Top 14 Most Intriguing Huskers To Watch In Spring Ball, No. 12 Blye Hill

Nebraska football kicks off Spring Ball Season No. 2 under Matt Rhule with an official March 24 start date.

In the leadup to the much-anticipated (and much-needed) return of Husker football, Inside Nebraska is counting down the days until that first morning of practice with our list of the Top 14 Most Intriguing Huskers to Watch during spring ball.

To be clear: This is not a list of the 14 most important players on the Huskers’ roster, and it is not a list of the 14 best players in the Nebraska program. It is a list that consists of mostly players who we have not seen on the field much, if at all, in a Husker jersey or otherwise who we – and many others – are anxious to see play live in order to get a better understanding of them as an athlete, how they fit into this version of Nebraska football and what their role might be in 2024.

Without further rambling, we move forward on our list with No. 12: Defensive back and first-year transfer addition Blye Hill

Measureables: 6-foot-3, 185 lbs.

Class: Sophomore (first-year transfer)

Position: Defensive back

Analysis:

There were some who broke down the signing of Hill – who had just wrapped up his freshman season at FCS program Saint Francis (PA) – as one of the most intriguing they can remember over recent years in this program.

That feels like a bit of overkill, but the point is taken: What will Hill be during his first year at Nebraska?

Hill is not a one-and-done or plug-and-play prospect signee out of the portal. He has three years of eligibility left.

So … is he a grab-and-stash player out of the FCS level who Nebraska hopes to develop and eventually utilize in a big role a year or two from now?

Or … is he a guy who has the tools to play right away in a secondary that could use the cornerback depth from a guy of his measurables?

Like we touched on Monday with No. 13 on our list – redshirt freshman Dwight Bootle II – the Huskers could be pushing for a taller, bigger, longer athlete at the second outside cornerback spot to pair with Tommi Hill. If that’s the case, there isn’t anyone else on the defensive roster who better fits that mold than the 6-3, 185-pound Hill.

But can Evan Cooper and Tony White course correct some of Hill’s techniques and habits? He was a late bloomer in terms of height and weight, so he’ll need plenty of coaching to weed out some things. Cooper told Hill during his Nebraska visit in the winter that he too often plays too high and needs to get lower – which is not an uncommon thing with young, raw players who have plus-height – and that he’ll notice the results if he does. (e.g. He’ll start moving, turning and running faster if gets better/lower leverage.)

That’s just one example of something the staff will be working on with Hill this spring. If he can develop, both Hill and the staff feel Hill he is a great fit in White’s 3-3-5 defense that generally plays with two true corners, two true safeties and a rover.

“They run a lot of DBs onto the field, so it takes a lot of guys to cover,” Hill told Inside Nebraska shortly after signing with the Huskers. “These offenses nowadays, with so much spread and empty (formations), and the newcomers to the conference, they’re definitely Air Raid offenses.”

Hill enters a DB room that loses corners Quinton Newsome and Tamon Lynum, who transferred to Pittsburgh, but returns starters Tommi Hill and Malcolm Hartzog, who played a little safety in 2023 as well.

Hill is another young corner in a room filled with them, including Bootle, Ethan Nation, Syncere Safeeullah, Jeremiah Charles and Brice Turner. Charles and Turner both came into the program as receivers but switched to defensive back midway through the season.

So, the need and the opportunity is there – especially if, again as we discussed yesterday, the Huskers would like to get Hartzog more snaps as a safety or perhaps move him there permanently if a quality, dependable corner steps up in the offseason. That starts with spring ball, and perhaps it could start with Hill. That’s what we don’t totally know. That’s what makes him a no-brainer to be included somewhere on this list. We believe No. 12 is the proper spot.