Honors & Awards
» Honorable-Mention All-Big Ten (2020)
» Big Ten Distinguished Scholar (2021, 2022)
» Academic All-Big Ten (2019, 2020, 2021)
» Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll (Fall 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021; Spring 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021)
2021
Will Honas suffered an injury prior to the season and missed the 2021 season.
2020 (Senior)
Honas started each of the seven games he played in 2020. He finished second on the team with 57 tackles and led the Huskers with 6.5 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks, setting career highs in both categories. For his efforts, Honas was recognized as an honorable-mention All-Big Ten selection.
Honas made his first career start in the opener at No. 5 Ohio State and tied for the team lead with seven tackles. He also sacked Buckeye quarterback Justin Fields twice, setting career highs in sacks and tackles for loss. An injury kept him out of the Northwestern game, but Honas returned to set a career high with 13 tackles in the win over Penn State, including a half tackle for loss. Honas made 10 more tackles against Illinois, becoming the first Husker to post double-digit tackles in consecutive games since 2018. He also added 1.5 TFLs and an eight-yard sack against the Illini. Honas totaled eight tackles at Iowa, including seven solo stops. He made four tackles in the win at Purdue. Honas totaled seven tackles against Minnesota, including a tackle for loss. In the season finale at Rutgers, Honas recorded eight tackles and had 1.5 TFLs.
2019 (Junior)
Honas played in every game as a junior, ranking second on the team with 73 tackles. He added six tackles for loss and 1.0 sack.
Honas had a seven-yard sack in the season opener against South Alabama and then led Nebraska with nine tackles at Colorado. He made eight stops against Northern Illinois and had a career-high two TFLs at Illinois. Honas totaled five tackles against both Ohio State and Northwestern and had four tackles at Minnesota and five stops against Indiana. At Purdue, Honas led the Huskers with nine tackles. He posted a then-career-high 12 tackles against No. 15 Wisconsin. Honas registered five tackles in Nebraska’s win at Maryland, and he had four tackles and one TFL against Iowa.
2018 (Redshirt)
Honas played in four games and made 15 tackles for Nebraska in 2018 before suffering a season-ending injury. By appearing in only four games, he was able to utilize his redshirt season in 2018.
Honas made his Husker debut in the season opener against Colorado, registering a pair of tackles. Honas saw significant playing time against Troy and finished with a team-high eight tackles, including his first career tackle for loss. In his first road game at No. 9 Michigan, Honas totaled three tackles. In his final game of the season, Honas recorded a pair of tackles against Purdue before suffering his season-ending injury.
Before Nebraska (Bishop Carroll HS/Butler CC)
Honas helped Coach Tim Schaffner’s squad at Butler Community College to a 15-8 record in two seasons. In 2017, Honas totaled 96 tackles in 11 games, including 3.0 sacks and a pair of interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown. He averaged 8.7 tackles per game, and his 96 total tackles ranked 21st nationally. In his first season at Butler in 2016, Honas recorded 21 tackles and recovered a fumble.
Honas was regarded as a four-star prospect by ESPN. He was ranked as the top junior college inside linebacker by both ESPN and 247Sports and both services also listed Honas among the nation’s top 35 overall junior college recruits. Honas had more than a dozen scholarship offers and chose Nebraska after also visiting Arkansas, Iowa and Kansas State. Before enrolling at Butler, Honas played his prep ball for Bishop Carroll High School in Wichita.
Personal
Will is the son of Chris and Lori Honas and was born on Jan. 29, 1998. He earned his degree in nutrition and health sciences in December of 2020. Honas has volunteered his time at the Buffett Cancer Center, a Day of Service, the Nebraska Football Road Race and local hospital outreach visits.