Malik Esquerra connects with Nebraska staff on official visit
Killeen (Texas) Shoemaker safety Malik Esquerra took a mid-week official visit to Nebraska earlier this week. The 6-foot-3 and 186-pound Esquerra saw everything Nebraska can provide, from academics to his role in their defense. Nebraska made quite the impression on Esquerra, who has one more official visit before shutting down his process and making a decision.
“It was pretty cool,” Esquerra said. “I didn’t expect Lincoln to be that big of a city. I was surprised by it. It is a very nice town.”
Nebraska commitment to academics impressed Malik Esquerra and his family
Nebraska rolled out the academics first approach this week, showing Esquerra and his family how serious they are as a team. Rhule and his staff have made their marks since getting to Lincoln too.
“The first thing that I did, and my parents really enjoyed it, was the academic part. They talk about their academic All-Americans and their team GPA. I think it was one of the highest in the nation this past year.
“The new coaching staff raised the team GPA, and some of the individual players’ GPAs, significantly. We went through that on the first day.”
Malike Esquerra discusses strategy and where he could play for Nebraska
The Nebraska defensive staff had a great opportunity to spend a lot of time with Esquerra as a mid-week visitor. The talented safety got to hear about the Nebraska defensive principles from the defensive coordinator and the position coach.
“I met with Coach Cooper and Coach White for a defensive meeting,” Esquerra said. “We went over the defense that they run and what they want to be as a defense. They are looking to stop the run the first, good on third downs, and have takeaways.”
Nebraska also talked with Esquerra about how they plan to manage things in the secondary. They want versatility and players that can move between positions so they don’t have to make substitutions.
“I know that I asked them about their safety positions. They told me that they call them DBs at Nebraska. They run a 3-3-5, so they have three different safety spots and two corners. For them, everyone is a DB.
“They told me that they would get me reps at every position, but for me, they thought I could play free safety or post safety. I think that is the best fit for me because of the space and my range.”
Esquerra hears about a changing culture at Nebraska under Rhule
Esquerra had some tough questions for his host. The answers might make some Nebraska fans uneasy and, at the same time, might give them hope that Rhule is changing the culture in Lincoln.
“Derek Branch was my host,” Esquerra said. “He’s a redshirt sophomore. One of the things I asked him about was the feel in the locker room. He told me that before this coaching staff, they just had a bunch of cliques. People were just hanging out with people they knew.
“The new coaching staff has made it so it’s like everyone is a family. He said that everyone is hanging around everyone, and they are all getting to know each other. The new staff is developing some team chemistry.”
Esquerra gave the visit to Nebraska a very high mark. He says his time with his recruiting coach was the best part of the visit. They just cut it up and talked about anything that Esquerra wanted to touch on.
“I would probably give it an “8.5 to a 9”,” Esquerra said. “The best part for me was meeting with coach Coop, the DBs coach. He told me when we met that we could talk about football or life. It was whatever we wanted to talk about.
“We covered a bunch of different things like how he got to where he is, what he did in football when he played, how he would develop me more, he watched some of my plays and told me how I would fit in, and then he pointed out some of my plays and what I could have done better.”
Esquerra back on the road this weekend; decision nears
There is one official visit left for Esquerra before he says he will shut it down, decide, and prepare for his senior season. Esquerra knows that he has to decide soon before losing a spot in a class he wants.
“I am going to Texas Tech this weekend. That is the last visit for me this summer. I am shutting it down for the summer and getting ready for the season. My goal is to make a decision after that. Spots are being taken up quickly, and some schools may not have any safety spots soon.”
Esquerra knows one of the other targets that Nebraska is recruiting at safety. He met him before either of them had a lot of offers. The two had stayed in touch and spoke on Thursday when Esquerra was leaving Lincoln to discuss their experiences in Nebraska.
“I talked to Dontae Carter when I was in Nebraska. We met at a Baylor scrimmage. I had no offers at that point, and he only had one. Neither of us was ranked. We have stayed in contact since then. I told him about the Nebraska visit, and he said that he liked the visit to Nebraska. We will be at Tech together this weekend.”
Esquerra was a first team all-district selection as a junior. He finished the year with 68 total tackles, 53 solo, four interceptions, two tackles for loss, one forced fumble, and one pass broken up.
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