Nebraska
Jeremy Pernell: Filling a Gap at Running Back
Third in a series. | Part 1, Part 2
Nebraska football continued to fortify several positions with its 2024 recruiting class. Among the handful of decommitments the staff dealt with during the cycle, none was more impactful than Lancaster (Texas) running back Kewan Lacy. The four-star Lacy had been committed for four months until backing off his pledge in late October, leaving the staff without a desperately needed class running back.
When Matt Rhule and his coaching staff got to Lincoln after the 2022 season, every skill position on the offensive side of the ball needed to be seriously addressed. After two offseasons, the running back room is still full of questions.
The Huskers came into this offseason with just four scholarship running backs set to return. Gabe Ervin Jr. (dislocated hip) and Rahmir Johnson (dislocated shoulder) are both coming off season-ending injuries sustained in September. Emmett Johnson, who started six games last season, returns after rushing for 411 yards — just behind the now-graduated Anthony Grant’s 413 — which is the fewest by a team-leading NU running back in a full season since 1958. Kwinten Ives, signed in Rhule’s transition class, redshirted and is still an unknown commodity. The position group as a whole accounted for just seven total touchdowns last season.
Rhule has stated he wants to be a body-blow program. He wants to be a physical team that wears you down through three quarters and suffocates you in the fourth. If he wants to foster that identity, he needs to build up the talent in that room.
To that end, the staff spent the offseason trying to do just that. In late June, longtime EJ Barthel target Mekhi Nelson reclassified in order to join the team this fall.
Nebraska also took steps to address the room after the 2023 season was over. Husker coaches had less than two months to try and replace Lacy in the ’24 class. Without a viable high school option, they shifted their focus toward the transfer portal seeking a high-upside talent.
Oregon running back Dante Dowdell’s high school career in Mississippi was legendary. He was selected first-team all-state as a junior and senior by the Mississippi Association of Coaches. He was named the MaxPreps Mississippi Player of the Year as a junior and was MHSAA 5A Mr. Football as a senior after leading Picayune Memorial High School to back-to-back state championships.
During Picayune’s two state championship playoff runs, he rushed for 1,491 yards and 21 touchdowns, averaging 6.8 yards per carry and 186.4 yards per game — being named the games MVP both years.
Across his junior and senior seasons, Dowdell rushed for 4,720 yards on 586 carries (8 yards per carry) and 59 touchdowns in 28 games.
He signed with Oregon over finalists Alabama, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Penn State and LSU, while holding notable Power Five offers from Arkansas, Auburn, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Minnesota, Mississippi State, Missouri, South Carolina, Texas A&M and West Virginia.
Dowdell was selected to play in the prestigious All-American Bowl as well as the Mississippi/Alabama All-Star Classic.
A consensus four-star recruit in the 2023 class, Dowdell was regarded as a top 10 tailback by all four prominent recruiting services and was ranked the No. 109 (Rivals), No. 165 (ESPN), No. 166 (On3) and No. 192 (247Sports) overall player in the country.
After enrolling in January, the 6-foot-2, 225-pound Dowdell was part of a talented and crowded backfield in Eugene. He spent last season battling for the No. 3 spot, playing behind second-team All-Pac-12 Bucky Irving and Jordan James, who finished the season with 696 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Dowdell appeared in six games as a true freshman for the Ducks — burning his redshirt — and finished with 17 carries for 90 yards, with the bulk of his workload coming in the first game of the season, when he had eight carries for 55 yards and his only touchdown.
During his end-of-season exit meeting with Oregon coaches, he was told he’d likely begin 2024 no higher than third in the pecking order again. Despite that, even with Jordan James returning and promising junior Noah Whittington coming back from an injury, Dowdell’s father, Lawrence Hopkins, admitted that Dante probably would have stayed at Oregon had his redshirt not been burned. With Dowdell having played two games with two snaps or less, I suspect the trust had been broken with the coaches.
Instead, Dante and his father thought it best to look for an opportunity elsewhere that offered the chance to earn more playing time. Dowdell entered the transfer portal on Dec. 14, just one day before the deadline, with the Huskers being one of the first teams to contact him.
Along with Nebraska, several other schools reached out including Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Missouri, Ohio State, Tennessee, Oklahoma State, Georgia, Washington, Baylor, Houston, Cincinnati, Indiana and Southern Miss.
Dowdell took an official visit to hometown Mississippi State the day after entering the portal, squeezing in a visit before the recruiting dead period took effect.
Despite the early inquiry, the Huskers were completely off Dowdell’s radar initially. EJ Barthel got his attention over the next couple weeks as he conveyed the opportunity for immediate playing time and described the pro-style offense the Huskers wanted to run, which is similar to what Dowdell excelled in as a prepster.
Dowdell’s father — the son of former NFL lineman Lawrence Pillers — is the recruiting coordinator & CEO of “King Recruiting” and also an All-American Bowl Game and combine scout, so he has connections in the industry. Hopkins knows several college running backs coaches and was given strong reviews after asking around about Barthel. Even Dowdell’s position coach at Oregon, Carlos Locklyn — now at Ohio State — praised Nebraska’s RB coach.
Barthel was able to jockey the Huskers into position for a visit coming out of the dead period.
Nebraska brought Dowdell to Lincoln Jan. 5, with newly signed five-star QB Dylan Raiola coming to campus to help peer recruit. In fact, Dylan’s was the second hand Dante shook as he emerged from his drop-off vehicle outside North Stadium — Matt Rhule’s was the first, with the head coach greeting him a few steps from the car.
Raiola and Dowdell spent a lot of time around each other during the two-day visit. The pair attended a wrestling meet and watched defensive lineman Nash Hutmacher return to the mat and earn a pin as coaches and teammates cheered emphatically inside the Devaney Center.
The visit went extremely well and Dowdell even teased Husker fans by posting a picture to social media of himself in a Nebraska uniform jumping over Raiola sitting on the Memorial Stadium turf.
Prior to visiting the Huskers, Dowdell had considered taking an additional visit to Texas A&M or Missouri on Jan. 7, before the visiting window closed. There was no need after he came to Lincoln. He announced his committed to Nebraska over social media on Jan. 6.
Dowdell was ranked as the No. 14 (247Sports), No. 15 (Rivals) and No. 18 (On3) RB in this year’s transfer portal cycle. He enrolled in January with three years of eligibility remaining and an available redshirt in his pocket.
He was able to participate in spring ball and finished with 76 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries in the Red-White game. Coming out of those practices, no one really separated himself from the rest of the pack, meaning it should be a pretty competitive fall camp.
Emmett Johnson has enjoyed a strong offseason, and we know the staff really likes Gabe Ervin. It’s going to be difficult to displace either of them as RB1. We also know Rahmir Johnson will have some sort of role in this offense, regardless. Although we haven’t seen Kwinten Ives, the staff seems high on his future as well.
Even so, there isn’t an established bell cow in the room and in spite of the optimism from coaches, there are a lot of questions surrounding those four guys. Can Gabe Ervin ever stay healthy? Can Rahmir Johnson find his 2021 form? Does Emmett Johnson have elite upside? Can Kwinten Ives stand out at this level?
Dowdell is capable of being a workhorse in a run-based offense. He’s a one-cut downhill runner with a nice blend of speed and physicality. He seems to be tailor-made for what Rhule wants to run in the Big Ten.
The question is can he make a good enough impression this summer to be that guy this season? Dowdell is the most naturally talented tailback on the roster, but we know with Matt Rhule that isn’t always the deciding factor. You have to be consistent and meet the standards set by the coaches. There’s a lot of familiarity with the guys in front of him. Guys the staff really like and trust. I think it’ll be tough for Dowdell to come out of fall camp as RB1, but I think he’ll find a role on this team at some point.
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They say all roads lead home, and for Daniel Kaelin, that remains true as he returns to Lincoln after a year away from the program in 2025.
The former four-star Belleview West (NE) star heads into his sophomore season in his second stint as a Husker, ready to compete for an impactful role. Though he’ll likely be on the outside looking in, in terms of earning the starting job, after gaining starting experience at his previous school, he won’t go down without a fight.
Now, after roughly a week and a half of spring football practices in the books, Kaelin met with the media Wednesday. During his time at the mic, the Nebraska native touched on a variety of topics, including his decision to come home, an ego-less quarterback room in Lincoln, and much more.
It didn’t take long for the will-be sophomore to get asked about his decision to return to Nebraska. After explaining the values he got out of his time away, Kaelin described it as something he’s as excited about as he is thankful for.
“It’s been really good,” said Kaelin. “Nebraska’s my home, and there are so many people on this team that I have a good relationship with. So, the transition has been really smooth. I’ve been enjoying being back, for sure”.
Leaving after the end of the 2024 season, Kaelin’s path towards competing for a starting job appeared to be full of obstacles. But a little over a year after he transferred to Virginia, the situation has changed dramatically. Back in the scarlet and cream, a year older and with more experience, the soon-to-be third-year player is enjoying his return, to say the least.
In his time as a Cavalier, the then-redshirt freshman saw action in seven games. Despite a sparing role, he still managed to throw for the first 339 yards of his career, while also scoring his first collegiate touchdown. Kaelin also proved to be a threat on the ground, with 12 carries for 72 yards.
In total, he amassed 400 all-purpose yards at Virginia and comes to Nebraska more battle-tested than before. Here, the 6-foot-3, 218-pounder will look to grow even more, but was asked to reflect on what he gained during his stay on the East Coast.
“It was my first time being away from home,” he said. “I think that year- doing things on my own- was probably big for me becoming an adult. I think I learned a lot about myself that way”.
Between personal development and his time on the field, Kaelin’s lone season at Virginia was not for nothing. Instead, a more mature version of the young quarterback is what the Huskers are getting back amongst their ranks. He also provides them with the third quarterback to have started a Power Four game in their career.
After discussing what he gained in his time away, Kaelin was then asked to explain how he landed back in Lincoln ahead of the 2026 season. To somewhat of a surprise, the Nebraska native suggested it wasn’t initially planned. Rather, the opportunity presented itself, and both sides agreed.
“I didn’t really even expect to be leaving the last school I was at,” Kaelin said. “Things kind of happened pretty quickly. When I got in the portal, I was able to get in touch with Coach Rhule, and when I knew that this was a possibility, it just made a lot of sense for me. It is really comfortable for me coming back home and being around people that I know”.
Using his past relationships with coaches and players such as Carter Nelson and Bode Soukup, the former in-state signal-caller is what you’d call back home. Confident, comfortable, and with a lot more to prove, he’ll look to make an impact on the field for the first time as a Husker this fall.
Kaelin was then asked to shed light on the dynamic within the quarterbacks’ room, and his response sounded similar to that of quarterback coach Glenn Thomas earlier in the day. Instead of pushing each other away due to competition, the position group is looking to help each other grow. In fact, Kaelin suggested it may be the most unified position group he’s ever been a part of, and something he views as a positive change.
“There’s egos,” he said. There’s money involved. I think that can create some tension or problems sometimes. There haven’t been any type of issues like that with the room that we have right now; it’s been great.”
While some suggest that his comment may be a back-handed dig at former signal-callers within the room, it’s clear that the Huskers no longer have an issue with competition in 2026. Instead, the group is pushing eachother to improve. And when spring ball and fall camp come to a close, the best man for the job will emerge with the others’ full support.
A big change since Kaelin was on campus in 2024 is NU’s retooled wide receiver room. After welcoming in a new position coach, the Huskers have been able to recruit, retain, and add several high-level players to the unit. When asked to offer his thoughts on the room, the will-be sophomore didn’t hold back his early praise.
“A big thing that we’ve noticed so far is we have guys that make plays,” Kaelin said. “We’ve been challenging them to- when the ball is in the air, it has got to be theirs. We don’t want 50/50 balls. They’ve got to go make plays. And so far, they’ve definitely been doing that. It’s been really impressive to watch”.
Not only are the Big Red’s pass catchers bigger, deeper, and faster than before, but it’s beginning to pay off for the offense this spring. There’s still plenty of time for the quarterbacks and wideouts to develop chemistry, but early reports suggest the relationship has started well.
For Kaelin, it was positive to see the metaphorical boy return as a man. Not only has he gained experience and found success on the field, but he’s also come back with a deeper understanding of what it takes to lead a team. By all accounts, it appears his teammates have taken a liking to him, so don’t be surprised if he sees the field in some role this upcoming fall.
Again, he’s far from guaranteed the starting job here in Lincoln and will have to beat out two players with more experience than he has. Still, it is more than likely that he will take his first snaps as a Husker at some point in 2026. Were he to take meaningful reps, the third-year sophomore has already been tested before, and that gives Nebraska reason for optimism about the room.
Overall, he sounded as if he was preparing to be more than ready when his opportunity comes. Returning home did not come without a price, but don’t expect Kaelin to remain silent his second time around. The Huskers are looking for a player who can reliably make plays, and it’s hard to argue that there would be another player in his position group who cares more about the program than he does.
Still, he’ll have to prove his skill is worthy of deserving that chance. Spring should tell a lot about where he stands.
Nebraska
In a first for Nebraska, federal judge awards attorney’s fees to immigrant who was detained without bond hearing
For the first time, a federal judge in Nebraska has awarded court costs and attorney’s fees to an immigrant who prevailed in a lawsuit challenging his detention without bond.
Senior U.S. District Court Judge John Gerrard, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, issued the ruling on Tuesday and awarded $1,535.23 to Edgar Eduardo Cadillo Salazar. Gerrard had previously ruled that Salazar’s detention at the Cass County Jail without bond was unconstitutional and ordered the government to provide him with a bond hearing or release him from custody.
Under the federal Equal Access to Justice Act, individuals and businesses that prevail in civil lawsuits against the federal government can file a motion to hold the government liable for attorney’s fees and court costs. Judges can order the government to cover those costs unless they find that the government’s position was “substantially justified,” or if “special circumstances make an award unjust.”
Before last summer, when the Department of Homeland Security revised its longstanding interpretation of statute, only immigrants who were encountered at the border or other ports of entry were subject to mandatory detention. Immigrants encountered after residing in the U.S. were typically subject to discretionary detention and eligible for a bond hearing.
The new interpretation has led to detention without bond for tens of thousands of immigrants who would have previously been eligible to bond out – and it’s led to an endless stream of wrongful detention lawsuits in Nebraska and around the country. A Reuters investigation found that federal courts have ruled against the mandatory detention policy more than 4,400 times.
In Gerrard’s order granting Salazar’s request for attorney’s fees, he said the government’s position that all undocumented immigrants are ineligible for bond hearings was not substantially justified.
“This ‘new understanding’ of a decades-old statute has resulted in the government detaining hundreds of thousands of nonviolent individuals, often without due process or other constitutional protections,” Gerrard wrote. “It has also sparked thousands of lawsuits where courts have ordered release of those wrongfully detained, for which neither immigration courts nor the Department of Justice have seemed prepared.”
He continued: “The government has not provided any justification, let alone a substantial one, for its radical departure from the historical treatment of noncitizens who entered the United States without inspection. Its arguments rely purely on statutory interpretation; the government apparently expects it can transform an entire area of administrative law because it unilaterally decided that, for thirty years, everyone was wrong about what a statute meant.”
Salazar was later denied bond by an immigration judge and remains in custody, according to his attorney, Alexander Smith.
Two similar motions were denied last month by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bazis, an appointee of former President Joe Biden. In both cases, Bazis had ruled in favor of the detained immigrants, and they were later released on bond per her orders. But in her opinions denying attorney’s fees under the EAJA, she found that the government’s position on mandatory detention was “substantially justified.”
“The Court cannot say that the Federal Respondents’ pre-litigation decision to treat [the respondent] as being subject to mandatory detention, while not ultimately correct in this Court’s view, lacked a reasonable basis in law or fact,” Bazis wrote in a footnote of her opinions.
The issue of mandatory detention is currently under consideration by the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers Nebraska and other Midwest states. In oral arguments last month, the appellate court’s conservative judges appeared friendly to the mandatory detention policy.
The UCLA men’s basketball team made Senior Night one to savor Tuesday, dominating No. 9 Nebraska 72-52 at Pauley Pavilion for its 20th victory of the season and third over a top-10 ranked opponent.
The Bruins improved to 20-10 overall and 12-7 in the Big Ten with one regular season game remaining, Saturday at crosstown rival USC.
Trent Perry scored 20 points, Eric Dailey Jr. had 14 and three players — Tyler Bilodeau, Skyy Clark and Xavier Booker — each added eight points.
“Nebraska’s got a great team,” UCLA coach Mick Cronin said. “This is the best we’ve played all year — they brought out the best in us. We went from our worst defensive effort to our best. They outhustle everyone they play, but not us. Tonight we were great, but I love the way they play. If we had their attitude we’d have their record.”
Eric Freeny had four points, five rebounds and three steals in 18 minutes for UCLA, which got 26 points in the paint and 17 second-chance points.
“Effort is what it takes to win in March,” Freeny said. “It was our last home game. Coach keeps on pushing me to be better everyday.”
Sam Hoiberg had 12 points to lead Nebraska, but Pryce Sandfort, who began the game leading the conference in three-pointers made per game, was held to nine points.
“Sandford has been unbelievable so to hold him to nine points is amazing,” Cronin said. “Brandon Williams was the unsung hero.”
Williams had six points and three rebounds in 12 minutes off the bench.
The Bruins were in control from the opening tip-off and never trailed the Cornhuskers (25-5, 14-5). UCLA improved to 10-3 in all-time against Nebraska and the win greatly strengthened its resume for the NCAA tournament as the Bruins also beat then-No. 4 Purdue 69-67 on Jan. 20 and then-No. 10 Illinois 95-94 in overtime on Feb. 21 on Donovan Dent’s layup with one second left.
“We have to take attitude we came with tonight, bottle it up and take it on the road,” Dailey Jr. said. “We’ve got so much left. The season’s not over… we’re only as good as our last game. It’s all about how you respond. I love the fight that we played with tonight.”
This is the fifth time in Cronin’s seven seasons that the Bruins have won 20 or more games. They are 17-1 at home (their only loss in overtime to Indiana on Jan. 31).
“Since I’ve been here we don’t lose much at home.” Cronin said.
UCLA went ahead by 15 points, 37-22, on Perry’s three-pointer with 2:41 left and led 37-24 at intermission. The Bruins shot 50% from the field in the first half (15 for 30) while Nebraska was only 31% (nine for 29).
The Bruins increased their advantage to 18 points on Dailey’s dunk less than five minutes into the second half and the visitors got no closer than nine the rest of the way.
Prior to pregame introductions the Bruins honored seniors Bilodeau, Dent and Clark; fifth-year player Jamar Brown; redshirt seniors Steven Jamerson II, Jack Seidler and Anthony Peoples Jr; and redshirt junior Evan Manjikian. In a media timeout, midway through the first half, former coach Jim Harrick (who led UCLA to its 11th national championship in 1995) was honored and got a loud ovation.
“I’m happy for our seniors, I didn’t want them to lose their last game at Pauley,” said Perry, who reversed a subpar performance at Minnesota, where he was 0-for-7 from the field with one rebound and one assist in 26 minutes. “I had to come out here tonight and bounce back for my team. I play for something bigger than myself and I’m fortunate to have the type of guys I do around me.”
UCLA guard Skyy Clark looks to pass while under pressure from Nebraska guard Sam Hoiberg and forward Berke Buyuktuncel in the second half.
(William Liang / Associated Press)
Over the last four games, Dent has 46 assists and just two turnovers.
Bilodeau has scored in double figures in 26 of 28 games played, totaling 20 points or more nine times.
Dailey moved to within five points of reaching the 1,000-career point milestone.
UCLA has now made at least one three-pointer in 887 of 888 games dating to February 2000.
“We had one practice this week, that’s it,” Cronin said. “We watched film, had a heart-to-heart talk and a shoot around today but that’s it.”
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