Recruiting success continued for Nebraska football as linebacker Riley Van Poppel committed to the program Monday afternoon.
Van Poppel is a four-star commitment. He is the 63rd overall player in his class from the state of Texas per the 247Sports Composite Rankings.
In addition to Nebraska, he also had offers from the likes of Michigan, Arizona State, Arkansas, Florida State, and Wisconsin. He was recruited to Nebraska by Eric Chinander. Mike Dawson served as the secondary recruiter.
What can he bring to Nebraska Football?
Measuring in at six-foot-four, 270 pounds, Van Poppel brings a variety of skills to the Nebraska football defensive line. For one, he possesses a tremendous amount of strength. He is able to bulldoze his way through offensive lines, and come up and make plays. Secondly, he has speed. In addition to his strength, his speed allows him to get into offensive backfields and disrupt plays quickly. Shedding blocks is something else that stands out about him. He is able to do so quickly, and disrupt plays before they get started.
With this commitment, the 2023 Nebraska football recruiting class continues to grow. The class itself ranks 25th overall nationally.
This commitment is the highest -ranked in the class. Van Poppel holds a numerical rating of just over 89. This makes him a bit higher than wide receiver Jaiden Doss, who also committed this month. This has been a very successful month of recruiting for Nebraska. They have landed four commitments so far, and eight commitments in total for the class.
Nebraska football wants to continue to build their defensive line, and a commitment from Van Poppel is certainly a step in the right direction. He is an immediate impact player. He allows Nebraska football to have versatility and strength on the defensive line, and that is huge in today’s game of college football. No longer are defensive lineman only used to clog up running lanes. They are expected to make plays.
