Somehow, Bubba Starling knew. He knew Nebraska was the right choice for him to continue his illustrious athletic career which could arguably be considered the best career in Trailblazer history. A career which has seen 2432 rushing yards, 2641 passing yards, and 59 total touchdowns—and he’s just now coming up on his senior year.
Bubba knew that the University of Nebraska is the right place to carry on his talent and legacy.
“My mom kind of poked me in the foot and said ‘You can do it if you want to’ and I said ‘alright’ and told [head coach Bo] Pelini that I’m ready to be a part of the Nebraska family,” Starling said.
This was on Saturday, June 19, when Starling made his commitment to Nebraska.
“I had all these teams that I was looking at going to and narrowed it down to Notre Dame and Nebraska,” he said, “In the end Nebraska was closer, I feel like there’s kids up there I get along with better, more my types of kids. Kids who like to hunt and fish, that’s all me. It’s just fun. I can’t wait to be up there.”
Along with looking forward to the teammates and fellow students, Starling is excited to be working with the coaching staff.
“I think the coaching staff…I get along with great,” he said, “The quarterback coach [and offensive coordinator], Shawn Watson, I just really like him. I’m really comfortable with him and everything.”
Watson was contacted but is unable to comment due to NCAA regulations, preventing all coaches from commenting on recruits until signing day in February.
Starling is also planning on playing baseball for the Cornhuskers, a team which has made trips to the College World Series in 2001, 2002, and 2005.
With Nebraska football on a turnaround, Starling looks forward to a career at Nebraska with potentially endless opportunities.
“Just continuing to be a leader,” he said when asked about what his goals will be. “Taking it up to the next level. Just compete with all of the great players around me and it’d be sweet to win a National Championship.”
When asked about individual accolades, including possibly winning a Heisman, Starling smiled.
“I just laugh,” he said, “[Athletic director and former football coach] Tom Osborne wrote me a letter and said I could be a Heisman Trophy winner. I just started laughing.”
Starling will be part of a new age in Husker sports, as his freshman year will be Nebraska’s first season in the Big Ten.
“It’s gonna be fun. Great competition playing in Michigan, you know, all the big stadiums. That’ll be awesome,” he said with a smile, “It’s gonna be cold. But getting to play against Ohio State, all of those teams [will be fun.]”
Starling did mention that there is still some unfinished business to complete in a Trailblazer uniform.
“Right now I’m just trying to concentrate on the high school season and hopefully winning a state championship,” he said.
One final season, one final opportunity for Starling to help his team complete that goal. One last time before he trades in Big Blue for Big Red and the chance to showcase his talents at the national level.
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