Three & Out: The die is cast, recruiting reset, and fall baseball wrap-up

This is HuskerOnline.com’s feature in which recruiting analysts Mike Matya and Bryan Munson give their weekly takes on topical issues concerning Nebraska football, baseball and recruiting.

Today in our next installment of “Three and Out” we hit on the die is cast, 2022 recruiting reset, and give a fall baseball wrap-up.

No matter which way you were leaning regarding Nebraska head coach Scott Frost being retained for another year, it’s all academic now. The decision has been made to give him at least one more year to try and get some traction and to start winning, as was originally hoped four years ago.

Coach Frost was brought in to change the loser mentality of this program, but it’s only become more deeply ingrained. There haven’t been many blowout losses, which is definitely a plus, but the losses still continue to pile up.

Teams reflect their head coaches in any sport, including Cornhusker football. It’s not been a pretty sight in the win/loss column after four years under the guidance of Scott Frost.

The Nebraska football team will show you just enough flashes to tease you and get you excited about what this team could be with the current makeup of players. Then they will revert to form with their usual mistakes, be it the untimely penalty, or the requisite special teams screw up, or the defense not getting a timely stop.

There are undoubtedly some “dudes” on this roster – like JoJo Domann, Austen Allen and Samori Toure – but they just can’t seem to ultimately get over the hump when it counts.

As Joel Klatt aptly stated during Saturday’s Nebraska vs. Ohio State broadcast on Fox — “Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Nebraska, good enough for a possible upset, but too many mistakes to pull it off.”

And Klatt is a self-professed Scott Frost fan.

Coach Frost will now get a second attempt to rectify where he came up short these past four seasons in getting the program turned around in the only place that matters, the win-loss column.

He is in the process of completely overhauling his offensive staff, and entrusting the philosophy, play-calling and execution of his offense to a still to be determined new offensive coordinator. This upcoming decision will likely make or break the rest of Frost’s tenure in Lincoln. So he had better take his time and make the right choice.

With the responsibility of running the Huskers’ offense no longer under his purview, Coach Frost needs to spend his time drilling down into all the details of his program that have been the hindrances to Nebraska winning on the field.

All of those details on special teams, roster management, recruiting, and the confidence level of the players need to be addressed in a sober and serious way. Otherwise, the staff changes and new lease on life will simply be rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic and delaying the inevitable.

History has shown these staff overhauls typically do not pan out, but for Husker fans’ sake, let’s hope that NU under Frost is the exception to the rule. The Nebraska football program is due a few breaks to go their way after all the fans have endured over the past couple of decades.

– Mike Matya

The news out of Lincoln on Monday met some folks’ expectations and completely missed others. That’s to be expected. The fanbase is as fractured over Scott Frost and the future of Nebraska football as I can remember.

While Frost returns, the majority of the staff on the offensive side of the football will not. There is a feeling that Scott needs to get more than one year out of this reset. It will be nearly impossible to attract an in-demand coordinator if it seems Frost will just be let go a year later.

There will need to be reassurances made to the new coordinator and other position coaches by Alberts and be reflected in their buyout in some way. And before Nebraska gets into hiring mode, Frost needs to figure out the job responsibilities that need to be filled.

The need to hire a special teams coordinator could force Frost into some position responsibilities. After that, Frost needs to give some real attention to bringing in recruiters with ties into some different areas of the country, in particular Texas and California.

Speaking of recruiting, another reset could be pushed when it comes to this class. Consider the parts of the class impacted by the staffing changes: quarterback, running back and two wide receivers.

The incoming coaches are definitely going to take the input from Frost and the other members of the staff when it comes to standing by or cutting loose any of the current commits. However, this class is so small and it’s important for this team to add some immediate difference-makers.

You might scoff when I say that and believe getting those players from high school just won’t be possible. There will be a chance for Nebraska to possibly get a player from junior college or two. But the portal is becoming more popular as the team’s season winds down.

Nebraska needs to be in the market for a quarterback, offensive tackle, defensive tackle, pass-rushing outside linebacker, defensive back, kicker, and potentially punter as well. If you are adding those seven spots to the current class, the number of players in the class balloons to 16.

We have always said the number would be closer to 13. Recently, however, there has been some discussion around here that Nebraska could push it and go to 15, if it’s the right players. It’s possible now that the attrition numbers will be a little higher than originally anticipated, based on the staff changes.

Following the tough decision to part with staff members, Nebraska needs to figure out what the roles and responsibilities will be for the new coaches and really review the needs of the 2022 recruiting class. The staff then needs to make some more tough choices to keep commits or cut anyone loose, and then get to work to fill the class with as much immediate help as they can get.

– Bryan Munson

Fall baseball for Nebraska wrapped up a couple of weeks ago, so HuskerOnline.com caught up with Husker assistant coach Lance Harvell again to get his thoughts on what transpired with the team during those weeks of fall practice.

Who were the standouts? Who were the surprises? Were any starting positions locked down by returning players? We get coach Harvell’s take in our usual Q&A format with him below:

What is your broad overview on how full practice went for your returning and new players?

“Obviously, coming off of last year and losing some of the guys that we lost – either to the Draft, graduation or just guys moving on – we lost a pretty good core group of guys who gave us a lot of production between (Spencer) Schwellenbach and (Cade) Povich and (Jaxon) Hallmark and Cam Wynne and (Luke) Roskam and (Chance) Hroch. And then, outside of that, you’ve got guys like Joe Acker and Mojo Hagge who were just rock-solid culture guys that contributed on the baseball field, but they also brought a lot to the locker room.

“So, we knew coming in that, aside from the production on the field, the bigger things we were really going to have to look at and what was more important was kind of the leadership and the personality we lost from the team. We gave the players the freedom to let their personalities come out and to take on those leadership roles. That was big for us this fall and we really started to see that.”

Who were some of those returning players who stepped into the leadership roles on the team?

“Brice Matthews really stepped up and took on a leadership role. Griffin Everitt is a totally different guy where he is at now from this time last year. He is just so much more comfortable in his own skin. Max Anderson is stepping up and being a little more vocal. He’s more willing to be ‘that guy.’ Shay Schanaman is another guy, as well as Kyle Perry.

“And all those guys are going to play prominent roles for us. Everitt and Brice Matthews just by nature of the positions they play – catcher and with Brice moving over to shortstop for us – they kind of have to have that. You’ve got Max Anderson who’s gotten all the recognition and accolades. Everybody knows his name and who he is, so by virtue of that, he needs to be a guy who the other players look to and follow his example; and he’s been the model of consistency this fall.

“Kyle Perry brings the personality part to the team culture. Schanaman is another one who has also really matured, not just overall in the time that we’ve been here, in just handling his business and being the guy some of these younger pitchers can look to and model themselves after. So, that’s what we saw from the culture side of it.”

What about the play on the field from your returning and new players?

“As far as the talent and production we saw, I really like what we have from a talent standpoint. We’ve got guys that can play. So then it just becomes developing those guys who don’t quite have the experience of the guys we had on the team last year. Getting those guys ready to go, and to step up and be ready to fill that production. Where we lost production last year from a handful of guys, I think we make up for it this year – both on the pitching side and in the field – by being more complete from top to bottom than we were.

“So, we should be able to replace that production from more guys. I like where we’re at right now. Guys are working hard and they had really good falls. We had freshmen who had really good falls. Luke Jessen comes to mind. I think he finished second or third in hitting. Core Jackson is a freshman Canadian that is going to play a significant role in our offense. He’s probably going to play second base and get significant time.

“Luke Sartori, who is not a freshman but he did not get significant playing time last year because of injury, really stepped his game up. He had a good summer and he came in and had a good fall for us. There are some things we challenged him to work on, and you can tell he did that. If he’s not in center, he will probably be in left field for us. Right now, one of the key battles to kind of watch is that centerfield spot between him and [freshman] Chase Mason.

“Chase Mason is a guy we weren’t sure we were going to get. We thought somebody was going to offer him a million or two million dollars out of high school. He has got all the tools in the world! If you had to create a baseball player from scratch, this is the guy you would build. I mean, he’s 6-4, 190 to 200 pounds. He runs like a deer and he’s got strength. I mean, this guy, I don’t mind saying, has the most power I’ve ever seen. Of anybody. And he’s just a freshman. He’s got a 90-mph arm. He’s a legit five-tool player.”

Is Mason still a relatively raw talent, though?

“What we’ve been working on with him, and what he’s got to get, is just the consistency part of it. He hasn’t played as much baseball as the other guys on the roster. Nor has he played at the same level of competition as other guys on the roster, so he’s still kind of very raw for sure. He’ll turn around and hit 93 450-feet or he could swing and miss 10 straight times at a guy throwing 82. So, it’s a little bit of a head-scratcher, but a lot of it is about what he’s seeing.

“”He just hasn’t been exposed to it as much as our other players. He just hasn’t had the same amount of at-bats and game reps as far as that goes. But we knew that coming in, and he’s also been fighting a little bit of a knee injury he had last summer that held him out the first month of fall ball. That kind of set him back, too, because he didn’t get those at-bats he really needed. So, we’ve been trying to play catch-up with him and to get him ready to see a higher level pitching, and to get him to where he can be a productive member in the lineup.”

Has anyone else locked down a starting position right now?

“I think, right now, it’s pretty fair to say that Griffin Everitt will be starting behind the plate, although he really got pushed this fall by freshman Josh Caron. Caron might also play some first base or left field because his bat is going to play. He is very advanced for a freshman. He’s a big, strong kid who can hit for power. He’s got a really good approach, so he’s going to factor in in some form or fashion. Whether it’s DH or somewhere else, his bat is going to force him somewhere in the lineup.

“I would also say Max Anderson at third base and Brice at short [have locked up starting positions], but that’s about it right now.”

What are some of the other position battles being played out?

“All across the outfield, really, as well as the other two infield spots. So, second base and first base, as well as all of the outfield spots. We had guys that played really well this fall, but I wouldn’t necessarily say they just went and took the spot. Leighton Banjoff came back and had a really good fall. I mentioned Jessen, Sartori and Mason. Cam Chick played second base all fall, just because Efrain Cervante was battling a lower leg injury, but he will probably be moved to the outfield in the spring.

“The competition is really high out there in the outfield. Right now, it’s going to be who do we think can execute the offense to help us win games; or it just may be where you could look out their one game and it will be an entirely left-handed hitting outfield, and the very next game it could be three totally different guys and a right-handed hitting outfield. We’ve got some options out there however we want to mix and match. Which is good.”

How about on the mound? Have you determined to any of the weekend starters will be heading into the winter?

“Those are still up in the air, but I think Schanaman probably made a move to solidify that No. 1 spot. Kyle Perry, from what we’ve seen with his history, we protected him this fall just to make sure his arm will be ready to go for the spring. I would think he would probably factor in, too, in a weekend spot. And then, after those two, it’s going to be a pretty good race.

“You’ve got Dawson McCarville who is a grad transfer from Grand Canyon, and he was their Saturday guy last year. You’ve got Jake Bunz who pitched for us quite a bit last season coming out of the pen, so he could factor into a starting role. Koty Frank had another good fall. With the summer and fall that he had, he is right there in the mix for a starting job. Mason Ornelas, who transferred from Texas A&M, could be in there, too. So those third and fourth starter spots are going to be pretty hotly contested. I would throw in Jaxon Jelkin, too, the kid from Bellevue West. His stuff is as good as anybody’s, so he could factor in there as well.”

Do you think you’ll be deeper in the bullpen next season?

“Yes, I do. Like I said, top to bottom on the mound and offensively, we’re going to be better all the way around. I think we have more options. With the bullpen, we were talking about it last week amongst the coaches, ‘OK, if we started tomorrow, what would it look like? This guy could start, and this guy could come out of the bullpen to set up this guy. And then the next day, you would still have guys who hadn’t pitched yet who you would feel really good about.’

You kind of project that through an entire weekend and we might not have to force anybody out there a second time. Like anything else, it will all play itself out and will end up whittling itself down to about eight or nine guys you feel really good about.”

Will there be a single designated closer like Schwellenbach last season, or will it be a joint effort by committee?

“It could be closing by committee, but we’ll see. Whoever wants that spot, the cream will rise to the top. If we had to go out [and close out] and win a game tonight, I would say that Emmett Olson would be that guy due to his stuff and his mentality. I mentioned Griffin Everitt’s development from last year until now, and that would apply to Emmitt Olson as well. He showed a lot of good things in the spring last year, but this year it’s at a different level.

“I mean, he’s sitting 90-94, and he might have even been a touch better than that this fall. He’s got three good pitches and the command is there. He’s a big, physical presence on the mound being 6-4, 230. Something like that. He throws a really heavy ball and he is coming right at you. He’s got that mentality that you want in the back end of a game.

“Again, it could be a close-by-committee-type deal. We could have Olson close on a Friday, and then we could have a Colby Gomes or an Ethan Bradford close on a Saturday, and then bring Olson back to close on a Sunday. We’ve got options that we feel really good about, both on the front and the back end.”

Has there been any more roster attrition?

“No, we didn’t get rid of anybody.”

– Mike Matya