No one plays football forever.
A former college football standout and undrafted free agent who briefly made an NFL roster, Gus Felder understands that lesson well.
Now it’s his job to impart that wisdom to the Nebraska football team.
Nebraska football’s director of player development works to help shape players’ futures. Those efforts are centered around everything that matters off the field, with a focus on areas such as financial literacy and professional development.
Felder said the easiest topic to educate players on is the financial side of things because “everybody wants to have money.”
On the other hand, developing goals for the future and building a long-term plan to get there is hardly on player’s minds.
“We have to get on guys to sit down and focus on professional development and sometimes their personal development, because right now they’re focused on one thing — that’s football — and they’re not looking at life after football’s over with,” Felder said.
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Getting players to connect with the Lincoln community is another key project that Felder oversees. All players are required to perform a basic amount of community service — but the programs are so successful that if Felder brings an event to the team, he’ll have more interested players than he has volunteer spots that need filling.
“The people that we go help, a lot of the time they don’t know we’re coming, so to watch people light up in the community and have access to the guys, have fun with them and be relatable to them, it’s a great feeling,” Felder said.
Rather than focusing on veteran players who’ve already mastered the core principles of development, much of Felder’s efforts take place with the program’s youngest members. Incoming freshmen, particularly those who may not be used to the rigor of a major college football program, take time to learn the ropes.
Upon arriving on campus those players go through academic meetings, strength and conditioning meetings, player development meetings and community-oriented activities which introduce them to different areas of development. Nebraska’s summer transition program, Summer Bridge, also helps players hit the ground running in the fall.
“It’s just the way our staff operates from the top down; everything’s organized, planned and intentional that we do for our guys,” Felder said.
Meet Nebraska football’s 2025 recruiting class
TJ LATEEF
IM HOME! #GBR 🌽🔴 https://t.co/SxaTIIrgxM
— TJ Lateef (@TJ_Lateef9) May 12, 2024
🌟🌟🌟🌟
Hometown: Orange, Calif.
The specs: Quarterback, 6-1½, 185 pounds.
Takeaway: TJ Lateef’s Hudl highlight film has a lot of dimes in it — on some tough concepts.
A slot fade throw dropped right into the bucket. A 17-yard out thrown toward the sideline, where only his receiver can grab it. A laser seam thrown into zone coverage that looks a lot like Dylan Raiola’s throw to Alex Bullock in the spring game. The deep crosser thrown away from the safety over the top and beyond the corner.
Lateef appears to be in a well-conceived system — Lutheran’s head coach, Rod Sherman, once led Valor Christian in Colorado — but he’s smooth in his delivery and execution.
Good footwork. Quick decisions. It’s a good picture.
* — All star rankings are based on Composite
MALCOLM SIMPSON
It breaks my heart that they didn’t believe in me! NEBRASKA DID LOL 🤞🏾🤞🏾#LockedIn #DeathRow #GBR #Family #Blackshirts https://t.co/E1xNLzs1XB
— Malcolm Simpson (@Malcolm63573618) June 17, 2024
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Hometown: Hitchcock, Texas.
The specs: Defensive lineman, 6-3, 255 pounds.
Takeaway: Malcolm Simpson displays strengths as a pass rusher on film, with the defensive lineman having lined up in several positions across his high school career. He has the strength to move opposing linemen as an interior rusher and has also been effective when lining up on the edge.
In order to play Big Ten football, Simpson may need to develop physically — but his strength and ability to use his frame effectively is a key trait the lineman already possesses. Learning effective pass rushing moves from position coach Terrance Knighton should be a top priority for Simpson as he develops.
JAMARION PARKER
Go Big Red 🌽!!! https://t.co/bYGU8FNQ75
— Jamarion Parker (@JAMARIONPARKER_) June 5, 2024
🌟🌟🌟🌟
Hometown: St. Louis.
The specs: Running back, 6-0, 185 pounds.
Takeaway: Nebraska now has two running back commits in its 2025 class: Jamarion Parker and Wahoo Neumann’s Conor Booth. Considering NU missed out on a high school back a year ago, adding Dante Dowdell out of the transfer portal instead, a two-back class makes sense.
Both players are electric runners, and it’s Parker’s breakaway speed that stands out on his junior film. Averaging 11.2 yards per carry during a season where he ran for 22 touchdowns, Parker’s vision in the backfield often helps him cut to the edge and accelerate past defenders.
In order to be effective in college, it’s likely he’ll need to add weight and prove his physicality between the tackles. Nebraska will want to keep Parker’s track and field speed in play due to his breakaway ability that few can match.
CADEN VERMAAS
🌟🌟🌟
High school: Millard North.
The specs: Athlete, 6-0, 190 pounds.
Takeaway: Matt Rhule and his staff put a good press on Caden VerMaas before his recruiting profile got bigger. And it was bound to do so, given what VerMaas did in just eight games his sophomore season as a running back/defensive back. When kids commit to Nebraska before their junior year, rival offers tend to stay quiet.
VerMaas could play a slot corner spot or he could play rover in NU’s system. His size is similar to current Husker Isaac Gifford – who is currently playing rover – and VerMaas, at least on offense, may be more explosive. He runs with fluidity and, on a football field, can outrun most guys to the end zone. In games he played last season, he stood out.
JACKSON CARPENTER
Dreams to Reality‼️🎈#committed #GBR pic.twitter.com/dlpm16VIYc
— Jackson Carpenter (@Jcarpenter06_) April 13, 2024
🌟🌟🌟
High school: Lincoln Southwest.
The specs: Athlete, 6-2, 185 pounds.
Takeaway: A wide receiver prospect, Jackson Carpenter earned a Nebraska offer in January and kept the Huskers as one of his top options alongside Kansas. A trip to campus for a spring practice was enough for Carpenter to finalize his decision ahead of a return visit for the Spring Game.
The son of former Nebraska tight end/fullback Tim Carpenter, Jackson recorded 28 catches for 549 yards and seven touchdowns during his junior season at Lincoln Southwest.
He also brings more in-state speed. Nebraska already has sprinting receivers like Jaylen Lloyd (Westside) and Malachi Coleman (Lincoln East) and Carpenter fits in with that bunch. With his frame, he’ll fit nicely as an outside deep threat in NU’s offense. Nebraska’s not taking Carpenter just to take him — he fits the speed profile.
BEAR TENNEY
🌟🌟🌟
Hometown: American Fork, Utah.
The specs: Tight end, 6-6, 245 pounds.
Takeaway: A consensus three-star prospect according to all four major recruiting services, Bear Tenney grew up with basketball as his first love. He started playing tackle football as a freshman, loved it, and got his first offer back then from Arizona.
As a sophomore at Chandler (Arizona) Hamilton High School, he caught 11 passes for 95 yards. Last year at Lucas (Texas) Lovejoy High School, he had 27 grabs for 278 yards.
By then, he’d accumulated offers from all over the country, including Michigan and Oregon. As an “aggressive player” with a big catch radius and an ability to “go up and get the ball,” Tenney had options, and time. But his relationship with Dylan Raiola and an unofficial visit to NU’s campus won him over.
TYSON TERRY
Boom! Staying Home! 🌽#commited @Hayesfawcett3 pic.twitter.com/QQMSx43gGC
— Tyson Terry🧨 (@tyson_terryyy) June 9, 2023
🌟🌟🌟
High school: Omaha North.
The specs: Defensive lineman, 6-2, 280 pounds.
Takeaway: Tyson Terry is as strong as they come, having won three Class A state titles in heavyweight wrestling. The 6-2, 280-pounder is an absolute force on the defensive line, with that elite strength often enabling Terry to simply bull rush past opposing offensive linemen. While the defensive tackle takes plenty of snaps closer to the interior of the line, he’s also an excellent pass rusher.
Terry played varsity football immediately as a freshman, and has now recorded 212 total tackles, 38 for loss, and 12½ sacks in his three-year high school career. Going after a player of that caliber within the state’s borders was a no-brainer for Nebraska — and the Huskers could reap the benefits in years to come.
BRYSON HAYES
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Hometown: Maize, Kan.
The specs: Wide receiver, 5-11, 180 pounds.
Takeaway: Bryson Hayes is a blazer, having just run a 10.69-second 100-meter dash this spring. His speed shows on tape, but Nebraska likes verifiable numbers and his 10.69 does the trick. The Huskers have made a point of recruiting fast guys to play wideout — sophomore Jaylen Lloyd ran a 10.47-second 100 in high school — because of the ways speed can change the gravity (and thus the geometry) of a defense.
Hayes may project to an inside receiver role — like Lloyd — thanks to his work in traffic catching contested balls that turn into a touchdowns after good runs. Of Hayes’ 79 grabs — for 1,544 yards and 18 touchdowns — many involve catch-and-run situations that show off Hayes’ slippery agility. Nebraska wants to improve its quick game, and Hayes flashes the skill of knowing where to go after a short pass — it changes play to play, based on the blocking — and how to take on larger defenders.
PIERCE MOOBERRY
🌟🌟🌟
High school: Millard North.
The specs: Athlete, 6-4, 200 pounds.
Takeaway: At Millard North, Pierce Mooberry had played safety — similar to former Mustang/Husker Sean Fisher — so he can see the game from 15 yards behind the line of scrimmage, pursue downhill, play deep coverage, and all the rest. But he’s likely destined for the off-the-ball linebacker spot or Jack linebacker spot for the Huskers. The Jack can take on many forms — it still seems a little line-of-scrimmage based, given MJ Sherman mostly plays it like an end — but Mooberry has coverage skills that can put him anywhere around the ball. Watch out for the sneaky potential of him playing tight end, too; he’s good there.
CONOR BOOTH
Go Skers!! 🎈🌽 #GBR pic.twitter.com/2C6810pMQv
— Conor Booth (@ConorBooth23) August 27, 2023
🌟🌟🌟
High school: Bishop Neumann.
The specs: Running back, 6-1, 215 pounds.
Takeaway: Conor Booth was an ultra-efficient runner during his sophomore season as a fullback. He averaged 13.4 yards per carry and scored 20 total touchdowns. As a junior, he transitioned to running back in a new offense, toting the ball for 2,159 yards (10.6 per carry), caught eight passes for 185 yards and scored 35 total touchdowns in 10 games.
He packs a punch as a runner, but he has decent breakaway speed and has shown the ability to make defenders miss at the Class C level. Obviously, Booth isn’t playing the best defenses in Class A — nor does he enjoy, say, Elkhorn South’s offensive line.
Booth is a catcher and an outfielder with a 6.69-second 60 time and an exit velocity of 98.6 miles per hour, according to Prep Baseball Report. Baseball prospects are hard to project but Booth appears to be a nice add for Will Bolt’s baseball team, too.
TANNER TERCH
🌟🌟🌟
Hometown: Littleton, Colo.
The specs: Athlete, 6-2, 185 pounds.
Takeaway: Albeit in a down year for Colorado overall — the state had 20-plus three-star prospects in 2023 and 2024 according to 247 and only has six this cycle — landing the top-ranked recruit is still indicative of NU’s presence within the state.
A three-sport athlete who also plays basketball and runs track, Tanner Terch is another example of Nebraska’s preference for landing big, quick athletes along the recruiting trail who it can develop over time.
He could be a future member of the receiver room. Terch could perhaps play in the secondary due to his ball skills and lanky frame, but a 55-catch, 876-yard junior season on offense indicates his talent as a wide receiver.
Terch is a sharp route-runner with a quick release off the line of scrimmage. His 6-2 frame helps him shield opposing defenders from the ball, and Terch also has a big vertical leap which helps him make contested catches.
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