We need to not be the top school (tied with Maryland) in the big ten on transfer numbers. Middle of the pack would be more acceptable and as long as it doesn't put us well below the 85 scholarship mark. Maybe even if we only have one player transfer before they even give it a chance. I hope that answers your question.
So we are tied with Maryland, gee, that's a shock considering we both have the most recent staff changes that don't involve promoting from within. Let's see where we are after we aren't the school with arguably the newest/youngest staff. A coaching change nearly always facilitates player turnover, and we likely heightened that with our first class being pretty thrown together, with a mix of Riley holdovers and last minute additions. Frost and Company knew we needed speed, we needed some playmakers, so they took who they could to try and find a few. For me, the biggest disappointment with the first class is the defections from the secondary. I think we had some very talented guys there, and for whatever reason, they chose to leave. It has me wonder if Fisher is just a tough guy to play for if you aren't wired right.
While I know it's fashionable for some of the folks here to point fingers at the numbers of defections in this class, to me it's a throw away, and any talent we get from it is total gravy, and some of that gravy isn't too shabby. AMartinez, Deontai, Honas, Britt, Lil Farn, Tannor, Wildeman, Jurgens, Rogers all add depth and/or starting talent. Several of the defections were reaches, but that's what happens when you jump into a situation late, which we knew was going to happen. Some left because they needed to, late grabs are bad for both parties more often than not. We can debate all day about who is at fault when a kid screws up, but I'd suggest we try to remember just how much crap some of our guys in the glory years pulled, and it either wasn't publicized or people let the staff deal with it. It's a new world and every program is learning how to deal with it.
We are in the most fluid player movement in college football history, and that coupled with Covid has created a really strange dynamic. Guys who in the past would likely have stuck things out are now using all the NCAA flexibility to make a quick exit without the usual one year sitting out ramifications. The excuse of Covid or mental health, I believe are being used even when that isn't the predominant factor. We have to realize this might hit us a little harder than many of the more established and/or successful programs. We don't have a ton of experience on the staff. We don't have a program that guys are drooling to be a part of because we are strong contenders for a shot at NC's or Conference Championships at this point. We are a work in progress, and some of that work includes building a stronger internal leadership within the roster. Until we have that, we will be at risk of losing players. This 'Rebuilding Process' wasn't just about getting Nebraska back to challenging for a B1G Championship game, it was a ground up project, from facilities, to support, to S&C, to systems, talent, recruiting, and yes, building leadership and identity. We've had limited leadership on the roster to this point. Last year was probably worse than the prior year, so that element in critical this year.
I played for a couple of college teams, and even 40 years ago, the leadership on the roster was a key component in the success of the team. My first team had 1 senior, who was a complete tool, and 2 really weak juniors. We had 2 pretty solid classes of sophs and frosh, but a bunch ended up transferring. A sense of direction has to come from more than just the staff, and we didn't have it and guys got frustrated. The second team was very well established, and the upperclassmen took their job seriously in creating an identity. We almost never lost guys to transfer, and we took in a ton of transfers who wanted to be a part of that. The current group of Huskers are working on that, and it's not really something that the staff will have a ton of influence on. They can jumpstart the leadership council, and support those who start to rise up as leaders, but there is only so much nurturing they can do. If they push too much, that looks like favoritism, and the leadership looks manufactured. Let the process work, and recognize that some programs who may have had success sooner, likely had some better internal leadership that we sorely lack.
Seriously, though, you are spot on and thanks for the info for the 2019 class, I didn't realize we still had that many still here!!
