On Tuesday, Nebraska’s 2019 football season got a huge boost with the news that junior college transfer running back Dedrick Mills had cleared his last hurdles to join the program. According to Parker Gabriel of the Lincoln Journal-Star, Mills improved his grade point average enough at Garden City Community College in Kansas to join the program on Wednesday.

The grade challenge brings to a conclusion a wild ride for Mills’ recruitment to Nebraska, including not being able to sign on signing day because he was dealing with a warrant for his arrest. Much like Maurice Washington last year, it was not at all clear that the talented running back would be available for Nebraska in the upcoming season. But like with Washington, patience and perseverance from head coach Scott Frost and his crew have paid dividends.

So what does Mills’ official addition to the program mean for Nebraska in 2019?

A replacement for Ozigbo’s production

Even though at this time last year Devine Ozigbo was an afterthought on the depth chart, by season’s end it was clear how integral he was to the offense. Ozigbo was the team’s leading rusher with 1082 yards on 155 carries. The closest production from a running back was Washington, with 455 yards on 77 carries.

More importantly, none of the backs on the roster bring the experience and the skill set that Mills does. Like Ozigbo, Mills has the size (five-foot-eleven, 215 pounds) to handle running between the tackles as well as running outside. The rest of the backs currently on the roster, like Washington and Miles Jones, really project more as outside-the-tackles pass-catchers rather than between-the-tackles thumpers. The backs with more size, such as Jaylin Bradley and Wyatt Mazour, have not showed an ability to perform at the level Nebraska will need to compete for championships.

So Mills gives Nebraska a different kind of weapon than it would have had otherwise at running back, in addition to the experience he brings.

Insurance for freshman performance

Nebraska has two freshman running backs in its 2019 class, Rahmir Johnson and Ronald Thompkins. Both are highly regarded prospects, and running back is a position where players can make an immediate impact if they have the talent.

But there’s a huge difference between freshmen having an opportunity to contribute and a team counting on freshmen to contribute. Johnson certainly could be the kind of back that Nebraska could lean on to perform. Thompkins has the potential to be a combination power/speed back, but he is coming off an ACL injury and it is not at all clear that he’ll be fully ready by the start of the season.

With Mills’ arrival, the coaching staff now has the luxury of allowing Johnson and Thompkins to develop, rather than needing at least one of them to break out immediately.

Less reliance on Washington’s availability

Washington is the defendant in a disturbing criminal case out of California. The case is still pending, and of course Nebraska’s coaching staff is hoping to get at least some clarity about how the case will play out before the start of the 2019 season.

But because of the case, Washington missed a good deal of spring practice, and at this point there is still a significant question about how much of a role he will be able to play. Towards the end of the year, Washington was beginning to flash as one of Nebraska’s most dangerous offensive weapons, and it is tantalizing to think about what he could do on the field this season.

With Mills addition to the depth chart, the potential loss of Washington becomes less catastrophic for Nebraska. If Washington’s playing status is cleared before the season, then Nebraska’s arsenal of offensive weapons becomes that much more impressive. But if Washington is limited – or unavailable – for Nebraska in 2019, Mills’ addition means Nebraska still has a dependable option at running back.

GBR, baby.