At this time a year ago, the word was starting to get out about a walk-on inside linebacker out of Lincoln (Neb.) North Star making people take notice during spring practices.

Now, Luke Reimer has established himself as a fixture on Nebraska’s defense.

Even though injuries limited him to six appearances and five starts last season, Reimer still posted 40 tackles and ranked third on the team with 5.0 tackles for loss and second with 2.0 sacks.

The 6-foot-1, 220-pound third-year sophomore is now firmly cemented in the Huskers’ inside linebacker rotation with a chance to secure a starting job in 2021.

According to his position coach, Barrett Ruud, expectations for Reimer’s future have already risen well beyond that.

“I think Luke can be as good as he absolutely wants to be,” Ruud said. “He can potentially play football when he's done here. He's been really good. He did a great job in the weight room in the offseason, so he's gotten bigger, he's gotten faster.

“He really understands the game. He understands the ins and outs. He understands how offenses are trying to attack us, so he's a fun guy to watch. He's a fun guy to coach.”

After seeing limited snaps on defense as a freshman in 2019, Reimer vaulted his way up the depth chart last season. An injury kept him out of the opener at Ohio State, but he returned to make his first career start the next time out at Northwestern.

Reimer ended up setting a career-high with 10 tackles, 1.5 TFLs, and a sack against the Wildcats.

Looking back, though, Reimer said he was primarily relying on his instincts and athleticism in that game and most of last year. This season, his understanding of the defense is stronger than ever.

“When you first get here, you're told you're going to make mistakes; just fly around and be fast,” Reimer said. “But now, once you understand the defense, you can fly around and be fast in the right position.

“That's just the whole goal of getting better, understanding the defense, understanding what the offense is going to try to do in that specific formation. Just being able to play fast and know what you're doing.”

While he may be an established commodity, Reimer will still have plenty of competition for snaps this season.

Senior Will Honas returned for an additional year of eligibility, and the Huskers added graduate transfer Chris Kolarevic from Northern Iowa in January. Redshirt freshman Nick Henrich has also been pushing for playing time with a strong spring.

But Ruud said Reimer’s leadership had grown just as much as his play on the field.

“I think he's gotten past the point that, ‘I'm a walk-on guy trying to earn my stripes,’ where now he's proven that he's a good football player,” Ruud said. “He could be a legit top-end inside linebacker in this conference.

“I think he's got a confidence about him, and he's not afraid to speak his mind. He's confident. He knows what he's doing, so if you produce, you got a chance to be a leader.”

Reimer said his mentality this offseason was to build off the strides he made in 2020 while remembing that he still had a long way to go as a player.

“Our motto is day by day,” Reimer said. “You can't really put much stock into the past. You just have to look at the day and just keep getting better every day… I'm not there yet, but I was closer today than I was two years ago when I first started.”