Junior OL Schunke will have tough decision to make

Nebraska has offered a very interesting 2024 offensive lineman recently. Navarro Schunke from Brandon (S.D.) Valley picked up an offer from the Huskers to play football.

It's his third offer overall, but the 6-foot-5 and 285-pound offensive lineman is a three-time state champion wrestler and could win a total of five state titles. South Dakota lets wrester compete for state championships starting in eighth grade. Schunke says that he has a tough decision to make when it comes to which sport or sports he will play in college.

The Nebraska staff has been all over the place including heading north to South Dakota to check in on talented junior offensive lineman Schunke.

“Nebraska said that they saw film of me recently and said I had really good movement, good hands and feet,” Schunke said. “They think that I could be great down there for them. I was very excited about the offer. It was crazy.”

Schunke has been to Nebraska before for football camp last summer. He remembers some things about the facilities and some of the players being there. He knows one player on the current team for Nebraska.

“I have been to Lincoln before. I was at a camp last year. When I went down there we worked out in the indoor facility. It was crazy-big. Their players were there too and I know Nash Hutmacher.

“I actually wrestled with him a couple of times before he left for Nebraska. I also met a few of the coaches while I was there but I don’t really remember who they were. I was only there for the day. I also liked the stadium and how everything was connected.”

Hutmacher was actually a very accomplished wrestler himself when in high school. Schunke and Hutmacher did square off but only in practice. Schunke would like a rematch now if he could.

“It was an actual match with Nash,” Schunke said. “It was just in practice. We never wrestled each other in a match. Everyone wanted that to happen. I was smaller when I could have wrestled him in high school.

“I wrestled at 220-pounds my eighth-grade year and he obviously was at 285-pounds. I didn’t have the weight to go up and now I do. I wish now that I could wrestle him. He was bigger, stronger and older when we did wrestle in practice and he whooped up on me.”

What's incredible about Schunke is that as a junior-to-be he has already won three state titles in wrestling and could win five.

“Yes, I won state as an eighth-grader at 220-pounds,” Schunke said. “I have won the past two years and both times it’s been at 285-pounds. I am a three-time state champion.”

Schunke hasn't completely conceded on the idea of playing two sports in college, but he knows that it will be tough. He also knows that it would be tough to reach his potential in either if he played both in college.

“I think that I am going to pick one because two sports will be crazy difficult. I don’t know when I will pick it or what I will pick. It’s going to be tough. It will probably be the summer before my senior year. I would like to do both, but I really don’t think that I could switch back and forth like that. The cut will be really tough.”

Schunke would like to do some football-related trips this summer. However, the summer will be busy with wrestling. He said that he would really like to become the nation's top wrestler regardless of his pending decision about what he will choose to do in college.

“I don’t really know what the summer schedule looks like right now,” Schunke said. “Wrestling actually goes through the summer and the bigger tournaments for national rankings are in the summer. I am going to try and do as much as I can for football camps.

“I really want to do my best to become the number one in the country if I decide to wrestle in college or not. Last year I was able to get to the Nebraska camp and a couple of things with my team for football. I just don’t know what the schedule is yet because I assume I will be traveling around some in the summer.”

There hasn't been an opportunity for Schunke to speak with the new offensive line coach at Nebraska year, Donovan Raiola. He met the previous offensive line coach at camp last summer.

“I have not yet,” Schunke said. “I assume that I would if I get back there that I would meet the new coach, but I did meet coach Greg Austin last summer at the camp.”

Schunke not only knows Hutmacher but also knows Nebraska 2025 recruiting target Tyson Terry. Schunke and Terry have wrestled against one another for a number of years.

“Me and Tyson are pretty good friends. I know him through wrestling mainly. When I lived back in Colorado we kept wrestling against each other and it was typically in the finals. Our last match was about two years ago. I have never lost to Tyson.”