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The transfer portal window won’t officially open until Jan. 2, but Inside Nebraska’s Tim Verghese gets you ready with positions Nebraska is expected to address in the transfer portal and early names in the portal that the Cornhuskers’ staff is already monitoring.
Early transfer portal names to know for Nebraska
UConn running back Cam Edwards ran for 1,132 yards and 14 touchdowns on 199 attempts this fall and plans to enter the transfer portal. He played for Nebraska running backs coach EJ Barthel at UConn in 2022, moving from safety to running back as a freshman. He’s looking to make the jump to the Power Four.
Liberty running back
Evan Dickens entered the transfer portal after running for 1,339 yards and 16 touchdowns this season, averaging 5.8 yards per carry. He spent the early part of his career at Georgia Tech and has two seasons of eligibility remaining. Nebraska is monitoring and has multiple ties. He crossed paths with new Nebraska offensive line coach Geep Wade while at Georgia Tech and recruiting coordinator Matt Pearce is well connected with Liberty’s Jamey Chadwell and the Flames staff from his time working with Chadwell at Coastal Carolina.
Gardner Webb first-team all-conference running back
Quasean Holmes recently entered the portal and is another back on Nebraska’s radar, he ran for 969 yards and five touchdowns this fall, adding another 166 yards and two touchdowns through the air. He’ll have one year of eligibility remaining.
Minnesota redshirt freshman running back
Fame Ijeboi announced his intentions to hit the transfer portal on Tuesday. He ran for 441 yards and two touchdowns this year, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. Standing 6-foot, 210lbs with three seasons of eligibility remaining, Ijeboi will have a competitive market and I can see the Huskers getting involved. Nebraska is also monitoring Michigan State’s
Makhi Frazier, who ran for 520 yards and two touchdowns this fall on 116 carries. He’s a sophomore with three seasons of eligibility remaining
Nebraska has plenty of familiarity with UConn because of running backs coach EJ Barthel, who spent the 2022 season on Jim Mora Jr.’s staff. That could give the Huskers an opportunity with UConn offensive linemen
Ben Murawski and
Carsten Casady. Murawski stands 6-foot-7, 335lbs and started 12 games at left tackle for the Huskies this fall and six games at left guard last season, he has one year of eligibility remaining. Casady has played over 770 snaps for the Huskies in his career, starting all 12 games this fall at right tackle, and has yet to give up a sack in his career. He has two years of eligibility remaining and originally hails from Rolesville (N.C) a program the Huskers are familiar with. Both have announced their intentions to enter the portal when it opens on Jan. 2.
Harvard interior offensive linemen
Derek Osman and
Aidan Kilstrom are two others that could make sense for the Huskers. Osman stands 6-foot-4, 305lbs and has allowed just one sack in 17 starts, with one year of eligibility remaining. Kilstrom is an all-conference center who started the past two seasons for Harvard and has allowed just one sack in his career. The 6-foot-3, 300lb senior from Bettendorf (Ia.) Pleasant Valley has one year of eligibility remaining as well.
UCF defensive lineman John Walker had standout freshman season recording 20 tackles along the interior back in 2023. He missed 2024 with injury, but bounced back with 39 tackles and a sack this fall for the Knights. He stands 6’4, 324lbs and played under Nebraska defensive backs coach Addison Williams in 2023 and 2024, while Williams was UCF’s defensive coordinator.
A familiar name for Nebraska, USC defensive lineman
Carlon Jones announced his intentions to enter the portal on Friday. He was committed to Nebraska once upon a time in the 2024 cycle but eventually backed off and committed to USC. Standing 6-foot-3, 315lbs, Jones saw rotational action for the Trojans this season as a redshirt freshman. Though he was recruited by Terrance Knighton and Tony White who are no longer at Nebraska, Matt Rhule and Keith Williams are still in Lincoln and I wouldn’t be surprised if the Huskers circle back on the redshirt freshman. He’ll have three years of eligibility remaining.
Ball State defensive tackle
Darin Conley is a prospect to know, one of the top defensive tackles in the portal early on. He’s originally from Kansas City (Mo.) The Pembroke Hill School and now stands 6-foot-3, 284lbs coming out of his redshirt sophomore season. He recorded 28 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks this fall. Penn all-conference defensive tackle
Carter Janki is looking to make the jump up to the Power Four with his final season of eligibility. The 6-foot-5, 295-pound defensive lineman had 13 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks and 2 pass deflections in the last two seasons. South Alabama defensive lineman
Ed Smith stands 6-foot-3, 300lbs with 900 career snaps under his belt. He recorded 19 pressures this fall and had the fifth-highest pressure rates of all Sun Belt defensive tackles
UTSA defensive lineman
Chidera Otutu plans to enter the transfer portal when it opens. Standing 6-foot-1, 305lbs, the sophomore posted 28 tackles, 2.5 sacks and seven pressures. North Dakota sophomore defensive lineman
Emmanuel Olagbaju recently announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal. He stands 6-foot-3, 295lbs and recorded three tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks last season with two years of eligibility remaining
The Huskers have an offer out to speedy Slippery Rock safety transfer
Kanye Thompson, ranked the No. 4 safety in the portal early on per On3. He ran 10.13 in the 100-meter dash this past spring and has some interest as a two-sport transfer. Kansas has already gotten him on campus and he’s considering visits to Nebraska, Kansas State and Memphis among others thus far.