Nebraska
Nebraska Cornhuskers, Ole Miss Football Offer Prized Penn State Nittany Lions Commit
Taylor (Penn.) Riverside three-star defensive lineman Tavian Branch has emerged as a hot prospect in the 2026 Recruiting Cycle as the December Early Signing Period nears.
Branch, a Top-50 defensive lineman in America, revealed a commitment to James Franklin and the Penn State Nittany Lions in September after flipping his pledge from Rutgers.
Now, following the news of Franklin and Penn State parting ways, the 6-foot-4, 300-pounder is re-evaluating his options with multiple schools in pursuit.
Branch remains committed to the Penn State Nittany Lions, but is re-evaluating options with the current coaching situation.
Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels are in pursuit with the program extending an offer to the Pennsylvania native this week.
“At this time, I am still committed to Penn State. However, due to the recent changes and uncertainty, I have decided to re-open my recruitment,” Branch wrote via X.
Blessed To Receive An Offer From Ole Miss University #28 @OleMissFB @wesyerty24 @SWiltfong_ @adamgorney @TomLoy247 pic.twitter.com/rZ44S6gLKl
— Tavian Branch (@BranchTavian) October 13, 2025
Following the news of Franklin’s departure with the Nittany Lions, Branch has reeled in offers from both Ole Miss and the Nebraska Cornhuskers as programs keep tabs on the talented defender in the 2026 Recruiting Cycle.
“I am in disbelief,” Branch told The Citizen’s Voice. “I understand that this is part of the business. I am going to talk to my family about some things. I need some time to think about this.”
Now, Ole Miss is in on the action with Branch already planning a visit to Oxford to soak in the scenes of a game day visit, he told Rivals.
McKeesport (Penn.) five-star running back Kemon Spell is back on the market after reopening his recruitment this week following James Franklin being relieved of his duties at Penn State.
Spell, the No. 1 running back in the 2027 Recruiting Cycle, revealed a commitment to Franklin and the Nittany Lions in August [2024] following an unofficial visit to campus.
After being pledged to the hometown program for over a year, Spell has now made the decision to reopen his process with Penn State in search of a new head coach of the program.
“Coach Franklin played a huge role in my recruitment and me being committed,” Spell told Rivals when asked about the situation. “Just sucks to see him leave.”
Since backing off of his commitment, Spell has become the hottest name on the market with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, Nebraska Cornhuskers, and Oregon Ducks, among others, entering the race.
Now, add Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels to the offer sheet after making the call late Tuesday night for the top-ranked running back in America.
The 5-foot-9, 205-pounder will be in South Bend this weekend on an unofficial visit with the Notre Dame program as Marcus Freeman and Co. turn up the heat for the elite running back.
But the Ole Miss Rebels are now getting in the race with a scholarship now on the table for one of the highest-rated prospects available.
Spell has cruised up the recruiting rankings with multiple evaluators providing lofty praise for the No. 1 running back in America.
Ole Miss Football, Oklahoma Sooners and Ohio State Buckeyes Headline CFP Projections
The Early Betting Lines: Ole Miss Football vs. Georgia Bulldogs in Week 8 Matchup
Ole Miss Football vs. Georgia Bulldogs: ESPN College GameDay Heading to Athens
Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and Ole Miss Rebels On SI: @OleMissOnSI for all coverage surrounding the Ole Miss program.
The future of data centers in Nebraska took center stage at a North Omaha town hall Thursday evening.
The event was hosted by State Sens. Terrell McKinney and Ashlei Spivey, who alongside Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh sponsored a bill in the Nebraska Legislature that looked to help regulate data centers.
Parts of their bill were adopted and passed in LB1010, which requires reports on annual power usage, water usage and ownership.
“Having this passed in a package showed a lot of bipartisan work,” Spivey told a crowd of attendees at Nelson Mandela Elementary School.
The proposed regulations were shaped in part by Bold Nebraska, an advocacy group focused on eminent domain and clean energy. Jane Kleeb, chair of the Nebraska Democratic Party and founder of Bold Nebraska, said before the bill passed there were “zero laws on the books” to address a boom in data centers.
“If one is coming into the community, we wanted to make sure that there were some basic transparency things in place,” Kleeb said.
Political discussions around data centers heated up in recent months following reporting by the Flatwater Free Press that showed Google is considering a data center in Nebraska that could require more than three times the amount of power the entire city of Lincoln uses at peak demand in the summer.
The Nebraska Legislature recently passed another bill, LB1261, that allows private developers to build and own power plants to serve a large industrial customer, including data centers. That bill was proposed by the governor’s office and celebrated by Gov. Jim Pillen.
“Our state is once again taking a bold and strategic step – one that will create an environment that attracts business and multibillion dollar investment, while legally preserving Nebraska’s unique and consumer-friendly public power model,” Pillen said at the time.
At Thursday’s town hall, McKinney called LB1261 “the bogeyman bill.”
“It’s a bill that the governor pushed through the legislature to allow for data centers to create their own power,” McKinney said. “It’s a bill that I stood on the floor and said this is going to harm our communities.”
LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – Hundreds of people are without power in southeast Nebraska after a severe storm passed through Thursday morning.
The Lincoln Electric System outage map showed 115 customers without power across the city at 11:36 a.m.
Norris Public Power District’s outage map also shows 45 customers affected by the storm. As of 11:36 a.m., there were nine active outages.
According to the Nebraska Public Power District outage map, 657 customers were affected by the storm. Most of the affected customers were near Plattsmouth in southeast Nebraska. As of 11:37 a.m., 27 customers remain without power.
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Mandatory evacuations have been ordered near Crawford, including Fort Robinson State Park, as the South Fork Fire continues to spread in western Nebraska.
According to the City of Crawford, evacuations are currently underway for an area north of Crawford that includes the area south of Dodd Road, west of Dodd Road, and FF Street.
Fort Robinson has also been evacuated.
The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission said Fort Robinson State Park and Peterson Wildlife Management Area have been temporarily closed due to the fire.
The fire has burned approximately 9,000 acres and is currently 0% contained, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
Nebraska Game and Parks said the park and the WMA will remain closed until further notice to support firefighting operations and protect public safety.
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