Lawrenceburg, Ind., product Ashton Craig was one of two offensive linemen who took official visits to Nebraska this weekend, and he came away from his first exposure to the Big Red's program with a very favorable impression.
"It went pretty good, yeah," Craig begin to recount his official stay in Lincoln. "We got to meet everybody and see the campus, so it was good to see everything in person. It was unreal! It was way different than the zooms and everything. It was way different in person, that's for sure, and way better. It was awesome!
"The photo shoot was pretty cool, and getting to do all that with taking the pictures in uniforms was pretty cool. Also, getting to hang around all the players. I got to be around all of them, which was really awesome."
Craig was accompanied by his parents to Lincoln and they all had similar reactions to what they saw and experienced. He also had a great time with his player host.
"Turner Corcoran was my host and it was really cool to be around him," Craig stated. "I got to hang around with a lot of the o-line and it was pretty cool to see how they all gel together. It was pretty cool to be around them, for sure."
The 6-foot-5, 275-pounder spent most of his time with the Huskers' offensive line coach, Greg Austin, and he also spent considerable time at NU's head coach's house.
"I was with Coach Scott (Frost) a bunch, too, and we went to his house and hung out there, too," Craig said. "So, it was pretty cool! We hung out at his house, he made dinner for us, and we watched the Nebraska-Arkansas baseball game. We also played corn hole a little bit with the football team.
"They had a little bit of everything to eat, to be honest with you. They made burgers, pasta, ribs, wings. Anything you could think of, they probably had it. Yeah, for sure, they fed us well."
The Cornhuskers' facilities and Memorial Stadium also made a big impression on Craig.
"The stadium was huge and it was awesome!" Craig said. "I mean, they're good right now, but they are adding on and making new stuff, so it's going to be good to see all of that. It's going to be done in a year or two, they said. It will be awesome, it looks like.
"The academic were good, too. We met with all of the counselors and stuff, and they really liked me and they think my grades are pretty good. All that's good, and they said they would help me out with any field I went into."
The Husker coaches told Craig he would start out at offensive guard, but he's versatile enough to play several positions along the offensive line if he chose to come to Lincoln.
His Nebraska official was his first of the summer, and next week he will be at Northwestern for his second official, followed by an unofficial visit to Ohio State on June 17, culminating with officials to Vanderbilt and Iowa on June 18 and 25, respectively.
"I will probably wait until early August to make my decision," Craig shared. "It will probably be before my football season, though. I will just pick the school where I fit in the best at and where I think I can really gel with all the coaches and players. Where I can have good relationships and they can better me, and just grow as a player and a man. Wherever I can go to make that happen."
Craig said he got that sense of a close-knit and family-type atmosphere while hanging around the Nebraska team.
"Yeah, for sure!" Craig said. "They're definitely a close-knit family and they gel together pretty well. Just from hanging out with them, you can tell that for sure. They all get along with each other really well and they are a close family."
