More than four years and 60 pounds ago, Ben Stille arrived at Nebraska as a fresh-faced teenager ready to make the jump fromHusker fan to Husker player.
The Ashland-Greenwood graduate came as part of coach Mike Riley s first full recruiting class in 2016, heralded by many as a top-25 group packed with promise. Stille couldn t help but imagine how far it might go.
Now in the stretch run of his senior year, the 295-pound defensive lineman thinks back on one of the first things NU staffers told the newcomers: Take a look around, because many of the guys here now won t be leaving with you on Senior Day.
Game days haven t always been fun for Wyatt Liewer.
This was before Liewer scored his first touchdown for the Huskers and sent his hometown of O Neill into a tizzy last weekend. Before most NU fans and national broadcasters learned his last name was pronounced LEE-ver and didn t rhyme with sewer.
In the fall of 2018, Liewer was one of about 20 freshman walk-ons just thrilled to be on the team under new coach Scott Frost. And Saturday mornings before kickoffs, they were the ones getting in extra weightlifting sessions while older Huskers prepared to play. There were some hard-working dudes in there, Liewer said this week.