KEARNEY - The 60th Nebraska Shrine Bowl took place in Kearney on Saturday in Ron & Carol Cope Stadium at Foster Field at the University of Nebraska-Kearney.
In all, 10 Nebraska preferred walk-on recruits took part in this year's game. Here are some quick takes and thoughts on how the future Huskers looked.
Breaking down the play of the 10 future Huskers at the Shrine Bowl
HOL's take: Of the 10 walk-ons that played in Saturday's Shrine Bowl, none was arguably more impressive than Gretna linebacker Joey Johnson.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Johnson was the game's defensive MVP finishing with a game-high nine tackles, two sacks, four tackles for loss and one forced fumble. He was an unblockable force off the edge and appears to be the steal of this year's walk-on class.
If the Dakota schools or Wyoming could have a do-over, I'd imagine he'd be an offer guy for a lot of those teams after Saturday's Shrine Bowl. Johnson has a real chance to make the Fall Camp 105-man roster in August, especially with NU's roster openings that have happened at linebacker the last few weeks.
HOL's take: Kearney Catholic quarterback Matt Masker didn't have a gaudy stat line, but it was the little things he did that impressed me on Saturday. He knew how to scramble out of the pocket and keep plays alive. He also does a great job of keeping his eyes downfield while he's on the scramble.
Masker arguably made the play of the game on Saturday when he scrambled out of the pocket and found Westside's Caleb Schwiegart for a 75-yard touchdown that put the North ahead 21-14. Masker finished 7-of-16 for 111 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Saturday's performance convinced me he has the right skill set to be a fit in Scott Frost's offense.
HOL's take: There's a reason why Yutan's Colton Fiest had well over 300 tackles in his career. He has a nose for the football, but also the ability to get off blocks and move. Fiest finished with eight solo tackles, including a team-high two tackles for loss to lead the North defense. I'll be very curious to see how his body develops once he gets into the program.
HOL's take: I thought Kearney defensive back Isaiah Stalbird was the best player in the secondary on either team Saturday. He had a constant presence on the back end, as he finished with five solo tackles, one tackle for loss and one pass break-up.
I think based on need, he could have a chance to make the Fall Camp roster at cornerback.
HOL's take: Just like Johnson from Gretna, I think North Platte tight end/punter Bryson Krull could end up being one of the steals of this year's walk-on class.
It's hard to figure out why a guy that's 6-foot-5, with good size, hands and numbers fell so under the radar. Krull led Class A in regular season receiving yards, but he was equally impressive as a punter.
On Saturday, Krull boomed a 76-yard punt that flipped the field. Krull had just two catches for 18 yards, but both were meaningful. One went for a touchdown, and the other went for 13 yards on a third-and-13 where he took a tunnel screen and put his foot in the ground and ran through a couple of defenders to get the first down. Krull has a very bright future either at tight end or punter.
HOL's take: Gothenburg's Bennett Folkers was a late add-on in the Shrine Bowl, replacing Elkhorn South's Moses Bryant (also a Nebraska walk-on).
Folkers did not disappoint, as he led the North squad with seven catches for 89 yards and one touchdown. When Lincoln's High's Zion Perry went down with a shoulder injury on the game's second play, Folkers was forced to pick up a bigger role in the North's offense.
HOL's take: Bellevue West's A.J. Forbes has really transformed his body over the off-season. He's been able to eliminate a lot of bad weight and replace it with lean muscle. He looked much quicker on Saturday at his new weight.
HOL's take: Norfolk's Ryan Schommer had a somewhat quiet week of practice, as he was No. 2 on the depth chart going into the game.
Schommer proved to be a gamer though, as he led the North squad in tackles with nine stops, including 1.5 tackles for loss. With his frame and size, the sky is the limit on his potential.
HOL's take: O'Neill wide receiver Wyatt Liewer showed good speed on Saturday, as he had the defense beat deep multiple times. Unfortunately, the 20+ mph winds out of the North made it tricky to find the timing on the deep ball.
Liewer finished with two catches for 27 yards.
HOL's take: York linebacker Simon Otte just has a knack for finding his way around the football. He plays with a grittiness and toughness that will surely help build the right kind of culture Frost wants within the walk-on program.
Otte finished with five tackles, including one tackle for loss and one pass break-up.
