Analyzing how quarterback competition will go for Nebraska in 2024

Nebraska‘s quarterback room is looking a bit different this spring.

Heinrich Haarberg returns are the starter for most of the 2023 season, but also welcomes five-star quarterback Dylan Raiola to the mix, alongside Daniel Kaelin — both of whom are highly-touted freshman prospects out of high school.

To gauge where the Cornhusker quarterback room stands through the first handful of practices this spring, HuskerOnline’s Sean Callahan joined On3’s Andy Staples to break down the upcoming QB battle that will be waged throughout the summer.

“Heinrich Haarberg won five games last year. He won all their games for them,” Callahan told Staples. “I believe he started seven or eight games and Dylan Raiola is going to have to beat him out. I mean, he’s going to have to prove it in the spring. He’s got more arm talent and just natural abilities, but you know how that goes and he’s still got to be able to prove it.

“This will be a big spring and don’t sleep on Daniel Kaelin, either. He was an Elite 11 quarterback they brought in. They have two Elite 11 Freshmen quarterbacks in Dylan Raiola and Daniel Kaelin. and last year’s starter returning in Heinrich Haarberg, so it’s a really good group.”

Being the only scholarship QB on the roster with returning experience, Haarberg threw for 967 yards, seven touchdowns and seven interceptions as the Huskers finished the season 5-7. He split time with Jeff Sims and Chubba Purdy, which kept his numbers down.

For Raiola, many fans are calling for him to start right away. A consensus five-star recruit, head coach Matt Rhule has said that none of his accomplishments or rankings matter once he suits up in a Nebraska jersey.

Still, after those two and Kaelin, the quarterback room in Lincoln is a little more than thin.

“[The quarterback room] is not very deep, though with just three people,” Callahan continued. “And they may or may not go to the portal post-spring, but that’s a tough sell. You know, how do you convince somebody and basically tell them, ‘You’ve got to be good enough, but not quite good enough.’ … But again, that’s a tough deal to even find the right quarterback. So that’s a big storyline — will they have enough enough depth at quarterback this year?”

It’s not the easiest to find a player willing to come in and essentially be the emergency quarterback as a third or fourth-stringer. Callahan threw out the idea of potentially finding a veteran journeyman in the transfer portal at some point before the fall and pitching them the idea of being more or less a veteran presence in the locker room and an able body to use on the practice field.

Whatever the solution may be, Nebraska will know who will be taking the Huskers’ first snap of the season by the time Aug. 31 rolls around, where they’ll kick their season off against UTEP at home.