Offensive Lineman Branson Yager Becomes Fifth Nebraska Commit In 2021 Class
The Nebraska football team gained its first verbal commit in over a month on Monday evening. Offensive lineman Branson Yager announced he was heading to the Huskers on Twitter, adding he was “100% committed.”
The 6-foot-7-inch tackle out of Grantsville, Utah, is the fifth player to commit to the school from the 2021 class and the third to announce his intention to go to school in Lincoln since the calendar turned to 2020.
Yager, who is considered a three-star prospect, talked to Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports not long after making his announcement. He told Wiltfong that when he got the offer from Nebraska in mid-March, he was quite excited about the prospect of playing for the Huskers.
“It’s away from home and in the Midwest which is where I want to be. I also love the coaches and the relationships that we have built are amazing and will continue to grow so much. I’ve got family in Kansas so family is not too far away. I really enjoy everything they have to offer and Nebraska’s fan base is second to none.”
Yager also said he liked the job head coach Scott Frost has done in building programs. He added Frost and his staff had to “clean some things up” when they first arrived in Lincoln, which is why he knows that when he arrives on campus, the coaching staff will have things rolling.
I am 100% committed! @coach_frost @GregAustin2717 @CoachTuioti92 @SeanDillonNU @HuskerFBNation @NEB_Recruiting #GBR #Huskers pic.twitter.com/rZga7l70Th
— Branson Yager (@BransonYager) April 28, 2020
Yager also said he’s a big hunter and he thinks Frost is, too. That’s apparently something the player and his future head coach bonded over during their conversations.
While Yager’s recruiting rankings might not get Husker fans excited right off the bat, he’s been getting more attention in the last few months. He has six total offers, with all of them from Power 5 conferences except for one from Brigham Young University. In addition to Nebraska and BYU, he was being courted by California, Iowa State, Vanderbilt, and Virginia.
The Monday commitment is a bit of good news in what hasn’t been a fantastic spring for Frost and the Huskers. The coronavirus outbreak has kept the staff from getting players to come and see what Lincoln has to offer. They also lost a big recruiting battle to the Minnesota Golden Gophers for the state’s top player, Avante Dickerson.
Even with the addition of Yager, commits have been few and far between for the Cornhuskers. Linebacker Christopher Paul Jr. committed on March 20 and before that, four-star linebacker Randolph Kpai pulled the trigger. The Huskers’ other two commits in the 2021 class, offensive linemen Henry Lutovsky and Teddy Prochazka, committed last fall.
