Why Nebraska football walk-ons picked a chance with Huskers over scholarship offers

There were talented, uncommitted prospects they wanted to add into their 2024 recruiting class, but NU didn’t have enough scholarships.

Every FBS programs can grant a maximum of 85 full-ride scholarships. The Huskers are still feeling the effects of the NCAA allowed extra year of eligibility for players who went through the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Fifth- or sixth-year scholarship players have impacted NU’s scholarship limit, as did its large recruiting classes in 2023 and 2024.

But by finding a way to add a pair of three-star recruits as walk-ons this past cycle, Nebraska is one of many programs getting creative with roster management.

The Huskers’ walk-on additions were also a way to build for the future while remaining stable in the present. After signing nine walk-ons in December, Nebraska added five more on Wednesday’s signing day — and coach Matt Rhule sees plenty of potential in the group.

“We were very intentional about the way we approached the walk-on class,” Rhule said. “We wanted to do a great job with those guys because I think there’s at least three or four guys that’ll start for us some day in this walk-on class. That’s a bold statement, maybe, but I really believe it.”

The pair of three-star recruits who joined the program this week are Jordan Ochoa, defensive end from Castle View, Colorado, and Kahmir Prescott, a safety from Philadelphia Neumann-Goretti. Both unofficially visited during Nebraska’s spring game last April then committed elsewhere only to reopen their recruitment late in the process.

Ochoa, a former Wyoming commit who gained 25 pounds by the time Nebraska coaches visited in January, cited his family as a major reason why he accepted NU’s walk-on offer. The high upside pass rusher grew up in western Nebraska before moving to Colorado, with Rhule saying Wednesday that Ochoa “has a love for Nebraska.”

Prescott, meanwhile, was a player coaches identified as one of NU’s key targets from the get-go. He was one of the first 2024 prospects to receive an offer from the new staff in December 2022, with defensive backs coach Evan Cooper playing a key role in Prescott’s recruitment.

While the Huskers were in a strong position to land the athletic, rangy safety for several months, Prescott’s committed to Wisconsin in April. Having reopened his recruitment in early December, Prescott still had plenty of options — and it’s a testament to NU coaches that he opted for a walk-on opportunity with the Huskers over scholarship offers elsewhere.

“He loves the game, is tough, physical, can run, we think he’ll be a ballhawk,” Rhule said. “He was headed to another school and for one reason or another that didn’t work out, so he was on the market.

“(Cooper) stayed in touch with him, and I think he has a lot of confidence and trust in us as people that we’re going to do what we say we’re going to do. I think we added a really good player there.”

Prescott chose Nebraska over offers from Colorado, Maryland, Michigan State, Penn State and Texas A&M while Ochoa had scholarship opportunities with New Mexico State, Toledo and Washington State.

Their situations mirror that of Xander Ruggeroli, an offensive lineman for Las Vegas Gorman who Nebraska once pursued as a scholarship player but added as a walk-on instead. Ruggeroli, ranked as high as a four-star prospect by Rivals, signed with the Huskers in December despite scholarship offers from Arizona State, Boston College and Washington State.

So, what’s the upside for players to take a walk-on spot over a scholarship? NIL assurances for premium walk-ons can help make the financial situation comparable while the option of going on scholarship in 2025 remains on the horizon.

“Because I was a walk-on, I never say, ‘Hey, you should pass up a scholarship to come here,’” Rhule said. “I don’t ever tell someone to do that. I simply present that if you do come here, this is what it’ll be like. And I do believe that the way that we practice and the way that we do things gives everyone an opportunity to show what they can do.”

There is an element of risk for players who walk on at bigger programs rather than receiving a scholarship. But the benefits of being at a school like Nebraska weighed heavily on the minds of Ochoa and Prescott.

NU coaches have turned several walk-ons into starting scholarship players — and the talent needed to do so is present within NU’s 2024 walk-on class.

“No place is known for having great walk-ons better than the University of Nebraska,” Rhule said. “Some of those guys had opportunities, and when they go out and look at places that are wonderful universities, the chance to play here, the chance to play in this stadium, the chance to play in front of our fanbase and the chance to enjoy their college journey with their family wins out.”