Riley Van Poppel holds the NT · Starter spot in Nebraska Cornhuskers’s defensive tackle room. Where he sits among the room’s front-line roles:

Riley Van Poppel is a 6'5", 295-pound nose tackle from Argyle, Texas, where he recorded 19 sacks and 37 tackles for loss during his prep career. A four-star recruit in the 2023 class, Van Poppel played in 11 games as a true freshman in 2023, posting five tackles and 1.0 tackle for loss. He redshirted in 2024 while appearing in five games with three tackles. In 2025, his sophomore season, Van Poppel appeared in all 13 games with three starts, recording 16 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one pass breakup, and one forced fumble. He earned Academic All-Big Ten recognition in 2024 and 2025.

Nebraska2023 — present