Ashland-Greenwood football’s Barrett Kitrell will stay in state in college, and his relationship with Nebraska offensive line coach Geep Wade is a big reason why.
Kitrell committed to Nebraska in June. The senior lineman will join the team as part of the 2027 class. He said Wade offered him a scholarship within the first month of joining the staff.
“He’s gotten to come down to Ashland a couple of times and he’s gotten to know my family,” Kitrell told Hail Varsity. “We’ve gone to visits, he’s gotten to know just people I’m really close with — friends, girlfriend. So he talks about them, asks about them. He just shows he cares about the person, and also, he cares about the player. He cares about my development, so I just felt like those two things were awesome.”
The senior is a three-star prospect according to several outlets. He chose Nebraska over offers from Kansas State, Iowa and others.
“Coach Wade, the moment he got in and the first visit I went on, he kind of explained what he does, how he does things, and that just really resonated with me,” Kitrell said. “He was just a super good coach in developing kind of what he had at Georgia Tech in the ACC. Now with Nebraska, he has more resources, so I think that he’ll even just kind of grow that exponentially.”
Kitrell said he took his time, weighing all options before choosing Nebraska.
“I was thinking Nebraska, but I was like, ‘Let me sleep this off,’” Kitrell said. “And then, Coach Geep Wade called me a few times, and one thing he said really stuck with me. He said, ‘If you wake up thinking about a school, and you think about that school first as home, then that’s probably the school you want to go to.”
Nebraska isn’t just home for Barrett, it’s where his father and brother played football as well. Barry Kitrell was a fullback for the Huskers in the 1980s, and Bo Kitrell played for the team from 2014 to 2018.
“They said selfishly, they would have liked me to go to Nebraska, but at the end of the day they want what’s best for me, and what I feel like is best for me,” Kitrell said. “I felt like they were supportive the whole way, never really made it uncomfortable and never really showed their bias. They were awesome and they were really supportive throughout the whole recruiting process.”
Ashland-Greenwood’s Barrett Kitrell cuts off a piece of the net after the Bluejays won the Class C1 state championship. Photo by Jackson D. Luethje.
Kitrell said he tried to take the family legacy aspect out of the recruiting process. Rather, he wanted to find a program focused on his development. The multi-sport athlete found both in Nebraska.
“Now that I’m committed, man, it’s awesome that they can go 30 minutes down the road to come to my games,” Kitrell said. “My nieces and nephews, they can come, and my friends can all watch me. So, I think that that’s a really cool piece.”
The 6-foot-4 lineman also plays basketball and competes in track and field. He’s played at left tackle throughout high school, but that may change when he arrives in Lincoln.
“For Nebraska, Coach Wade said he can see me playing tackle to tackle, so he can see me playing tackle, center, guard, any of those,” Kitrell said. “So that’s really exciting. I think just playing tackle in [Class] C1 is awesome, because for our scheme you really get to get out in space and run, which is kind of what Coach Wade likes about me is that I’m athletic and I can get out in space and I have good foot work. So I’m really excited about that.”
With his commitment to Nebraska out of the way, Kitrell can turn his attention to his final season with the Bluejays. He broke his wrist during track season but is hoping to return for the first football game of the year.
“Now the thing I can focus on is winning a state championship,” Kitrell said. “We’ve never won one in football, and Coach (Ryan) Thompson is due. He’s a great coach. We’ve had so many good teams, it’s just sometimes we don’t get it done, and I truly think that this is the team.”
Kitrell said he’ll complete his senior year of high school before joining Nebraska next summer.
