DEMOINE ADAMS RE. 6-3, 220, Pine Bluff, Arkansas - Demoine (pronounced deh-Moine) Adams was a first team all-state defensive end, linebacker and tight end for Pine Bluff High School in Arkansas. The Pine Bluff Commercial Arkansas Defensive Player-of-the Year, Adams assisted coach Marion Glover and his Class 4A team to a 33-5 record for the past three years. The last two seasons, Adams tallied 193 tackles, including 23.5 sacks. In 1997 he caught five passes for 153 yards and a touchdown. He was an All-Southwest Region pick by Superprep, a Grid Iron Great and was that publication's number three best pick out of Arkansas. He was also a USA Today Honorable Mention selection. An avid weight lifter, Adams won the bench press competition at his school for the last three years, pressing a best of 405 pounds last year. He visited Arkansas, Mississippi and Missouri, and had an official visit to Baylor.

JON BOWLING TE, 6-4, 215, Lincoln, Nebraska (Southeast) - The Lincoln Journal Star Offensive Player-of-the-Year and the Offensive Captain for the Omaha World Herald, Jon Bowling is one of nine native Nebraskans in the '98 class and the only one from Lincoln. He is the only recruit in the class to be named a Gatorade Circle of Champions state player of the year and was USA Today Nebraska Player-of-the-Year, earning honorable mention All-American honors. He was a Superprep All-Midlands honoree and helped lead Chuck Mizerski's Southeast team to the state championship last season with a perfect 13-0 record. Playing tight end, linebacker, defensive end and wide receiver, Bowling had 27 catches for 551 yards and two touchdowns and returned five interceptions for touchdowns. His best game was five catches for 119 yards and an interception for a touchdown versus Millard North last season. Bowling did not visit, but was recruited in football by Colorado State, Purdue, Wyoming and Iowa State and by Villanova, Stanford, Colorado State and the Air Force Academy for his basketball talents.

JOSH BROWN K, 6-1, 175, Foyil, Oklahoma - Josh Brown played running back, safety and served as the team's punter (40.8 average per kick in 1997) and place kicker. He hit on eight of 16 field goal attempts with a career long 61 yarder (in the state playoffs in 1996) in 1997 and hit on 38 of 42 PATs and also returned punts and kickoffs. He rushed for 1,891 yards and 51 TDs playing eight man football for 12-1 Foyil High School for Coach Rick Antle. Brown was a Superprep All-America place kicker and one of just two kickers who were named to the 259 member squad. Brown was second team All-American as named by the National Recruiting Advisor. He was also a USA Today Honorable Mention selection. He totaled 9,136 career all-purpose yards and 122 career TDs. As a senior he earned all-state honors from the Daily Oklahoman, the Tulsa World and by the Oklahoma Coaches. Brown was a four year letterman in football and track and earned three basketball letters. He is a 6-8 high jumper and the state champion in 1997 and earned all-conference basketball honors.

JON CLANTON DL, 6-2, 280, Glendale, Arizona (Centennial) - Slated to play on the Husker defensive line, Jon Clanton was a first team all-state nose guard and the West Valley Conference Defensive Player-of-the-Year at Centennial High School in Peoria, Arizona. Playing for Coach Richard Taylor, Clanton was a Superprep All-Far West Regional athlete as he recorded 104 tackles (67 solo) including 9.5 sacks, three blocked punts, two blocked extra points, six forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries. He also spent time at fullback and scored two touchdowns. He was an honorable mention all-state player on defense as a junior. Clanton visited Washington, Oregon, Illinois and Nebraska and canceled a visit to Nevada. He also ran the 100 (11.3 electronic best) and 200 and threw the shot put in track. Clanton runs a 4.7 electronic 40.

WES CODY OL, 6-3, 255, Fremont, Nebraska (Bergen) - Wes Cody helped lead Fremont Bergen to the state playoffs the past four years and earned first team All-Nebraska honors by the Omaha World-Herald and first team super-state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as an offensive lineman in 1998. He earned Class C2 all-state honors as a defensive lineman by the World Herald playing for Coach Larry Martin. He was also a USA Today honorable mention selection. Cody was an All-Midlands Region honoree by Superprep as he had 112 tackles (52 solo) including 11 sacks and 35 tackles for loss. A Nebraska native, Cody did not take any other official visits, but considered Kansas State, Michigan, Wyoming, Kansas, Army and Navy.

KEYOU CRAVER DB, 6-0, 180, Harleton, Texas - Keyou (pronounced Key-oh) Craver is one of three recruits who call Texas home to sign with NU this season. Craver was a first team all-state running back in 1997 as he totaled 3,024 yards on 271 carries (11.2 ypc) with 50 rushing touchdowns to become the second all-time single-season scorer and rusher behind national leader Kenny Hall of Sugarland, Texas. He was anmed an All-American by the National Recruiting Advisor and had another 2,329 yards and 36 touchdowns as a junior, as he earned second team all-state honors. In 1997, Craver was the District MVP and th eOffensive Player-of-the-Year. He also earned All-Southwest Regional honors by Superprep as he had ten 200 yard rushing games as a senior. His best game saw him total 340 yards on 32 carries. Although he had five career 300 yard rushig games, he was recruited as a defensive back. His career defensive statistics include 192 tackles the last two years and five interceptions. He also returned a punt and a kickoff for 80-plus yard TDs in 1997.Craver is the state's defending triple jumper, winning with a 48-2 jump in 1996 and 49-1 in 1997. He visited Oklahoma and Texas Tech and cancelled visits to Texas A&M and Texas.Craver is a member of the National Honor Sciety, student council and an honor roll member.

MICHAEL DEMPS DB, 5-11, 190, Forth Worth, Texas (Dunbar) - Expected to play in the Nebraska secondary, Michael Demps was Dunbar's running back and kick returner for four years. Playing for Coach Bob James, Demps rushed for 1,346 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior and another 1,106 his sophomore and junior years. As a defensive back, Demps had five career interceptions. He earned honorable mention all-state honors, and all-region honors by Superprep. He was Grid Iron Great's Super Squad Offensive Player-of-the-Year in Texas, earned All-Southwest honors by Superprep and was named to USA Today Honorable Mention team. He was a first team all-area by the Fort Worth Star Telegram playing in Class 5A. With a 3.1 grade point average, Demps is a six time honor roll selection and plans to major in business administration. He picked Nebraska over Texas Tech, SMU, New Mexico, UCLA and Oklahoma State.

DAHRRAN DIEDRICK RB, 6-1, 210, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada (Cedarbrae Collegiate Institute) - Nebraska's first scholarship recruit out of Canada, Dahrran (pronounced Darren) Diedrick already enrolled at Nebraska this semester and is expected to help fill the void at running back after junior Ahman Green left school early to make himself eligible for the NFL draft. Diedrick rushed for an Ontario province record 1,886 yards in nine games last fall at Cedarbrae Collegiate Institute. Also a standout in rugby. Diedrick underwent pre-winter testing with the Husker squad. he recorded a 10 yard dash time of 1.63, a forty time of 4.70, a pro agility time of 4.07, vertical jump of 34.0 inches and a Performance Index score of 2265.

AARON GOLLIDAY TE, 6-4, 235, York, Nebraska - Aaron Golliday earned first team All-Nebraska honors by the Omaha World Herald and first team super state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as a punter. A talented athlete, Golliday also earned first team all-state Class B honors by both state papers as a running back and was honorable mention USA Today All-American. He is expected to be a tight end at Nebraska. In 1997 Golliday rushed for 1,923 yards and 21 TDs and helped lead York High School to the state semi finals and an 8-3 record in 1997. Playing for Coach Randy Cordes, Golliday earned three letters in football, four in basketball and four in track. He also played American Legion baseball in the summer and toured with the Valentino's Junior All-Star baseball team. His sophomore season was cut short as he suffered a broken leg.

DEANTAE GRIXBY RB/DB, 5-8, 180, Omaha, Neb. (Central) - Named an All-American by SuperPrep, and PrepStar, Grixby was also a PrepStar Big 12 Region Super 30 and an All-Big 12 pick by the National Recruiting Advisor. Grixby earned first-team All-Nebraska honors by the Omaha World-Herald and first-team super-state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as a defensive back in 1997 and was a USA Today Honorable-Mention All-American. One of nine native Nebraskans to sign this year, Grixby played for coach Joe McMenamin at Omaha Central High School. Grixby could be a running back or play in the secondary for the Huskers. He joins Huskers Ahman Green (No. 2 all-time NU rusher with 3,880 yards in 1995-96-97) and Calvin Jones (No. 3 all-time NU rusher, 3,153 yards in 1991-92-93) as one in a long line of great running backs from Central (also Kansas' Gayle Sayers). Grixby earned second-team all-state honors as a junior. In 1997, Grixby rushed for 1,102 yards on 59 carries with 11 TDs. Defensively, he had 54 solo tackles and 85 total. In his junior year, Grixby rushed for 1,244 yards and nine TDs and had 50 tackles. As a sophomore he added 550 yards and five TDs for a career total 2,896 yards and 25 TDs. Grixby was recruited by numerous Big 12 schools but only visited Nebraska.

DeJUAN GROCE DB, 5-11, 185, Garfield Heights, Ohio (St. Edward- An All-American defensive back by Parade, SuperPrep and the National Recruiting Advisor, DeJuan Groce (pronounced Duh-Wan Gross) was also a member of PrepStar's Dream Team. He made the PrepStar Midwest Region Super 30 team and was a second-team All-American as named by the National Recruiting Advisor (seventh-best defensive back available, No. 81 on their Top 100 list). He earned all-state honors from the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He played safety and corner and returned kickoffs and punts for coach Jim McQuaide and St. Edward High School his sophomore, junior and senior years after transferring from John F. Kennedy High School in Cleveland. Groce had an outstanding game against rival Cincinnati Elder when he returned a kickoff for a touchdown, had two interceptions and blocked a kick. He also ran the 100 (10.7 best) and 200 (21.9) in track and has posted a 4.4 in the 40. Groce picked Nebraska after visits to Michigan State, Indiana, Ohio State and Syracuse..

CHRIS KELSAY RE, 6-5, 240, Auburn, Nebraska - One of a long and growing list of Husker brother connections, Chris Kelsay's older brother Chad will be a senior starter at rush end for the Huskers in 1998. In 1997, Nebraska's recruiting class included three signees whose brothers played for Nebraska. They were Dion Booker (brother Michael graduated in 1996); Mark Vedral (Jon--1996 and Mike 1992), and Tracey Wistrom (Grant--1997, two-time All-American and Lombardi winner). Chris Kelsay earned first-team All-Nebraska honors by the Omaha World-Herald and first-team super-state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as a defensive lineman in 1997. He was an All-American as named by SuperPrep and was listed as the 28th-best recruit in that publication's "National 50 Team." USA Today named Kelsay to its honorable-mention team. This fall Kelsay led Auburn to a 10-2 record and the state Class C semifinals. He recorded 142 tackles (69 solo), 14 sacks, three caused fumbles and two fumble recoveries playing outside linebacker, rush end, tight end and the majority of his time at tackle. He was also an all-state linebacker in 1996 as Auburn again made the state semifinals (beaten by champion both years). Kelsay also earned academic all-state honors two years, playing for coach Dave Carlson. Two weeks before he committed to Nebraska, Kelsay was offered a scholarship by Michigan without a visit. He was recruited by a majority of the Big 12 schools. Kelsay earned honorable-mention all-state honors for his basketball team as a junior as well as academic all-state honors and averages 18 points and nine rebounds as a forward this season. Kelsay boasts a 3.88 grade point average.

NATE KOLTERMAN OL, 6-3, 300, Seward, Neb. -Nathan Kolterman played on Seward High School's offensive and defensive lines and is expected to join the O-Line at Nebraska. He earned first-team All-Nebraska honors by the Omaha World-Herald and first-team super-state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as an offensive lineman in 1997. He also earned All-America honors by the National Recruiting Advisor, PrepStar Big 12 Region Super 30, and USA Today Honorable-Mention honors in 1997 as he helped Seward and Coach Greg Welch to an 8-2 record and a sixth-place finish in the state last year. Kolterman sat out the first three games in 1997 with a ruptured appendix, but still totaled 77 tackles (26 solo) on the year. He led Class B in tackles in 1996. He was an all-state lineman as a junior by both state papers and earned four letters in track and two in wrestling. Kolterman was also recruited by Kansas State, Colorado, Michigan, Texas A&M, Wyoming, Colorado State and Fresno State.

JASON LOHR DL, 6-3, 275, Jenks, Oklahoma - Jason Lohr earned All-America honors by SuperPrep as a defensive lineman. He is a two-time all-state player as voted by the Daily Oklahoman and the Jim Thorpe Society--the only junior to make the team in 1996. The Tulsa World named him to their all-state team and tabbed him as their defensive player-of-the-year. He played defensive tackle and offensive guard earning honorable-mention All-America honors by USA Today. Lohr helped Jenks High School and Coach Allan Trimble win six straight district titles in Class 6A and back-to-back state titles in his junior and senior year. A great pass rusher, Lohr had 95 tackles his senior year (37 solo), 18 tackles for loss, four sacks and 23 quarterback hits. His stats as a junior were even better with 98 tackles, 10 sacks and 32 quarterback hits. Lohr was the player of the week after he helped his team defeat Stillwater High and highly touted All-America quarterback Matt Holliday. Lohr also visited Oklahoma State and was recruited by Texas A&M and Kansas State.

SHAWN MCGANN WB, 5-11, 190, Granger, Indiana (Penn) - An all-state running back for Penn High School and Coach Chris Geesman, Shawn McGann helped lead Penn to three consecutive Class 5A state championships and a 42-2 record. McGann was named the MVP of the South Bend All-Area Dream Team. Penn was ranked among USA Today's Top 25 in 1996 and in 1997 defeated No. 14 Bloomington South in the state title game (21-20). He rushed for 1,614 yards in 1997 and 31 touchdowns (including the game-winning TD in the state championship game), averaging 9.1 yards per carry. He also returned three kickoffs for scores (8-352 total), caught 23 passes for 355 yards and has been timed at 4.37 in the 40. McGann also earned four letters in track and was an honor roll member all through high school. McGann picked Nebraska over Notre Dame and Michigan and is the first person from his high school to accept a scholarship from Nebraska.

MATT SHOOK OL, 6-3, 270, Medina, Ohio - The last to sign with Nebraska, Shook signed a letter of intent on Sunday, Feb. 8, 1998. Shook chose Nebraska over Miami of Ohio after just two visits, but was also recruited by Pittsburgh and Indiana among others. Shook was a three year starter for Head Coach John Seminick at Medina High School. He earned first team all-state honor as an offensive guard and was named to the Big 33 team that matches Ohio high school all-stars with Pennsylvania high school all-stars. Shook played both sides of the line as well as special teams. He was named to the Ohio All-Star North-South game and the Ohio Football Magazine listed him as the number one offensive lineman to come out of Ohio this year. A PrepStar pre-season All-American, Shook was captain of his football team as a senior. Medina running backs ran behind Shook 75 percent of the time as his team posted an 8-2 record in 1997 and placed second in the Pioneer Conference. Shook also lettered in track throwing the shot (best of 53 feet) and discus (155 feet).

JEREMY SLECHTA DL, 6-5, 255, LaVista, Nebraska (PapillionLa Vista) - Jeremy Slechta (pronounced Seh-LECHT-tuh) earned first-team All-Nebraska honors by the Omaha World-Herald and first-team super-state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as a defensive lineman in 1997. He was the World-Herald honorary defensive captain for Class A. Slechta also earned All-America honors by SuperPrep and the National Recruiting Advisor as a defensive lineman playing for Coach Gene Suhr at Class A Papillion-LaVista High School, just outside Omaha. He was an honorable-mention pick by USA Today. Slechta helped lead Papillion-LaVista to runner-up status as a sophomore and senior and to a state championship in 1996 (13-0) playing offensive tackle and defensive end. He is expected to be a defensive lineman for the Huskers. In 1997, Slechta recorded 97 tackles (24 solo), had 13 tackles for loss, six pass breakups and recovered two fumbles, scoring two touchdowns. He was the Metro Coaches Association Defensive Lineman-of-the-Year as a junior and senior. In 1996, he had 101 tackles, including 20 tackles for loss, five breakups, one blocked punt, and four fumble recoveries (scoring one TD). Slechta only visited Nebraska, but was also recruited by Michigan, Ohio State and several Big 12 schools

JUSTIN SMITH RE, 6-5, 240, Sherman, Texas - One of three signees in the 1998 class from the state of Texas, Smith earned All-America honors by SuperPrep as a defensive end and was that publication's Southwest Region Defensive Player-of-the-Year. He earned honorable-mention all-state honors for Class 4A Sherman playing for Coach Ronnie Tipps. Sherman was second in the state in 1996 and 1997, as Smith had 90 tackles (50 solo), 12 sacks and also served as a blocking tight end. He is expected to play rush end at Nebraska. Sherman earned three letters in football, three in track and two in powerlifting. He chose Nebraska over Kansas State, Texas and Missouri.

RANDY STELLA LB, 6-2, 200,Omaha, Nebraska (Benson) - Nebraska native Randy Stella earned first-team All-Nebraska honors from the Omaha World-Herald and first-team super-state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as a linebacker in 1997. He was also a SuperPrep and National Recruiting Advisor All-American linebacker and was No. 93 on the Advisor's Top 100 list playing for Coach Lonnie Tapp at Class A Omaha Benson High School. He was named to USA Today's Honorable-Mention All-America team. Stella missed most of three games with a sprained ankle and turf toe in 1997, but still rushed for 761 yards and 11 touchdowns and had 120 tackles, four quarterback sacks and one interception. A standout in basketball as well, Stella was last year's state long jump champion with a leap of 23-10. Stella picked Nebraska over Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas and Michigan.

TONY TATA LB, 6-2, 240, Honolulu, Hawaii (St. Louis) - The Hawaii connection to Nebraska continues as Tony Tata is the fourth current scholarship Husker joining senior second-team All-America setter Fiona Nepo (Honolulu University); baseball freshman third baseman/outfielder Daniel Kimura (Hawaii player of the year in 1996, Iolani High) and redshirt freshman offensive lineman Dominic Raiola (St. Louis). From the same high school as Tata, Raiola was the first scholarship football player from Hawaii to sign with NU. St. Louis has won 12 consecutive state championships. Tata earned All-West honors by the National Recruiting Advisor playing for Coach Cal Lee. Tata was the state's defensive player-of-the-year and the Hawaii Player-of-the-Year by USA Today (and honorable-mention All-American) after recording 74 tackles, 23 tackles for loss and 10 quarterback sacks. He also had 37 quarterback hurries and forced three fumbles. Over the past two years, he has had 154 tackles, 26 sacks and seven forced fumbles. He can bench press 365 and squat 420 and has been timed at an electronic 4.6 in the 40. Tata visited Arizona, Colorado, Utah and Washington, before picking the Huskers. A native of American Samoa, Tata is the fifth member of his family to accept an NCAA Division I-A football scholarship. Three brothers (Pulou-RB, Tasi-OL, Silila-NT) were members of Oregons 1994 Rose Bowl team, while Vavae is a junior defensive end for UCLA. He is one of at least eight St. Louis High team members to earn a Division I scholarship this year.

WILSON THOMAS WR, 6-5, 200, Omaha, Nebraska (North) - Although he didn't play football until his junior year, Wilson Thomas earned first-team All-Nebraska honors by the Omaha World-Herald and first-team super-state honors by the Lincoln Journal Star as a defensive lineman in 1997. Thomas was also named to the SuperPrep All-Midland and USA Todays honorable-mention team playing for Coach Herman Colvin at Class A Omaha North High School. Playing wide receiver and rush end, Wilson recorded 90 tackles and had 14 sacks and averaged 15 yards per catch as a senior. He is also in his fourth year playing for the basketball team and currently averages 14 points, seven rebounds and boasts an 80 percent free throw percentage for 10-2 North. A three-year track letterman, Thomas cleared 6-7 in the high jump and went 44 feet and 23 feet in the triple and long jumps, respectively. Wilson was recruited by Iowa State, Kansas State, Colorado State and New Mexico State, but canceled all visits after committing to Nebraska. He has one sister, Danielle, and is the cousin of Mike Rucker, who is a senior starting rush for the Huskers. He is active in OYSB, the Omaha Young Sisters and Brothers organization. Thomas was only the second high school player in the history of Nebraska football summer camps to break the 2,000-point barrier for performances in the 40-yard dash, vertical jump and agility run. Former Nebraska I-back Ahman Green was the only other high school player to break the 2,000 mark.

Source: Nebraska Sports Information