Alabama invites Ainsworth Husker prospect

Nebraska’s football recruiting efforts ran into an enemy in its pursuit of Ainsworth’s Carter Nelson now that Alabama has offered him.

The good news here is that when it comes to Carter Nelson, Nebraska football recruiting has faced some of the best teams in the country. Still, when the Alabama Crimson Tide calls up eight-man football, it makes waves.

After Nelson announced on Twitter that the Tide had made him an official offer, it didn’t take long for Nebraska football twitter to really take off. There were plenty of people there to wish him luck, and more than a few who were pretty impressed with Nick Saban’s call.

Overall, the reactions to this offer are indicative of what Matt Rhule and company will face when trying to land Carter Nelson.

The good news is that Nebraska’s football recruiting efforts have been good enough that pundits still consider the Huskers the favorite to land Ainsworth’s tight end. The bad news is that it’s clear other teams believe he’s someone who needs to be poached.

Nebraska Football Recruiting: Alabama calls Ainsworth Husker prospect

Nelson isn’t the first in-state destination to get a lot of attention from schools around the country. In fact, Rhule managed to find every comer regarding Malachi Coleman during the last recruiting cycle. The Lincoln East prospect had offers from Colorado and Georgia, among others.

Clearly, Coleman listened to those offers, but ultimately chose Nebraska football when it came time to sign on the dotted line. The question is whether Rhule can repeat that magic in the 2024 recruiting class.

Nelson clearly has a special place in his heart for Nebraska football. But he also definitely is plans visits to other Power 5 programs like Notre Dame. If Rhule can find a way to keep the Ainsworth prospect at home, it would be the second major recruiting win for Nebraska football in his short time as head coach.