HOL Top 40 for 2016: 36-40

Voting Criteria: Player's importance to the team in 2016, talent and potential for the upcoming season. A player's long term/NFL potential was not taken into consideration.

Voting Panel: Publisher Sean Callahan and HuskerOnline.com staff Robin Washut, Nate Clouse, Mike Matya, Bryan Munson, and Gregg Peterson.

Weeks before Nebraska even started its spring practices, defensive coordinator Mark Banker singled out sophomore defensive end Sedrick King as a player he was counting on to make a major jump this season.

Despite missing the final week of spring practices and the Red-White game with an injury, King remains on track to see playing time in a very thin defensive end rotation this season.

He still has a chance to make a bigger move this fall, as his athletic 6-foot-4, 240-pound build certainly gives him the potential to be a big factor for the Huskers.

Omaha native DaiShon Neal signed with Nebraska in 2015 as one of the top prospects in the state, but it wasn't until this offseason that things finally started to click for him.

After coming in as a true freshman admittedly out of shape, Neal struggled through his redshirt year - and a season-ending knee injury only compounded that fact.

Realizing he needed to change his body to make a push in a wide-open defensive end competition, Neal reshaped his body to a lean 6-7, 270, and now is in position to be a major contributor this season.

It seems like an almost impossible feat for someone to try and replace a player like Andy Janovich. But if any one of Nebraska's fullbacks is up to the task, it just might be Luke McNitt.

He doesn't have the freakish bulk and athleticism as Janovich - hardly anyone does - but he does possess a unique skill set that could make him an interesting weapon in the Huskers' offense.

A former quarterback at Nebraska-Kearney as a freshman who started his NU career as a tight end, McNitt moved to fullback this offseason and quickly jumped towards the top of the depth chart heading into fall camp.

It's no secret that senior Cethan Carter is Nebraska's clear-cut No. 1 tight end this season. But don't be surprised if fellow senior Sam Cotton doesn't find a way to make an impact for Nebraska's offense in 2016.

For one, Cotton is in the best shape of his life after an impressive winter of strength and conditioning, now measuring in at a solid 6-5, 250. Secondly, tight ends coach Tavita Thompson said Cotton was by far the most “cerebral” player in the tight end room.

Cotton also hauled in a spring game-high three catches for 40 yards, while Carter caught his one and only target in the game for eight yards.

Kieron Williams has always had the look of a player who could be a factor in Nebraska's secondary. The problem is his playing time on defense has been somewhat few and far between.

He's still been able to make a big impact as one of the Huskers' best special teams players, but this offseason marks Williams' best chance yet to establish his players in NU's safety rotation.

Williams had a solid spring, but he's going to have to continue to battle for snaps even more this fall as more young talent arrives.