Nebraska adds late 2024 roster addition in the form of German OL David Höffken
HOUSTON — You never know what storylines will emerge from a satellite football camp. Over the last two days, the Nebraska football coaching staff has been in Texas at Mary Hardin-Baylor and Houston Christian universities.
On Tuesday, the Big Red made one of the most unique roster additions in recent history. Over the last two days, 22-year-old offensive lineman prospect David Höffken participated in camps in Belton and Houston in front of the NU staff. The Germany native has not played organized football in over two years, but the 6-foot-7, 257-pound Höffken has re-committed to the game and has picked up multiple Division I offers.
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He picked up his biggest one yet Tuesday and officially committed to the Huskers. Höffken plans to join the team this summer with a full eligibility clock.
“I’m not the first German Husker,” Höffken said. “But I’m going to try to be the best German Husker.
“I met Nebraska at yesterday’s camp, worked out and talked to the coaches. They liked the way that I moved, and I liked talking to them. We met up here today, and I had a nice talk with them again.”
Höffken began his football journey in Germany, hoping to move to the United States, but that path did not materialize for him after 2020.
“I started playing football in 2016 for a small countryside team,” Höffken said. “It was five-on-five full contact for two seasons. Then I joined the all-star team of my state in Germany, and as a member of this team I was voted the MVP of our bowl game we played in. Two years later, I was on the all-star team again, and they told me to play for a bigger team. Then I played two years for the Cologne Crocodiles. I played in the highest youth division there. In Germany, we don’t have school teams; we have more local clubs.”
Nebraska OL addition David Höffken. (Photo credit: Sean Callahan)
Gridiron Imports helped Höffken get back on track
Höffken picked up his first Division I scholarship offer from Massachusetts in 2020. However, for various reasons, he was not able to move to the United States and eventually stepped away from the game. He recently got back into football and linked up with Gridiron Imports.
It’s a U.S.-based non-profit that works with German and other European football prospects to get college football opportunities. Gridiron Imports is taking around 50 European prospects to several camps in June.
This week, the players are all staying at a hotel in Dallas and making drives lasting up to four hours each morning to different camps. Höffken went from Dallas to Belton, back to Dallas, and then to Houston on Monday and Tuesday alone to be seen by the Husker coaching staff. The commitment paid off for Höffken and Gridiron Imports.
“It’s an amazing four days for David to come back to the game of football and end up on Tuesday with an offer from one of the top programs in the history of college football,” Chris Adamson of Gridiron Imports told HuskerOnline. “I don’t know if you saw the emotion, but he broke down and teared up. It was amazing for the work that he’s done in the game of football to come back and hang in there and persevere to believe and come out here and work his butt off.”
Höffken has spent the last two years working part-time at a drugstore in Germany.
Everything on Monday and Tuesday has happened so fast with Nebraska, who has been in the market for offensive tackles over the off-season.
The next step now is getting to Lincoln to begin his Husker journey.
“Tomorrow morning we are going to try to figure out how fast we can get the visa,” Höffken said. “That’s the most important thing. All my transcripts are already translated. I have them at the eligibility center. No worries about that. We will stay in close contact with the coaches and get the work started as early as we can.”
Despite his time out of football, Adamson has no doubt that Höffken has what it takes to succeed at the next level.
“He’s just so incredibly focused now and mature with his approach,” Adamson said. “He has made a lot of ground in a short amount of time.”
“To me, I think the guy can play in the league (NFL) as an offensive tackle if he puts on the weight. He can do a lot of different things from defensive line to offensive line. I think Nebraska does like him as an offensive lineman and I think he can do it.”
A 6-foot-7 and 257 pounds, Höffken has a nearly 7-foot wingspan with a 9-foot-4 broad jump. There’s a lot to work with there as he grows and develops.
“At the moment, he’s 260, and there’s hardly an ounce of fat on him,” Adamson said. “He’s got the frame to put on a lot of weight, and he also has the mentality. You see guys with the potential and the mentality, and those are the ones who have a chance. He’s got both of those things. His perspective after being away from the game a bit, I think he’s as hungry as ever, and he’s incredibly mature and focused, and I think that’s going to help him with his development.
“I think he has as high of a ceiling as anyone that has come out of Europe.”
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