Breaking: Nebraska football joins Ohio State in battle for top-ranked player
Nebraska football has officially thrown its hat in the ring in pursuit of Emmanuel Karmo, the top-ranked player from Minnesota for the class of 2025. Karmo revealed that he received an offer from the Cornhuskers via a post on X earlier this week.
After a great talk with coach @s_kwilli32 I am blessed to say that I’ve received an offer to play @HuskerFootballits a blessing and I can’t wait to come down for a visit @77williehoward @TPatt17 @AllenTrieu @cooperhawksFB #AGTG it’s great to be a hawk.
Of course, Nebraska football is not without competition for the rights to add Karmo. The Ohio State Buckeyes and the USC Trojans have also extended offers to the Robbinsdale Cooper High School star. That’s not to mention that the Minnesota Golden Gophers also appear to be a favorite to land Karmo.
“When I was younger, I remember saying I was gonna play for them. And now I actually can,” Karmo said (h/t Ryan Burns of 247 Sports).
“I’m planning on visit Kansas State, Ohio State and USC this spring yet. I know the USC visit will be in March sometime, but I haven’t gotten a date for the others yet,” Karmo added.
Nevertheless, the Cornhuskers have ample time to further convince Karmo to come and play for Nebraska football, which could use some good news after finishing the 2023 college football season with just a 5-7 overall record and 3-6 in conference play in the Big Ten. The Cornhuskers have also not won more than five games in a season since going 9-4 in 2016.
New Ohio State Safety Caleb Downs Shares Crazy Transfer Portal Story
The Ohio State Buckeyes landed arguably the top name in the NCAA Transfer Portal this offseason, with former Alabama Crimson Tide star safety Caleb Downs committing to the program.
Downs was the crowned jewel of an already stellar haul from the Buckeyes, that saw them land a new starting quarterback in Will Howard and a new star running back in Quinshon Judkins.
And as soon as he stepped foot on campus in Columbus, Downs was already one of, if not the top talent on the entire roster.
So it should come as no surprise that the moment he hit the portal, Downs became the top target of nearly every program in the country. Downs opened up about the experience during his first interviews with the program on Tuesday, sharing a crazy story on Tuesday.
“I got 102 calls in one day – well not in one day, probably seven or eight hours,” Downs said. “Just being able to minimize what my mind was going through, that was a big thing for me to make a sound decision.”
Despite the enormous amount of interest in his talent – including from the likes of Georgia, Texas and other top programs with already impressive transfer hauls – it was the Buckeyes that won out in the end.
So what separated the Buckeyes? Downs’ relationship with head coach Ryan Day, and secondary coach Tim Walton.
“I just love the program here, I love Coach Walton, and love what the people had to say around here. I believe in Coach Day, and I believe in this team.”
With Downs now in the fold, the Buckeyes secondary – which was already massively talented – is arguably the best in the country, with the former Crimson Tide star projected to line up as a starter next to fellow safety Lathan Ransom, with as Jordan Hancock, Denzel Burke, and Davison Igbinosun manning the three corner spots.
And with that talented of a secondary buoyed by an already dominant front seven, picking the Buckeyes was an easy choice for the 2024 All-American candidate.
“They played great defense last year, he said. “Just watching the film and seeing how they progressed and seeing how their defense played last year definitely helped me make a sound decision and what I would be getting into.”
