player is Lincoln (Neb.) Southwest offensive tackle Baker Steinkuhler.
The 6-foot-6, 290-pounder is an amazing physical specimen. Recently at the Nebraska summer camp, Steinkuhler ran a 40-yard dash time of 4.71 seconds and 4.94 seconds to go along with a very impressive vertical jump of 30 inches and a pro agility time of 4.67 seconds.
But he can also play a mean game of football.
"Baker has a burning desire to get better," Lincoln Southwest coach Mark King said.
"God has blessed him with tremendous physical ability and he's also blessed him with as good of a desire to be as good as he could possibly be. When you put in A+ quality physical attributes with A+ quality mental attributes, that's all you can ask - that's it."
Steinkuhler alone would be enough to make this 2008 class in Nebraska special, but when you throw in another Rivals100 prospect like offensive guard Trevor Robinson of Omaha (Neb.) Elkhorn and high profile three-star recruits like Sean Fisher of Omaha Millard North, Tim Biere of Omaha Westside and Collins Okafor of Omaha Westside, it's about as deep of a class in Nebraska in a long, long time.
It's no surprise Nebraska has dominated their own backyard.
The Huskers have pledges from five of the top six in-state prospects when you include Crete, Neb., athlete John Levorson. Biere is the only player to go out of state at this point, but he did not earn a Nebraska offer. However, the Kansas Jayhawks have to be excited to land his pledge.
There are a few sleepers in this Nebraska class that could turn out to be really good football players on the next level. Two-star twins Shuan Prater and Shane Prater from Omaha Central are ranked at No. 7 and No. 9 in the state. Both impressed at several camps this summer, including the Columbia NIKE Training Camp. And even kicker Brett Maher of Kearney, Neb., has an offer from Ohio.
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