Nebraska Football: 3 Huskers who need to breakout in 2021

DE Ben Stille

Martinez is going into his fourth year in the Nebraska football program but that’s nothing compared to Ben Stille, who is returning to the Huskers for a sixth season in 2021.

People want to talk about Scott Frost having a culture problem, however, a number of senior defenders returned for an extra season, so that should tell you something.

With Stille back in the fold, Nebraska football has 17 of its top 20 defenders in terms of snap counts back according to Rivals and Stille is one of the most important as he was the highest-rated defender according to Pro Football Focus and had a really strong campaign with 22 pressures that featured 17 hurries, two sacks and three QB hits.

While someone like Ty Robinson is another viable candidate to be a breakout player — he didn’t have any sacks in 2020 and I expect that to change this season — Stille is on a different level.

And Stille could be a highly productive player in 2021. Defensive coordinator Erik Chinander told 247 sports Stille seemed on the verge of a “major breakthrough” last season and with him back for the 2021 campaign, that breakthrough will come.