Gridiron pipeline into Nebraska continues for South Dakota State on National Signing Day

National Signing Day has come and signing day has gone across the nation, and while there were a few surprises, it was a pretty ho-hum day in Nebraska. Everybody who was committed to a school signed with that school.

Fortunately for South Dakota State football coach John Stiegelmeier, he had the most Nebraska athletes committed to his football program. Omaha native Josh Davis was front and center once again in his home state, as he helped the Jackrabbits welcome 21 star athletes into the fold Wednesday - six of whom came from Nebraska.

Papillion-LaVista South fullback Luke Sellers (6-foot-1, 244 pounds) joined high school teammate Ryan Earith (6-5, 255, DT) on the Jackrabbit roster as well as Omaha North receiver Marquise Lewis (5-11, 180), Syracuse guard Matthew Clark (6-5, 290), Crete linebacker Jake Harms (6-3, 205) and running back Jessup Workman of Beatrice (6-1, 200).

While a snow day kept Sellers and others from signing their letters of intent at the high school auditorium, nothing was going to keep Sellers from faxing his signature to Stiegelmeier from home.



"The coaches called me and welcomed me in after I signed and sent it," Sellers said by phone Wednesday evening. "That really means a lot to me. It means they really want me to come there. It meant a lot to me on a personal level. We are family now. I'm looking forward to spending the next four years there, and giving it my all."

See the FBS signees from Nebraska on our National Signing Day page

Stiegelmeier is excited about his entire crop of athletes and he took some time Wednesday to discuss his latest recruiting class.

"We covered all of our needs," he said by phone Wednesday. "But we didn't just cover them. We covered them with quality athletes. The guys from Nebraska were high on our list. They weren't our No. 1 guys, necessarily, but they were very high priorities. We filled our needs with quality guys."

A dream come true for Boone Central's Wyatt Mazour

Boone Central (Albion) quarterback Wyatt Mazour put on a clinic in the Nebraska Class C-1 state football championship game in November, leaving little doubt he could compete at a high level. Next year he will have the opportunity to play at the highest collegiate level when he steps foot in Big Ten power Nebraska's Memorial Stadium as a walk-on.

"It's been crazy around here the last couple of weeks," Mazour said by phone Tuesday. "I've been doing a lot of talking with family. I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I've been praying a lot.



"I grew up dreaming of playing for Nebraska, pretty much like any other kid here. Now I get that opportunity."

Mazour was just about to commit to the University of Nebraska-Kearney when Nebraska called and visited with the 5-9, 195-pounder about walking on.

Mazour led Boone Central to a 54-14 Class C-1 state championship win over Ashland-Greenwood by throwing the ball for 128 yards and three touchdowns and running it for an additional 250 yards and a pair of scores on 18 touches. Mazour said he thought he would be playing on offense and returning kicks for the Cornhuskers.

Calvin Strong takes ground game to the University of South Dakota

Omaha North Super-State running back Calvin Strong was on a mission as a junior when he rushed for 3,008 yards and 43 touchdowns. In 2014, however, the 5-9, 175-pound speedster took a step back and focused more on winning a second-straight Class A state championship.

Still, Strong chalked up 2,358 yards and 32 touchdowns in just 242 carries in 2014. University of South Dakota coach Joe Glenn will take his turn at turning Strong loose on the football field after the former Viking signed his NLI Wednesday.



Wolverines strike out after being up in the count for DaiShon Neal

Nebraska's Big Ten rival Michigan did try to disrupt one Cornhusker State commitment - and was winning – until one statement sent Michigan assistant coach Greg Mattison home without the golden nugget.

"Michigan was a powerhouse. They came in and they stormed,"Omaha Central defensive end Daishon Neal's father Abraham Hoskins told 1620 The Zone. "They made one bad statement, that without football, DaiShon wouldn't be able to go to Michigan, like we couldn't afford to send him there or we couldn't get him in academically."

Neal added this to the conversation: "Basically they tried to call me stupid in front of my face."

Neal (6-7, 250) also spurned late charges from Oregon, Oklahoma and Iowa and signed with Nebraska Wednesday, joining Omaha North's Michael Decker (6-4, 285) and 18 other talented football players from across the nation to earn 247sports.com's No. 31 ranking in the 2015 recruiting class. Nebraska came in with the fourth-best class in the Big Ten by some services.