National Signing Day was a dream come true for eight athletes from the Cornhusker State as they signed national letters of intent to play football at the University of Nebraska.

New Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule inherited a recruiting class that ranked in the Top 35 nationally before making a last minute push to keep some players committed to the Huskers. His effort was a massive success and gained steam at the very end of the cycle with a pair of commits from Omaha Westside’s 2022 Class A state champions and from Gretna offensive lineman Mason Goldman in the last few days before signing day.

As icing on the cake on Signing Day, Lincoln East athlete Malachi Coleman pledged to the Huskers as one of the top overall recruits to do so.

Nebraska 2023 Signees from Nebraska

Tristan Alvano | Omaha Westside | 6’2/185 | 247Sports Profile
– Alvano was consistently great over the past two years of his prep career which culminated in the 2022 Class A state championship game at Memorial Stadium. Alvano booted five field goals in a 43-41 win over Gretna,. With ice in his veins, Alvano calmly drilled a 45-yard field goal as time expired to give Westside its fourth state championship in school history. Alvano finished the season with a state record 16 field goals and broke the Class A career record with 27 field goals over his career. Alvano had other Power 5 offers, most of which were as a preferred walk on.

Malachi Coleman | Lincoln East | 6’5/215 | ATH | 247Sports Profile
– Coleman arguably received the most national attention from top programs out of the 2023 athletes from Nebraska. Coleman was committed to Nebraska for a short time before a coaching change saw Coleman reopen his recruitment. Coleman struggled with injuries as a senior, but finished with 31 receptions for 496 yards and six touchdowns. Over the last two years of his career, Coleman reeled in 48 passes for 1,057 yards and 16 touchdowns. USC, Georgia, Oregon, and Michigan were thought to be high on Coleman’s list of suitors.

Mason Goldman | Gretna | 6’6/250 | OL | 247Sports Profile
– Goldman earned First Team All-State honors for Gretna after helping lead his team to back-to-back appearances in the Class A state championship game. Goldman’s frame of 6’6 gives the Huskers a lot to develop over the next few seasons. Goldman also held offers from Arizona State, Kansas State, Memphis, Missouri, and Vanderbilt among others. Goldman committed to Nebraska two days before the December National Signing Day.

Gunnar Gottula | Lincoln Southeast | 6’6/285 | OL | 247Sports Profile
– Gottula comes from a school that has produced a number of major contributors to Nebraska’s football program at 9-time Class A state champion Lincoln Southeast. Southeast was a playoff qualifier and pushed eventual state runner-up Gretna to the limit in the first round, dropping a 27-24 decision. The Knights averaged 340 yards per game and had a 1,000-yard rusher on offense in Nebraska baseball commit Max Buettenback. Gottula chose the Huskers over offers mostly from the Big 12 and Big 10.

Brock Knutson | Scottsbluff | 6’7/280 | OL | 247Sports Profile
– Nebraska’s panhandle is not usually a hotbed of recruiting activity from FBS schools, but with Knuston’s 6-foot-7, 280-pound frame, he was sort of hard to miss. Knutson switched from Mitchell to Scottsbluff as his recruitment was blowing up, which eventually led to an offer from Nebraska. Scottsbluff averaged 344 yards per contest in a Class B semifinal run and had a 1,900-yard rusher in junior Sebastien Boyle. Arizona State also in for Knutson.

Jaylen Lloyd | Omaha Westside | 5’10/175 | WR | 247Sports Profile
– Lloyd was the last from the state to commit for the December period as the Omaha Westside wide receiver committed on December 17. Lloyd caught 44 passes for 785 yards and five touchdowns for the Class A state champions in 2022, a season after putting himself on the map with impressive junior tape while at Omaha Central. In the spring, Lloyd also considered Texas Tech, Georgia, and Illinois before committing to Nebraska. In the spring, Lloyd was one of the top triple jumpers nationally in the junior class with a leap of 50-feet, 6-inches at the 2022 Nike Outdoor Nationals in Eugene, Oregon.

Maverick Noonan | Elkhorn South | 6’4/235 | DE | 247Sports Profile
– Noonan was part of team that went unbeaten during the regular season before losing in the quarterfinals of the playoffs. Noonan garnered national interest for his pass rushing skills, with offers from the likes of Arizona State, Missouri, Stanford, and a handful of Big 10 and Big 12 schools. On a deep defensive front that featured a heavy rotation, Noonan recorded 55 tackles, nine sacks, and eight tackles for loss, rarely playing in the second half of games during the season due to the margin of victory.

Sam Sledge | Creighton Prep | 6’5/270 | OL | 247Sports Profile
– Creighton Prep has been a program that lines up and tries to get the best of you up front. Sledge was a huge reason why as the Junior Jays made a run to the semifinals ,which included an upset over unbeaten Elkhorn South in the quarterfinals. Creighton Prep rushed for 218 yards per game and had a 1,400-yard rusher in Charmar Brown, who is headed to North Dakota State. Sledge chose the Huskers over a handful of offers from Big 12 schools and Miami (OH).

NEBRASKA
Tristan Alvano | Omaha Westside | 6’2/185 | K
Malachi Coleman | Lincoln East | 6’5/215 | ATH
Mason Goldman | Gretna | 6’6/250 | OL
Gunnar Gottula | Lincoln Southeast | 6’6/285 | OL
Brock Knutson | Scottsbluff | 6’7/280 | OL
Jaylen Lloyd | Omaha Westside | 5’10/160 | WR
Maverick Noonan | Elkhorn South | 6’4/235 | DE
Sam Sledge | Creighton Prep | 6’5/270 | OL
Preferred Walk-On
Cole Ballard | Elkhorn South | 6’0/195 | ATH
Korver Demma | Gretna | 6’2/225 | LB
Cayden Echternach | Bellevue West | 6’4/240 | TE
Grant Seagren | Oakland-Craig | 6’7/250 | TE//DL

Nebraska’s 2023 Preferred Walk On (PWO) class is in the works, with currently four known local prospects to pledge with the Huskers.

Elkhorn South running back Cole Ballard, who also had a PWO offer from Oregon, selected Nebraska after an All-State performance that featured 1, yards and 36 touchdowns. Korver Demma was an All-State honoree from Class A runner-up Gretna after recording tackles , tackles for loss, and sacks in 2022. Cayden Echternach was not one of the top two options in Bellevue West’s vaunted passing game led by junior Daniel Kaelin, the Ecthertach caught passes for yards and touchdowns after switching from Omaha Burke. Oakland-Craig’s Grant Segren is a former Augustana commit who stands at 6’7 and 250 pounds and can project either as a tight end or the defensive line.