Will Compton laughs when reporters ask him to recall “The Tattoo Visit.”
It’s been a while since he’d thought about that night, but then again, the Nebraska linebacker’s first meeting with Mike Ekeler wasn’t an easy one to forget.
Compton committed to becoming a Cornhusker in July 2007, but NU’s tumultuous final season under Bill Callahan – and the coaching staff shake-up that followed – forced him to reconsider his options.
“I was thinking I probably wasn’t going to end up coming here,” Compton said. “I was really unsure about Nebraska, and I was going to see what else was out there.”
Compton took visits to Missouri and Illinois and admits Nebraska was out of the running for a brief period. New NU athletic director Tom Osborne visited his high school and promised Compton a good coach was on the way, but refused to say who.
When Bo Pelini was hired in December, one of the first things the new coach did was contact Compton, and he sicced Ekeler, NU’s energetic new linebackers coach, on the prized prospect.
“In our first phone conversation, he was already saying things like, ‘You have to come here, we need someone like you. If you don’t, I don’t know if my kids will still have a father anymore,’” Compton said.
Ekeler and fellow defensive coaches Carl Pelini, Marvin Sanders and John Papuchis went to Compton’s home in Bonne Terre, Mo., in late January 2008 to convince him to stick with Nebraska.
During the in-home visit, Ekeler made it clear how devoted he was to landing the four-star recruit by lifting his right sleeve and showing off his arm.
“He had a tattoo of a skull and crossbones logo with my name in old English under it and ‘Blackshirts’ over it,” Compton said with a laugh.
Compton claims the infamous temporary tattoo wasn’t the only thing that sealed the deal, but by the end of the night, he’d made up his mind.
“After I spent that night with the coaches, I knew where I needed to go,” he said. “When they walked out, I told my family and friends this was where I needed to be.”
Compton redshirted as a freshman, but there were several times when he nearly saw the field.
During NU’s game against Virginia Tech, Ekeler came running down the sideline looking for Compton.
“Get ready to rock and roll! You’re going in!” Ekeler told him.
Head coach Bo Pelini also told Compton to get ready, but he soon changed his mind and said it would be a poor decision to burn the redshirt. In hindsight, Compton admits sitting out was the right choice.
“I was nowhere close to where I am now,” Compton said. “It’s an awesome thing to redshirt. You get a year of learning and getting a feel for the game instead of being thrown into the fire.”
When this year’s fall camp began, Compton was ready to compete for playing time, and he beat out seniors Colton Koehler and Phillip Dillard for the starting middle linebacker job.
For a first-time starter, Compton didn’t play nervous in his debut against Florida Atlantic. He recorded five tackles and a pass breakup and impressed teammates with his ability to manage the defense.
“When Will came in, it was like he’d been out there for years,” outside linebacker Blake Lawrence said. “His leadership skills have really developed. (Starting on defense) is asking a lot of most redshirt freshmen, but I think Will has come in and prepared himself to take on that role.”
When Compton stepped onto the field for the first time last Saturday, he wore a No. 51 jersey. That jersey has a special significance not only to him, but also to his head coach.
“Coach Bo said he wanted to give it to me because of Barrett Ruud,” Compton said. “It’s a pretty big comparison, and I’m really honored.”
Ruud, who played for Pelini during the NU coach’s one-year stint as defensive coordinator in 2003, wears the number for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and is entering his third season as the team’s starting middle linebacker.
When the former Husker star trained in Lincoln over the summer, Compton asked if he could study film with him.
“That’s one of the things Barrett has helped me out with,” Compton said. “It’s fun to watch film now. You’re always trying to find new tweaks to doing things, and it’s all about being prepared.”
The two have stayed in touch since the summer, and Compton received a text message from Ruud following Saturday’s game.
“He was just telling me ‘Nice job, keep it up, keep competing every day and keep working hard,’” Compton said.
maxolson@dailynebraskan.com
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