Ochaun Mathis’s announcement sets the stage for a big weekend

We set the stage for Saturday’s announcement with Ochaun Mathis and more in the 3-2-1 column.

1 – It’s between Nebraska and Texas for Ochaun Mathis

There will be a lot of interested Nebraska and Texas fans checking social media on Saturday when TCU pass rusher Ochaun Mathis makes his decision between the Longhorns and Huskers.

All we know is that the decision will happen on Saturday. He has not said when it will go public.

If it’s like how Mathis made his commitment date announcement earlier this week, expect some sort of YouTube-type production.

If the Huskers are able to pull this off, it will be a major win for Nebraska’s NIL efforts and the impact they’ve had with all the opportunities NU student-athletes get once they come to Lincoln.

I also think a big factor that might help Nebraska is the chance to play in the Big Ten Conference.

For a player like Mathis, if he can put up quality numbers in the Big Ten, that is going to go a long way in helping his future draft stock.

2 – Nebraska officially parted ways with Texas A&M RB Deondre Jackson

Texas A&M running back Deondre Jackson’s recruitment to Nebraska just wasn’t meant to be.

After committing to NU before they could go over his academic transcripts, Nebraska discovered Jackson was not in good academic standing at Texas A&M. That prevented him from being an immediately-eligible one-time transfer. So, instead of moving to Lincoln that weekend, he had to return home and stay in classes at A&M.

Over that period, the Huskers added commitments from running backs Anthony Grant and Ajay Allen.

Jackson still acknowledged himself as a future Husker the last few months, but the numbers never added up. As of today, NU has seven running backs on scholarship heading into 2022. I just didn’t see any scenario of how it would work to take Jackson.

The other reality is that scholarship spot needs to be used for a greater position of need.

3 – We should see Husker players drafted on Friday for the first time since 2016

There’s a good chance we could see anywhere from two or three Nebraska players drafted on Friday.

That’s fairly remarkable considering the Huskers haven’t had a Day 2 pick since 2016.

The one that really intrigues me is linebacker JoJo Domann. His projections are all over the board, anywhere from rounds three to seven.

The big thing is Domann’s age. There are some players the same age as Domann that might be entering their third or even fourth year in the NFL. How teams view his age will probably be the biggest question right now.

He also needs to find a team that will use him in the correct system. Domann is not an in-the-box linebacker. He needs to be out in space where he can truly thrive.

1 – When do you expect to see some Husker players enter the portal?

It’s been a very quiet front on the transfer portal front for Nebraska. When might we see some action?

Today, my guess is you will see some Nebraska players enter the portal by Friday. With May 1 being a Sunday, players will technically have to be in by Monday, May 2, to be eligible for next season.

2 – What is the most likely scenario for Big Ten football schedules?

There are a lot of questions about next month’s Big Ten meetings in Phoenix. We will probably hear something about the future media rights deal, along with how the conference plans to schedule in the future.

My best guess on the future of Big Ten scheduling is that the league will continue to stay at nine games to secure 126 pieces of television property. However, I would not be surprised if we saw divisions eliminated and each team plays three built-in rivalry games on their schedule each year.

For Nebraska, the natural partners are Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Then you would play six games at random each season. I think the long-term goal is to build the best schedules that will allow the Big Ten to have multiple bids in an expanded College Football Playoff.

However, my only concern is a scenario like Ohio State and Michigan potentially playing back-to-back weeks if they continue to play Thanksgiving weekend and meet in the championship game seven days later.

I’m not going to try to guess what TCU’s Ochaun Mathis plans to do on Saturday. I just know Nebraska has done all it can and is very much in this thing.

However, I will predict that Texas Tech defensive lineman Devin Drew will be a Husker. Playing his final season at Nebraska makes a lot of sense, especially growing up in nearby Kansas City.

Sean Callahan can be reached at sean@huskeronline.com and he can be heard each day at 6:45 am and 5:05 pm on Big Red Radio 1110 KFAB in Omaha during the football season. He can also be seen on KETV Channel 7 in Omaha during the fall and each week he appears on NET’s Big Red Wrap-Tuesday’s at 7 pm.