Who are the Nebraska recruits that got away?
Recruiting cycles never end. And Nebraska has had its ups and downs on the trail over the last several years, but what about recruits of Husker past? What about the ones that got away? The big-time players that all most took the field for the Big Red and instead decided to go another way.
We’ve compiled a list of famous players who got away from the Nebraska Cornhusker football program over the years. From NFL greats to MLB all-stars, you’ll see an exciting group. Players, you knew where almost Huskers and even a few you never knew about before today. So strap in and take a scroll and see a list (a partial list anyway) of the big-time recruits who decided to go to a different school for one reason or another. How different would football history be if just one of these names made another choice? This is about to get interesting.
Donovan McNabb - Syracuse
McNabb was down to two schools leading up to signing day, Syracuse and Nebraska. Donovan wanted to play college basketball, and the Huskers weren’t very keen on that idea. However, the Orange would let him play basketball, and the presence of Tommy Frazier has been cited as his reasons for heading to New York state.
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Tim Brown - Notre Dame
Brown is on record saying that his final two schools were Nebraska and Notre Dame. He clearly made the right choice, as he would go on to win the 1987 Heisman Trophy.
Malcolm Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Marshall Faulk - San Diego State
Nebraska was high on Faulk’s list, but the Huskers wanted him to play defensive back and not running back. He then went to San Diego State and became an NFL Hall of Fame running back. Swing and a miss by the Cornhuskers.
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Emmitt Smith - Florida
Yes, the NFL’s all-time leading rusher almost attended Nebraska. Smith told his family and friends that he would wear the colors of the school he would be committing to on signing day. He showed up wearing red and white. Word got around that Smith would be attending Nebraska. He then committed to Florida. Just cruel.
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Haloti Ngata - Oregon
Ngata actually committed to Nebraska two months before signing day but later changed his mind as he wanted to play closer to his home in Salt Lake City.
Photo by Joe Robbins-USA TODAY Sports
(c) 2004 by Joe Robbins
Carl Crawford - Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Crawford committed to Nebraska as a quarterback before becoming a pro in baseball. Frank Solich has said that had Crawford come to Lincoln, Jammal Lord, the man who took over for Eric Crouch, would have been moved to safety. Instead, Crawford would play 14-season in the majors playing for Tampa Bay, Boston, and the LA Dodgers.
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