Brokop excited to begin his career at Nebraska
Nobody has been a commitment longer in Nebraska’s 2016 recruiting class than offensive lineman Bryan Brokop.
The 6-foot-4, 290 pound New Lenox (Ill.) Lincoln-Way West standout committed to the Huskers on Sept. 27, 2014 to former head coach Bo Pelini and his staff. Brokop, along with current offensive line commit John Raridon out of West Des Moines Valley, are the only two holdover recruits from the previous staff.
Through it all, Brokop has stayed solid to Nebraska, but his recruitment has flown somewhat under the radar. This weekend Brokop made his first visit to Lincoln since July, so this weekend was big in solidifying his future with head coach Mike Riley and his staff.
“It was good, it was a lot of fun,” Brokop said of his visit. “I got to meet everyone, including Coach Riley. It was a lot of fun.”
Before his July visit, the last time Brokop visited NU was for the 2014 Illinois game and the 2014 Red-White spring game.
Brokop said what he enjoyed the most about this weekend was spending time with so many of the players and getting a better feel for the future of the program under Riley and his staff.
“For me, what I learned this weekend that I didn’t know already was just how much fun it’s going to be,” Brokop said. “Just with people competing in the weight room and a lot of people doing stuff like that. It’s just one of those things – it feels like home. I just feel comfortable and I trust everyone. It’s going to be a fun time.”
What’s even more unique about Brokop is he has stayed committed and solid to the Huskers over the last year, despite the coaching change. Teams like Arizona State heavily pursued Brokop, but he knew Nebraska was where he wanted to be.
“I’ve been committed since my junior season, then when the coaching change happened I did visit Arizona State and a couple other schools, but I’ve always been committed and I’ve stayed solid since my junior year.”
Talking more about his future, Brokop definitely sees himself as an “inside guy” that could play right guard or center.
“I made a lot of improvements,” Brokop said from his junior to senior seasons. “Just things like getting a little lower and finishing some blocks. Everyone gets better. I still work day-by-day to get better. I’ve got a lot to learn still, and I feel like I got better, but can continue to get better.”
Brokop’s plan going forward is to join the program for summer classes on June 6.
When he looks at the other members of the 2016 recruiting class and the players already in the program, Brokop said he’s just excited to get to work.
“I like what they are doing, I like the new strength coach and everything,” Brokop said. “The new coaches are really coming along, I feel like we have a good group coming in and a good group that’s already there. It was good to see them.
“Me, Boe Wilson, (John) Rairdon and maybe (Matt) Farniok, we mesh well. I think it could be good. There’s a lot of talent coming in. We’ll all be competing for spots, but it’s a friendly competition, but that’s a good thing. Competition is a good thing. I think we’ll be good. There a lot of good young guys like Nick Gates, who’s going to be redshirt sophomore next year. There’s just a lot of talent.”