Nebraska added more experience to its backfield Tuesday with the commitment of Dedrick Mills.
T he 6-foot, 200-pound running back out of Garden City (Kan.) C.C. picked NU over offers from Memphis and Arkansas State and interest from many other programs. Mills becomes the 16th known commit for Nebraska's 2019 recruiting class.
Here are some quick takes on what Mills' commitment means for Nebraska.
1. Nebraska continues to be very active on the JUCO recruiting front, and in most cases, way out in front of the prevailing recruiting trends in that particular market. The Huskers were the first team to offer Mills and they were able to get him on campus for the spring game. While most others were waiting for more film on Mills, the Huskers were ready to take a commitment from him having already extended their offer. Mills becomes the third JUCO player to have committed to Nebraska in the 2019 class.
2. The commitment of Mills should only further strengthen what already looks to be a healthy relationship between NU and Garden City C.C. The Huskers have two signees from the 2018 recruiting class currently on the Broncbusters' roster with wide receiver Dominck Watt and offensive lineman Willie Canty. In addition to Mills, NU is also looking at several other GCCC players.
3. Nebraska has once again added another player from the state of Georgia to its roster. Scott Frost and his staff have been extremely active in the Southeast part of the country and players from Florida lead the way in the 2018 class. However, for 2019 it's been the state of Georgia that has the early lead and it appears several more players could still be possible candidates to join this class down the road. The more connections you have to an area or state the better and the Peach State is ripe with talent.
4. Nebraska is getting some legit experience with the commitment of Dedrick Mills. As a true freshman at Georgia Tech he rushed for nearly 800 yards and 12 touchdowns. That's hard to do regardless of the offense or conference you play in and it doesn't happen by accident.
5. Mills is a powerful, downhill runner that really seems to excel running between the tackles. He's not the flashiest player, but you can't argue with his production. Mills shows good vision on the football field and, while he's not a burner, he still does have the speed to get to the edge and create some damage. Garden City C.C. head coach Jeff Sims says he feels Mills is the type of running back that could play for anyone in the nation.
6. Mills was dismissed from Georgia Tech for a violation of team rules. Nebraska has closely looked into the situation and is confident it's something that is not of concern any longer. Sims told HuskerOnline that Mills has learned from his mistake and taken the necessary actions to get back on the right path.
7. The decommitment of Thomas Grayson essentially and Tre Bryant ending his football playing career left an opening for a guy like Mills that will be able to enroll at Nebraska in December and have two years of eligibility left to play. Huskers target Wandale Robinson is being looked to play a different position (Duck-R) than that of Mills.
8. 2019 Nebraska commit breakdown
9/4/2018 - Dedrick Mills - RB - 6-foot, 200-pounds - Garden City, Kan. (Waycross, Ga.) - NR
8/6/2018 - Quinton Newsome - CB - 6-foot-2, 180 - Suwanee, GA - 3 Stars
8/5/2018 - Michael Lynn - OT - 6-foot-7, 280 - Greenwood Village, CO - 3 Stars
7/23/2018 - Mosai Newsom - DE - 6-foot-5, 260 - Waverly, IA - 3 Stars
7/21/2018 - Nick Henrich- LB - 6-foot-3, 210 - Omaha, NE - 3 Stars
7/19/2018 - Tony Fair - DT - 6-foot-3, 330 - Tucson, AZ (South Bend, Ind.) - NR
6/29/2018 - Jamie Nance - WR - 6-foot, 160 - Blanchard, OK - 3 Stars
6/22/2018 - Matthew Anderson - OL - 6-foot-7, 250 - Leesville, LA - NR
6/15/2018 - Ronald Thompkins - RB - 6-foot, 195 - Loganville, GA - 3 Stars
6/6/2018 - Jackson Hannah - LB - 6-foot-3, 234 - Nashville, TN - 4 Stars
6/4/2018 - Luke McCaffrey - QB - 6-foot-2, 180 - Highlands Ranch, CO - 3 Stars
6/1/2018 - Desmond Bland - OL - 6-foot-4, 300 - Yuma, AZ (Flossmoor, Ill.) - 4 Stars
5/5/2018 - Rahmir Johnson - RB - 5-foot-10, 170 - Oradell, NJ - 4 Stars
3/5/2018 - Ethan Piper - DE - 6-foot-4, 280 - Norfolk, Neb. - 3 Stars
11/24/2017 - Garrett Snodgrass - ATH - 6-foot-3, 220 - York, Neb. - 3 Stars
6/24/2017 - Garrett Nelson - OLB - 6-foot-3, 236 - Scottsbluff, Neb. - 3 Stars
9. Commits by position
1 - Quarterback
3 - Running back
1 - Wide receiver
0 - Tight end
3- Offensive linemen
1 - Defensive tackle
2 - Defensive end
1 - Outside linebacker
2 - Inside linebacker
0 - Safety
1 - Cornerback
1 - Athlete
0 - Special teams
10. Where are they from?
4 - Nebraska
3 - Georgia
2 - Colorado
1 - Iowa
1 - Illinois
1 - Indiana
1 - Louisiana
1 - New Jersey
1 - Oklahoma
1 - Tennessee