The first commitment from North Dakota since 2009? Yes, that happened

Kade Pietrzak, a 6-foot-4 and 250-pound defensive lineman, became Nebraska's first commitment from North Dakota since Brent Qvale in 2009.

Courtesy Kade Pietrzak on X/Twitter

In case you missed it — which isn’t impossible considering Sunday seemed to be a busy news day — Nebraska football gained its 17th commitment of the 2025 recruiting class.

Kade Pietrzak, a 6-foot-4 and 250-pound defensive lineman from Fargo, North Dakota, announced his commitment to the Huskers Sunday afternoon.

It's a big commitment for Nebraska too, with Pietrzak selecting the Huskers over offers from the likes of Kansas State, Oklahoma, Arizona State and Big Ten rival¹ Wisconsin. He’s a high 3-star according to 247Sports, and considered one of On3’s top 200 defensive linemen for the 2025 class.²

Pietrzak is now the third defensive lineman commit for Nebraska’s 2025 class, joining tackle Tyson Terry from Omaha, Nebraska, and tackle/end Malcolm Simpson from Hitchcock, Texas.

Here are a couple of quick things to know about Pietrzak:

1. Oklahoma appeared to be the favorite until recently. Credit to the Husker staff for continuing to pursue Pietrzak after his official visit to Lincoln in June and keeping the foot on the gas despite rumors his attention was elsewhere.

2. Pietrzak is fast. Spending a little time on his Hudl will highlight that and then some. He often runs by opposing offensive linemen, getting to the quarterback and ball carriers with ease. There will be work to do in the weight room at Nebraska, but his speed and athleticism are solid for where he is at now.

3. He’s Nebraska’s first commitment from the state of North Dakota since Brent Qvale in 2009.

Speaking of the defensive line . . .

Defensive line coach Terrance Knighton joined Sports Nightly last week, which provided a good rundown of information on his room ahead of fall camp. One thing that stood out — and you likely saw it passed around quite a bit on X/Twitter — is that Knighton has nicknamed his room “Death Row.”

“I feel like every D-line should have a nickname,” Knighton said. “Those guys love it, they enjoy it, but they take it very seriously.”

Even better? Death Row includes a secret handshake.

Knighton also has a very veteran room for 2024. That means solid leadership, which allows Knighton to put his focus elsewhere.

"Honestly, I'm just happy with the leadership that's taken place in the room," Knighton said. "Having real seniors: Jimari Butler, Nash (Hutmacher), Ty (Robinson), Elijah Jeudy, those older guys. They're starting to take leadership of the room and it's making my job a lot easier."

With that said, Knighton is also all about making sure his players feel comfortable to just be themselves. Building cohesiveness as a team means knowing one another well, and that starts with a fall camp tradition.

"We do something every camp — and I hope it continues – where guys get up in front of the room and talk about their story and where they came from," Knighton said. "Guys figure out they have things in common, they're similar in certain ways, and it just brings the group together."

Next up: Media Days

You know fall seasons are almost here when media days and fan days roll around. For football, Big Ten Media Days take place this week — July 23-25 at Lucas Oil Stadium. Nebraska is bringing Ben Scott to represent the offense and Isaac Gifford and Ty Robinson for defense.

This is the first three-day³ media days for the Big Ten, with the conference needing to split things up even more after the addition of four new teams. Here’s how the schedule breaks down:

Tuesday: Commissioner Petitti kicks things off at 10 a.m. CT, followed by Bret Bielema (Illinois) at 10:30 a.m. CT, Greg Schiano (Rutgers) at 10:45 a.m. CT, Luke Fickell (Wisconsin) at 11 a.m. CT, David Braun (Northwestern) at 11:15 a.m. CT, Ryan Walters (Purdue) at 11:30 p.m. CT, and Ryan Day (Ohio State) at 11:45 a.m. CT.

Wednesday: Lieutenant General Richard M. Clark, the College Football Playoff Executive Director, starts the day, followed by DeShaun Foster (UCLA) at 10:30 a.m. CT, Kirk Ferentz (Iowa) at 10:45 a.m. CT, Jonathan Smith (Michigan State) at 11 a.m. CT, Lincoln Riley (USC) at 11:15 a.m. CT, Matt Rhule (Nebraska) at 11:30 a.m. CT and James Franklin (Penn State) at 11:45 a.m. CT.

Thursday: Dan Lanning (Oregon) at 10:30 a.m. CT, P.J. Fleck (Minnesota) at 10:45 a.m. CT, Michael Locksley (Maryland) at 11 a.m. CT, Jedd Fisch (Washington) at 11:15 a.m. CT, Curt Cignetti (Indiana) at 11:30 a.m. CT and Sherrone Moore (Michigan) at 11:45 a.m. CT.

. . . and Fan Day

Nebraska football’s Fan Day is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 24, but it’s not going to be the usual Fan Day experience. Instead of just football, Nebraska volleyball will also host its Fan Day that Saturday.

Volleyball’s Fan Day is scheduled from 9-11 a.m., while football is scheduled from 11-12:30 p.m. Volleyball will host their Fan Day at the Devaney Center, while football will be stationed at the Hawks Championship Center. 

If the day wasn’t enough for Husker fans, the volleyball team will also hold the annual Red-White scrimmage that evening at Devaney at 6 p.m.

More information to come soon on all events.

1. Or is the rival Iowa? Debate among yourselves!

2. He is also considered the No. 1 player in North Dakota for the 2025 class.

3. It was previously two days, with the teams split 50-50 over each.