Hours after he committed to Nebraska on Saturday night over an offer list that included a who's who of college football suitors, Top247 cornerback Brendan Radley-Hiles told 247Sports, "I was born to be a Blackshirt."

If it weren't for Mike Riley and the third-year staff in Lincoln, the nation's No. 5 cornerback may not have ever figured out his apparent destiny.

Riley, Donte Williams and company collectively put in the work to land Radley-Hiles. This staff at Nebraska isn't afraid to go toe to toe with the best in college football on the trail and it's been paying in 2018 and the two recruiting cycles before.

"Coach Riley is a coach who guys want to play for," Radley-Hiles said. "He understands the game and has a vision to change college football forever and the best part about it is he wants to do it in Lincoln, Nebraska. He laid down the platform and he wants the ones who are special enough to see the vision to be a part of it and build this empire with him."

The Huskers staff is beginning to recruiting at a level not seen since the Tom Osborne days. Riley and his assistants have signed two-straight Top25 classes and have their sights set on much more this cycle. With commitments over the weekend from Radley-Hiles, Top247 receiver Manuel Allen and intriguing defensive end Tate Wildeman, the Huskers' seven-player class climbed to No. 10 in the 247Sports Composite Team Recruiting Rankings for 2018.

"I am energized at this very, very moment about this weekend in total," Riley said after the spring game. "It is so much fun. We are now seeing young men really understand and see what this place is about and what it can be and having our vision that I have.

"It's a great, great feeling right now. Like I said it really has to do with the continued educating of these guys that are out there that are difference-makers that feel it. They can feel this whole idea that we have and what's going to take place."

Nebraska continues to trend towards being the class of the Big Ten West. The quarterback position is set for years to come with Tanner Lee and former 247Sports Top100 recruit Patrick O'Brien battling for the starting job and early enrollee freshman four-star Tristan Gebbia also showing a lot of promise this spring.

The backfield is stable and the receiver group is loading up on playmakers like JD Spielman, Tyjon Lindsey (America's top slot receiver recruit in 2017), along with Allen and the very explosive Eric Fuller in this class.

It's coming together in the trenches with Top247 offensive linemen Matt Farniok, John Raridon along with Boe Wilson all being hits in the 2016 class and Brenden Jaimes and Matt Sichterman being two from the 2017 class that will be good players. Defensive tackle was addressed in 2017 in the Damion Daniels, Deiontae Watts and Deontre Thomas, with early returns on early-enrollee linebacker Avery Roberts also being strong. The secondary could be a strength as it reloads, with nobody having more upside nationally in the 2017 class than Huskers signee Elijah Blades (247Sports' No. 3-ranked cornerback). Team him up with Radley-Hiles and 2015 class jewel Lamar Jackson (the cornerback, not the Heisman winner) and it's a secondary that has the size, length and speed to go toe to toe with anybody's playmakers.

As Nebraska starts to win more recruiting battles on the trail for touted difference-makers, mixed in with great eval-gets like Wildeman — who could develop into a Stephon Tuitt-type player in new defensive coordinator Bob Diaco's scheme — and this football team could start playing at a level not seen since the 1990s.

"We will make the University of Nebraska a powerhouse again and bring many National Championships back to these fans," Radley-Hiles said. "They deserve it. I could not pass up on that type of opportunity. You only get to live this life once, and I want to be positively remembered to a long time.

"Coach Riley is the coach who can do that."