Nebraska’s pursuit of ‘Speedy’ Nettles, the latest on Raiola and early offers

The nickname was handed down to William Nettles as an 8-year-old, and like all good nicknames, it stuck.

These days, it’s not hard to figure out why Nettles goes by the name he does. A sprinter in track and field and a dynamic player on the football field, Nettles fits the mold of what Nebraska goes after at the skill positions — and his skills have landed him on the Huskers’ radar.

After earning a scholarship offer from Nebraska in March, Nettles made a trip to Lincoln for the spring game in late April and liked what he saw.

“I really liked the coaches a lot; Coach (Evan) Cooper has a lot of experience and I know being coached by him would bring me to the next level,” Nettles said. “Seeing how the whole staff coached was fantastic — they’re stern to a point and they’re very attentive to detail.”

Cooper, NU’s secondary coach, extended the offer in the first place and has been a key contact for Nettles since. A 6-foot-1, 175-pound prospect from Dallas Christian, Nettles plays both wide receiver and cornerback for his high school team. Due to his ability to high-point the ball, his length and his quick hands and feet, Nettles’ ball skills are among his best attributes — alongside speed, of course.

“Cornerback is the most competitive position because you’ve gotta stay focused at all times,” Nettles said. “I like having my own island and being able to talk trash, but getting a pick and taking it away from the offense is the best feeling ever.”

With his goal to commit this summer, Nettles’ recruitment is down to only a handful of teams. Local school SMU, which he’s visited a half-dozen times in the last few years, remains in the mix, as does Purdue. Nettles said he’s working with Cooper to set a date for an official visit this summer and that he looks forward to returning to Nebraska again soon.

Cooper isn’t the only Nebraska assistant coach working toward landing a specific prospect.

With coaches now permitted to visit prospects during the May open evaluation period, Nebraska’s coaching staff has been busy around the country.

The recruitment of quarterback Dylan Raiola, the nation’s No. 1 overall recruit, has led to a three-way recruiting battle between Georgia, USC and Nebraska for several months now. That continued on Monday when coaches from both Georgia and Nebraska visited Raiola at Pinnacle High School in Phoenix.

Sources tell the Journal Star that offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield and offensive line coach Donovan Raiola, Dylan’s uncle, made the trip. Satterfield also visited Raiola in Arizona during the January contact period, with Nebraska later sending a large contingent of assistant coaches to visit with Raiola.

That type of effort would also be possible in the spring, as coaches are allowed to spend a maximum of two evaluation days with a prospect — though Nebraska is bound by the total of 168 evaluation days spread across its entire coaching staff.

Nebraska’s coaches have used up many of those evaluation days already. Running backs coach EJ Barthel made an important trip to Mater Dei (California) High School on Monday, where a trio of 2024 recruits are on Nebraska’s radar. Running back Nate Frazier, who already has a budding relationship with Nebraska, is a logical target for Barthel. But so, too, are offensive lineman Brandon Baker and defensive lineman Aydin Breland — both top-50 national recruits who attended the Spring Game.

Linebackers coach Rob Dvoracek spent part of his Monday visiting Lyndon (Kansas) offensive lineman Kaedin Massey, a three-star prospect who took in one of Nebraska’s spring practices in March. Dvoracek has also spent much of the week visiting recruits in St. Louis.

After visiting Raiola on Monday, Satterfield stopped in Burley, Idaho, to see key 2024 wide receiver target Gatlin Bair on Tuesday.

Wide receivers coach Garret McGuire has also been making his usual rounds in Texas with visits to Hutto, Stony Point, Brenham and Franklin high schools. While McGuire’s visits were situated closer to Austin, defensive line coach Terrance Knighton had a steady presence in the Houston area on Tuesday. Tight ends coach Bob Wager and Cooper also visited prospects in Texas this week.

For special teams coordinator Ed Foley, another evaluation period means more days on the road in Nebraska. Foley started locally with trips to Norris, Lincoln Pius X, Waverly and every Lincoln Public Schools high school except the newly opened Lincoln Northwest. Foley moved into the Grand Island and Hastings area on Tuesday, then continued west to Kearney and the Sandhills on Wednesday.

Given the activity of Nebraska’s assistant coaches along the recruiting trail, dozens of new scholarship offers to 2024 and 2025 recruits have gone out in the past week. Nebraska is looking even further into the future as well.

* Under the new coaching staff, Nebraska has extended offers to a handful of 2027 recruits — current eighth graders — and that continued this week. 2027 quarterback Furian Inferrera, who is expected to attend Mater Dei as one of the nation’s top quarterback recruits, received a Nebraska offer following his presence at the Spring Game. Meanwhile, offensive lineman Sidney Rouleau, already at 6-foot-6 and 300 pounds, received a Nebraska offer last week.

* Nebraska’s youth movement doesn’t end there. The Huskers made the bold move of extending a scholarship offer to a 2028 prospect, Trey Finney, from the Houston area. The seventh grader lists his positions as defensive back and wide receiver — and Nebraska isn’t even his first FBS offer. Arkansas State offered in February.