Nebraska signed class of 2025 edge defender Dawson Merritt on Thursday. The four-star recruit made the announcement on social media.

According to the On3 recruiting rankings, Merritt is the 85th overall player in the 2025 class, the 15th overall edge defender and the third overall player in his class from the state of Kansas.

Nebraska had been recruiting him for a while. He first received an offer from the program on November 7. He has since visited Lincoln several times and will be in town for the Wisconsin Badgers game in the coming weeks. He was also able to come to town for the Colorado Buffaloes game in September.

Merritt initially committed to Alabama on June 26. Nebraska Football was initially a major player in his initial recruitment.

Merritt is having a solid season for Blue Valley High School this year. He currently has 58 total tackles in eight games, including 11 tackles for loss, according to MaxPreps stats.

This commitment certainly adds a tremendous amount of talent to the 2025 recruiting class. The Huskers now have Christian Jones and Merritt at linebacker. This bodes well for the future. The class itself is currently ranked 19th^e overall nationally according to the On3 recruitment rankings. Merritt is now the highest-rated commitment in the class.

This is certainly a big recruiting win, especially with Early Signing Day just a few weeks away. This coaching staff has been able to make deals with big players several times, and Thursday’s effort was just one example.

Contact/Follow us @CornhuskersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Nebraska news, notes and opinions.

This article originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire: Huskers land commitment of four-star edge defenseman Dawson Merritt