Nebraska football notes: Gunnar Gottula, pass-catching backs

The Huskers again spent the early days of camp in the Selleck Quadrangle, players and coaches included, prior to the start of the fall semester. Whereas this setup was unique and new a year ago as offensive linemen adjusted to sleeping on twin beds and veterans roomed with freshmen, it’s merely been a background feature of this fall’s preparation.

“It’s year two, they know this is what we do and this is what’s expected,” coach Matt Rhule said. “We’re in Selleck not to have that be a team thought process or storyline, it’s just to be around each other.”

According to Rhule, the time for wide-scale team-building efforts has passed. Instead, it’s the football that the Huskers are focused on — getting better on third downs, executing their assignments and building a better team. Let’s drop into coverage:

As Nebraska goes through its fall camp with multiple ongoing position battles, the competition in the running back room is unique. Regardless of who receives the first snap against UTEP on Aug. 31, it’s highly likely that Nebraska will play Gabe Ervin Jr., Rahmir Johnson and Emmett Johnson in some capacity.

Sophomore Dante Dowdell is in the mix too, with running backs coach EJ Barthel saying that the Oregon transfer is developing into an all-around back rather than just a power runner.

But what are the key characteristics Barthel needs to see from his running backs? Big-play ability, someone who can pound the football — “4 yards and a cloud of dust,” Barthel said — and consistency in pass protection are the requirements to see the field.

There’s another trait, too: pass-catching ability.

“The position itself has changed over the last 10 years about what a running back is, so we have to be able to catch the football out of the backfield,” Barthel said on Friday. “My first couple years as a coach, we emphasized ball security; to me, now, that’s an opportunity to get a checkdown and create an explosive run. That’s a missed opportunity if we drop that ball; to me, a drop is just as serious as a fumble.”

Rahmir and Emmett Johnson are both adept pass-catchers, and Ervin is no slouch either. The sixth-year senior, Rahmir Johnson, is the most experienced in the room with 27 career catches, while Emmett Johnson averaged 6.6 yards per catch across his seven receptions last season. Look for both players to feature on third downs thanks to their strength in that area.

“We need guys who protect the football and we’d like for them to be able to catch,” Rhule said.

It may not happen this season, but Nebraska football’s 2023 offensive line class is well-positioned to anchor the Husker line in the years which follow. At the time, Nebraska signed an entire five-man line, with Jason Maciejczak joining in-state recruits Mason Goldman, Gunnar Gottula, Brock Knutson and Sam Sledge as the future building blocks of the Husker offensive line.

Those young Huskers were not a factor last year but are now pushing for playing time in a major way.

Leading the charge is redshirt freshman Gunnar Gottula, who Rhule mentioned will be a key option at offensive tackle following Teddy Prochazka’s season-ending injury. Rhule said that Gottula, a former Lincoln Southeast standout, is excelling as a run-blocker but needs to develop more confidence in pass protection.

At 6-foot-6 and 305 pounds, Gottula continues to develop physically and may see the field in an extended role this season.

“If that guy was in the portal we’d all be scrambling for him,” Rhule said of Gottula. “He’s played against good players for a year now, a year-and-a-half really, so it’s time for him to go.”

Goldman now plays on the defensive side of the ball, but the other 2023 signees are developing as well. Sledge and Maciejczak have worked with NU’s second-team offensive line units so far this fall, with Sledge emerging as one of Nebraska’s top backups on the interior of the line. Knutson, who knows how to use his powerful 6-7 frame well, has a future at offensive tackle.

There’s no denying the talent present within Nebraska’s group of freshman wide receivers. Carter Nelson and Quinn Clark, who both stand at 6-5 and 200-plus pounds, stand out physically and have started fall camp well.

So has Jacory Barney Jr., whose speed and elusiveness brings a different dimension to the Husker offense than many other wide receivers. Keelan Smith, Isaiah McMorris and Dae’vonn Hall are also going through fall camp as Nebraska develops its young crop of pass-catchers.

There’s been plenty of buzz about Nelson and Barney in particular, but it’s worth tempering expectations about how soon they’ll truly impact the Husker offense.

After all, the three freshmen who Nebraska called upon last season — Malachi Coleman, Jaidyn Doss and Jaylen Lloyd — only entered the fray after injuries depleted the veterans within the room. Across Nebraska’s first five games of the 2023 season, Coleman played 18 snaps, Lloyd played 11 and Doss zero.

And consider the players who are likely ahead of the true freshmen in the pecking order: Jahmal Banks, Isaiah Neyor, Isaiah Garcia-Castaneda, Janiran Bonner, Lloyd, Coleman and Alex Bullock.

Nelson and Barney may very well get their moment in the spotlight this fall, but it’s unlikely to come within the first half of Nebraska’s season.

Two programs on the opposite side of Nebraska’s borders — and its schedule — have had a dramatic start to their fall camps.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders recently clashed with reporters, refusing to answer a question from a local CBS-affiliated television station and stepping around other inquiries about reports of a toxic locker room culture in Boulder.

“What is chemistry?” Sanders responded to a reporter’s question about the Buffaloes’ offensive line in one mind-boggling exchange.

Longtime Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz hardly has the same problems as Sanders — but he may have a quarterback issue on his hands.

When the Hawkeyes hosted an open practice and scrimmage on Saturday, expected starter Cade McNamara looked far below the level expected of a fifth-year senior.

According to the Des Moines Register, McNamara unofficially completed 8 of 24 passes for a net of 20 yards with one interception during the scrimmage. Northwestern transfer Brendan Sullivan is also competing for the starting job.

Nebraska received a major recruiting win this week when four-star wide receiver Isaiah Mozee flipped from Oregon into the Huskers’ 2025 recruiting class. Mozee’s commitment is an impactful one due to his status as one of the nation’s top wide receiver prospects who continues to add to NU’s bright future at the position.

Crucially, he could also be one of Nebraska’s final 2025 commits. It’s far too early to say the Huskers are closing up shop on their 18-man class roughly four months before Signing Day, but the number of prospects with concrete interest from Nebraska continues to dwindle.

At the top of NU’s 2025 recruiting board are five-star athlete Michael Terry III and five-star offensive lineman David Sanders Jr., who are both expected to make a decision this month after visiting Nebraska in July. Omaha Westside linebacker Christian Jones and four-star offensive lineman Malachi Goodman are the other top recruiting targets NU continues to follow.

Outside of those four, though, there are few players who’ve already built relationships with Husker coaches or taken official visits. A player or two may quickly pop onto NU’s radar this fall — but expect that the Huskers’ 2025 recruiting class will remain mostly unchanged in the coming months.