Spring countdown: A look at five Huskers with early-impact potential | Football

Essentially, Toure checks all the boxes when you’re talking about potential immediate impact. He has one year to reinforce and build upon his stock in the eyes of NFL evaluators. Nebraska needs leadership and production from a No. 1-type receiver in a talented but young room. The expectations for Toure are high, and that’s perfectly fine.

Running back Markese Stepp

Stepp, a USC transfer, will have every opportunity to earn carries in Nebraska’s young backfield, but it’s perhaps not quite as cut-and-dried as Toure’s situation. First, Stepp will need a waiver to play this fall. While that should be more or less a formality, it still has to happen. Then, there are the young backs in Ryan Held’s group. None of them wowed in 2020, but remember that players such as Marvin Scott and Sevion Morrison were robbed of their first collegiate offseasons, too.

Stepp averaged 5.0 yards per carry over his career in the Pac-12 but has struggled to stay healthy. He said in a recent video that his job is to “tote the rock,” and that he’s excited to work hard to try to earn those chances. He’ll have every opportunity to do that, but he’ll also have to compete against some young guys who are inexperienced but also talented.

Defensive back Marques Buford

On paper, the secondary might not be the first place you’d look on NU’s roster for a chance at early playing time. Assistant coach Travis Fisher has seniors Deontai Williams and Marquel Dismuke back at safety, backed by up-and-comers Myles Farmer (even coming off a significant injury in November), Noa Pola-Gates, Isaac Gifford and others. At corner, the Huskers have Cam Taylor-Britt on one side and a competition brewing between Quinton Newsome, Braxton Clark, Nadab Joseph and Tamon Lynum elsewhere.