Nebraska football coach Bill Callahan hit the recruiting daily double Friday.
The Cornhuskers received oral commitments from Josh Freeman, a 6-foot-5, 226-pound quarterback from Grandview, Mo., and Menelik Holt, a 6-3 wide receiver from San Diego.
The pair are the third and fourth recruits for Nebraska's 2006 recruiting class, and they synchronized their commitments after meeting in Lincoln at this spring's Red-White game.
Freeman said he was ready to commit nearly two weeks ago, but waited so he and Holt could commit together.
"We planned it out ever since we were at the spring game," Holt said. "We both fell in love with (Nebraska) the first time we were there."
The two players sat with Marlon Lucky, Zackary Bowman and others at the Red-White game. Freeman and Holt exchanged numbers and continued talking throughout the spring.
Both said the coaching staff's honesty helped to secure their commitments.
"Just talking to the coaches, I got a feel that they were really into
me," Freeman said. "They want to develop me as a quarterback and take
them to national championships."
Freeman's commitment came after a long relationship with NU recruiting
coordinator Scott Downing, who visited Freeman during his freshman year.
He also attended Nebraska's Elite Quarterback Academy last summer.
"He got me out of Spanish class," Freeman said. "I think I was taking a
nap."
Nebraska will be getting a strong-armed quarterback who is listed by
Rivals.com as the No. 93 overall prospect in the nation for the 2006
class, though the recruiting service also lists him as a tight end.
Freeman said Notre Dame and Arkansas were pursuing him as a tight end,
but he said he will definitely be playing quarterback in Lincoln. He
turned down offers from Iowa and several Big 12 schools, including Oklahoma.
Last year, Callahan secured blue-chip quarterback Harrison Beck from
Florida, then said he wouldn't recruit any other quarterbacks. He also
signed junior college transfer Zac Taylor, but only after securing
Beck's permission first.
Freeman said the coaching staff told him he was their man for the 2006
recruiting class.
He led Grandview High School to a 5-5 record last season and completed
55 percent of his passes while throwing for 2,400 yards and 23 touchdowns.
He said it didn't take long to realize Nebraska was where he wanted to
end up.
"After talking to coaches everywhere, I realized Nebraska is going to be
the best, unless there is somewhere up in Canada that's better," Freeman
said.
He will be joined by Holt, who attended the same San Diego high school
as kicker Jordan Congdon, a 2005 NU recruit.
Holt said his coach broke the news that Nebraska had offered a scholarship.
"I was driving with my coach, and it was a red light, and he said, 'How
would you feel about playing there, because they just offered you,'"
Holt remembered. "I almost died. It was a big surprise."
He was already tired of the recruiting process, which had netted him
offers from San Diego State, Utah and Idaho, and interest from Michigan
and Oregon.
"I was thinking about it, and there was really no downside to
committing," Holt said. "If you can't find a downside, why not go ahead?
I'd rather make my decision than sitting around and thinking about it."
*Panico leaving Huskers *
LINCOLN - Santino Panico will not be returning to the Nebraska football
program and has been granted a release from his scholarship by the Huskers.
Panico was unavailable Friday for any comment about his future.
"We are disappointed he is leaving the program," NU coach Bill Callahan
said in a statement, "but we wish him the best."
Panico was excused from the team midway through spring practice for what
Callahan termed personal reasons. The receiver and punt returner never
came back to the team.
Panico played as a freshman in 2004, becoming Nebraska's regular punt
returner two games into the season. But the native of Libertyville,
Ill., averaged just 3.1 yards for his 22 returns, and NU ranked last in
the Big 12 at 5.8.
Southern California's defending national co-champions left no doubt as to whom the college football champion was in 2004. The 12-0 Trojans led both major polls throughout the regular season, then trounced unbeaten No. 2 Oklahoma 55-19 in the FedEx Orange Bowl on Jan. 4 for their 13th victory.
Nebraska Cornhuskers Football Tickets can be found above. And there really good seats.
Junior quarterback Matt Leinart, winner of both the Heisman Trophy and the Walter Camp Award, passed for 332 yards and an Orange Bowl record five touchdowns as USC won its 22nd consecutive game and confirmed its 10th national title. don't forget to go see Nebraska Cornhuskers Football.
Auburn fans were disappointed that the Tigers (12-0 in regular season), winner of the SEC and victor over Virginia Tech 16-13 in the Nokia Sugar Bowl, had to settle for a final No. 3 ranking behind USC and Oklahoma. Utah fans, however, were delighted to see their Utes (11-0 in regular season) not only make it to a BCS bowl but clobber Pittsburgh 35-7 in the Fiesta Bowl. The Mountain West champions finished with a No. 5 national ranking. The nation's other major unbeaten team, Western Athletic Conference champion Boise State (11-0), fell to Louisville (10-1 in regular season) 44-40 in the highest-scoring Liberty Bowl game ever. The Cardinals, in their last year in Conference USA before heading to the Big East, had led the nation with a 49.8 scoring average, while Boise State had averaged 49.7. Utah and Auburn shared the national Coach of the Year awards, Urban Meyer of Utah winning the Football Writers award and Tommy Tuberville of Auburn taking the Football Coaches award. Oklahoma may have finished with a disappointing loss in the Orange Bowl, but quarterback Jason White, the 2003 Heisman Trophy winner, won the 2004 Maxwell Award as well as the Davey O'Brien and Johnny Unitas quarterback awards. The Outland Trophy went to another Oklahoma player, offensive tackle Jamaal Brown, while defensive end David Pollack of Georgia won the Vince Lombardi/Rotary Award along with the Chuck Bednarik Award.