Nebraska defensive linemen Riley Van Poppel is ready to get back on the field after using his redshirt season in 2024.
The sophomore said that he believes taking his redshirt last season was very beneficial and taught him a lot.
“The biggest thing for me in football has been the mental aspect of it, whether it’s confidence, trusting yourself, overthinking on the field, this, that, and the third,” Van Poppel said. “Redshirting last year was very hard, especially with the time it came. I thought I was going to have a big year. It came at a weird point, and then for me, it was just like I said last time I was up here, I had to embrace it fully, I had to accept it. I rolled with the punches. I realized, I had three days on scout team to go out and play football, why not make them the best three that I have?”
Sitting back and observing last season, afforded Van Poppel the opportunity to take everything in and learn as much as possible from veteran defensive linemen Ty Robinson and Nash Hutmacher, who had great seasons last year. According to Van Poppel, they taught him the importance of enjoying the game and not taking it too seriously.
“I was talking to Nash before he went to camp, so it was back in July, so just talking about you’ve got to go out there and have fun, you can’t make it more than it is,” Van Poppel said. “He told me, ‘When me and Ty were playing good last year, we were out there high-fiving, laughing, having fun, goofing around.’ So taking that aspect of it, but then you look at the flip side how Ty had a huge year last year. He came in and he just kind of had that killer mindset every day at practice and on the field. So it’s a good balance of having that edge, but then not taking it over the top to where you’re tense and can’t perform.”
Van Poppel said he’s had a great camp, especially getting to battle Nebraska’s strong offensive line.
“It’s been the difference for me this camp, going against them, getting to sharpen my edges, sharpen my tools every single day,” Van Poppel said. “I’ll get the best of them, they get the best of me. I believe Rocco (Spindler) said it the other day, but it’s kind of our motto, iron sharpens iron, and it’s been a blessing.”
During his redshirt campaign, Van Poppel played in five games — including the bowl game — and recorded three tackles, one for loss. He played in 11 games as a true freshman in 2023, recording five tackles including one for loss.
Throughout the offseason, Van Poppel has been working to improve his strength, speed, and technique. He said that he feels that it was a fantastic summer for him.
“I was setting PRs, I’m running faster than I ever have, I’m weighing more than I ever have, lifting was great,” Van Poppel said. “I think for me, the big focus was trying to lean up a little bit, just put on some straight muscle mass.”
Van Poppel has high hopes for the Husker defense in 2025. He wants to show teams that Nebraska is tough and ready to compete against anyone.
“I just kind of want to shock the world with our d-line unit, and with our defense as a whole,” Van Poppel said. “People have a lot of things to say about us. People aren’t out there every day watching us go get after it, people don’t know who we have in our room. New guys, young guys, but whatever it is, we get after it, and we’re going to do that this year.
“We want to be one of the top defenses in the country, and I think we can do that.”
