Steven Sipple: Daniel Kaelin “ripped it” during workout for Husker coaches, and soon he’ll be playing in program where he best belongs
Plenty of people will tell you that Nebraska quarterback recruit Daniel Kaelin can “rip it.” That is, he can throw a football with such velocity that it might just rip through the hands of young receivers.
Well, that happened on Wednesday, a significant day at Bellevue (Nebraska) West High School.
Because Bellevue West’s two best receivers, Dae’Vonn Hall and Isaiah McMorris, were competing at the state track meet, Kaelin went through a workout for Nebraska coaches throwing to mostly Thunderbird backup receivers or defensive backs.
“Two different throws went right through their hands and into their face,” says Bellevue West head coach Mike Huffman, 48, who’s seen plenty in his career.
“I was just laughing,” the coach adds. “Daniel’s got a big arm, now.”
Plus, “He’s been training for this stuff since he was in the fourth grade.”
It was a significant day at Bellevue West because those two Nebraska assistants — Ed Foley and offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield — were on hand specifically to evaluate Kaelin. Satterfield had flown in from a California recruiting trip for the unplanned visit to Bellevue. He had to see in person just what the kid had in his arsenal.
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You probably know much of the story: Nebraska’s primary quarterback target, Dylan Raiola, verbally committed to Georgia on Monday. The Huskers’ focus immediately shifted to Kaelin, who had been verbally committed to Missouri since mid-March. He committed to Mizzou in part because there was a time when Raiola-to-Nebraska seemed very possible.
Raiola is ranked as the consensus No. 1 quarterback in the nation for the class of 2024. Kaelin, a three-star recruit, is rated 28th among the nation’s QBs in his class by On3.
Make no mistake, Kaelin had to show Nebraska on Wednesday — the workout began soon after lunchtime — that he should be its guy, Huffman says. If Kaelin had an off day, perhaps Satterfield and Foley would have gone back to Lincoln and told head coach Matt Rhule that they better consider other options.
No problem. Kaelin was on point, and he committed to Nebraska on Saturday.
Let’s be clear: Rhule, who was introduced as Nebraska’s head coach in late November, has been up front with Kaelin from the get-go, “and I’ve appreciated every second of it,” Huffman says. He recalls a conversation with Rhule in January. Huffman asked the new Husker coach point-blank: What’s your recruiting plan for Kaelin and Raiola?
“Coach Rhule attacks every question. He looked me in the eye and said, ‘We would be ecstatic and lucky to have Danny Kaelin as our quarterback, but we are aggressively pursuing another prospect’ — he didn’t use Raiola’s name — ‘and there’s a lot of factors involved. But if that does not go well for us, we will be relentless in pursuit of Danny.”
You know what? Nebraska last week relentlessly pursued Kaelin. Foley, in charge of in-state recruiting, called Huffman immediately upon hearing news of Raiola to Georgia. Was Kaelin open to Nebraska’s overtures? Of course, he was open. Kaelin has wanted to be a Husker since junior high.
Tuesday, Rhule called Huffman from North Carolina, where he was gathering belongings for his family’s move to Lincoln.
Huffman wanted more answers.
“When coach Rhule called Tuesday, I said, ‘Granted, you guys know what you’re doing as coaches, but if you’re moving more toward using a mobile (quarterback), you know, Danny can run, but he’s not a runner,’” Huffman says.
Rhule brought up Spencer Rattler, the former Oklahoma quarterback who played for Satterfield last season for South Carolina. Rattler is a strong-armed QB with accuracy, but he’s not fleet afoot.
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There’s another key element in the discussion: Development. Huffman feels Nebraska’s staff can develop Kaelin’s game, and Kaelin’s willingness and ability to learn should help matters.
“He is so smart. So smart,” Huffman says. “He’s like having a coach out there.”
Kaelin’s ability to read the field and quickly process what he sees is one of his strengths.
“Then he also has the arm talent to take advantage of it,” Huffman says.
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound Kaelin this past season threw for 3,186 yards and 36 touchdowns, with only seven interceptions — including five in the first three games.
He was taking too many risks, Huffman says. In fact, Huffman told Kaelin that the picks had to cease immediately. “You’ve got to knock this sh—off!” the coach exclaimed.
Kaelin can handle tough coaching, Huffman says.
He ended up completing 63% of his passes.
“They call him ‘Danny Dimes’ because he’s so accurate,” Huffman says.
Kaelin shared time at his position as a sophomore. Following that 2021 season, Huffman wanted Kaelin to improve his mobility. So, Kaelin trained with Bronson Marsh in LaVista. Huffman didn’t care if Kaelin threw a ball all offseason that year. He wanted the quarterback to improve his change of direction and ability to throw on the move.
“Danny’s not a runner; he’s not Jeff Sims,” Huffman says of Nebraska’s projected 2023 starter. “But he’s certainly capable of pulling the ball on third down and scrambling for a first down or running the RPO game. We do it every week.”
Make no mistake, Nebraska coaches are confident in Sims. That immediately became clear to Huffman. Sims, though, has only two seasons of eligibility remaining.
That could work out perfectly for Kaelin.
“The Nebraska coaches think Jeff Sims is going to have an unbelievable year,” Huffman says. “To the point where if it’s really good, he might have to leave (for the NFL). But he’ll probably come back for that second year. Well, that puts Daniel in his redshirt freshman year.
“Perfect. Absolutely perfect.”
Rhule isn’t a reactionary type, Huffman says
Kaelin will graduate in December, meaning he’ll be ready to practice for Nebraska next spring.
“It’s all adding up, right? And remember, Daniel has wanted this the whole time,” Huffman says. “We’ve got to be very clear on that. In eighth grade, he wanted to be a Husker.”
Former Nebraska quarterbacks coach Mario Verduzco offered Kaelin a scholarship when he was a freshman at Bellevue West — before he had ever played in a high school game.
Florida State had made an offer to Kaelin before Nebraska did.
“Some of these coaches can be so reactionary on this stuff, which has been kind of refreshing with Rhule because he doesn’t seem that way,” Huffman says.
According to Huffman, former Nebraska coach Scott Frost’s staff didn’t have much contact with Kaelin for several months before Mark Whipple was hired as offensive coordinator in December of 2021.
“Whipple literally said, ‘Why aren’t we paying more attention to this kid — this kid can rip it’” Huffman says.
Oh, yes, Huffman has visions of Kaelin “ripping it” on autumn Saturdays in the Big Ten. It could become incredibly exciting for Huffman. Exciting for Bellevue West in general.
At long last, Huffman, after 11 seasons in charge at Bellevue West, will have a Thunderbird playing QB for Big Red.
“I watch every second of every game,” he says. “Every Saturday, I’m decked out in Husker gear. Every Saturday. I told Danny this week when it was really, really trending (toward Nebraska), ‘Do you remember in 2020 when Zavier (Betts) scored that touchdown against Penn State? The feeling when it’s one of our Bellevue West guys and something happens for Big Red, it’s just different.’”
Bottom line, Nebraska seems like the place where Daniel Kaelin belongs.
He wants to be there. That much is certain.
The post Steven Sipple: Daniel Kaelin “ripped it” during workout for Husker coaches, and soon he’ll be playing in program where he best belongs appeared first on On3.
