LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska completed a perfect nonconference portion of its season with a 34-3 victory on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium against Northern Iowa, moving to 3-0 for the first time since 2016.
And after seven years without a three-game winning streak, the Huskers have done it twice under second-year coach Matt Rhule.
Freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola started red-hot and finished 17-for-23 passing for 247 yards and two scores. But the Huskers again sputtered after halftime and struggled defensively to get off the field, allowing the Panthers of the Football Championship Subdivision to possess the ball for more than 38 of 60 minutes.
“They came here to win the game,” Rhule said of UNI. “That was the competitive fire and stamina that we needed to compete against.”
Here are my takeaways from the decisive victory for the Huskers:
• Nebraska largely took what it wanted in the passing game. Raiola connected on 12 of his first 13 throws for 209 yards while spreading the ball to eight receivers. The Huskers’ edge through the air came as no surprise against an opponent from the Missouri Valley Football Conference. But it did shine a light on the upgrades that Nebraska has made since last season.
Every Nebraska player who factored in scoring three first-half touchdowns is new to the Huskers this year. Freshman receivers Carter Nelson and Jacory Barney found the end zone for the first time, and Raiola hit Texas transfer Isaiah Neyor for an 18-yard score.
“As a receiver group, I think we improved today,” Neyor said.
How might this matchup have gone a year ago? Probably not much different. But the methods with which Nebraska can beat outmatched opponents have multiplied.
“I want everyone to say, ‘Why are you so boring in the fourth quarter?’” Rhule said.
Boring play, he said, is the mark of a team that controls the game.
“That’s what good teams do,” the coach said.
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• No longer can opponents load the box against Nebraska and feel secure. As Rhule said in July, the Huskers will “murder” a defense that fails to respect their passing game. It happened a few times on Saturday, notably when Raiola hit Nelson for a 24-yard TD over the middle to cap a 75-yard drive to open the game.
The freshman QB found Neyor equally wide open in a coverage gap on the second touchdown. Neyor said he noticed a safety running downhill to defend the run and knew he’d find a soft spot in the zone. He trusted Raiola to see him.
“It starts in practice,” Neyor said. “We make sure we’re going to be on the same page.”
Raiola side-stepped a UNI blitz off the edge that could have spelled disaster on the Huskers’ third drive to hit a wide-open Jaylen Lloyd for a 59-yard gain. The QB showed a rare sense of awareness on the explosive play, according to Rhule — let alone for a true freshman.
Raiola said he didn’t expect to turn around and see a pass rusher in his face.
“(Offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield) was dialing it up,” Raiola said. “He knows our strengths. I think everyone knows that their turn can be on any play.”
The ramifications of a diversified offense mean everything to the Huskers as they head into Big Ten play next Friday against Illinois.
• The Huskers did not do everything right on offense. After a clean start to build a 21-3 lead, they stalled at the end of the first half in a two-minute situation. Raiola misfired on third and fourth down. Nebraska then settled for short field goals on its first two drives of the second half.
And Raiola threw his first interception, a deep shot to Lloyd on a post route against man coverage from the Nebraska 11-yard line. Northern Iowa defender Fletcher Marshall wrestled the ball away from Lloyd as they crashed to the turf.
Raiola described it as a bad throw. But Rhule said the Huskers need to attempt it. Raiola takes an NFL mentality into his decision-making, Rhule said.
“If we don’t put that ball on tape,” Rhule said, “we’ll have a long year.”
Nebraska accomplished the objective of playing backup QB Heinrich Haarberg alongside Raiola for a series of plays. In the third quarter, Haarberg, the eight-game starter last season, caught an 8-yard pass from Raiola and took a handoff for 5 yards. Nebraska then sent Raiola to line up wide and Haarberg took a snap for 1 yard.
“I love it when my guy, my partner is next to me, making plays,” Raiola said.
Most importantly, there’s a look for Illinois and other Big Ten foes of Nebraska to ponder.
Former Nebraska starter Heinrich Haarberg (10) entered for three plays against Northern Iowa. (Dylan Widger / USA Today)
• Nebraska expected a different kind of challenge against Northern Iowa. And the Huskers got it. The Panthers dominated in time of possession. They had no interest in moving fast on offense like UTEP. And UNI featured none of the skill on the edge that Colorado brought to Lincoln last week.
Northern Iowa mixed its offensive attack and a produced a measure of success in the first half. That is, until Nebraska defensive coordinator Tony White countered with a blitz on third-and-6 to end the Panthers’ second possession.
To that point, Nebraska failed to stop Northern Iowa just once on four third-down chances, and the Panthers followed their lone miss by converting a fourth down en route to three points at the end of a 15-play march.
Big backs Tye Edwards and Amauri Pesek-Hickson packed a punch. That duo and quarterback Aidan Dunne forced the Huskers to wrap up. Dunne moved the chains with his legs. When Nebraska defenders simply tried to knock the Panthers off their feet, the UNI runners got more yardage.
“I’m happy with a win. And a solid win at that,” Nebraska safety Isaac Gifford said. “The defense, we didn’t really play to our standard in the first half. I think everybody felt that.
“But three points on the board, you can’t really be mad at that.”
It served as a good test for Nebraska ahead of the physical games up next and ought to provide plenty of video footage for White and the defensive coaches to reinforce their points about the importance of solid tackling.
• Nothing quite as dramatic last week — when Nebraska blocked a field goal and Colorado blocked a punt — happened on special teams for the Huskers. Kicker Tristan Alvano, after missing from 32 yards against Colorado, hit from 31 and 21 yards on Saturday.
The Huskers made a change at long snapper in Week 3. Aidan Flege, a Lincoln Southeast graduate who played at Iowa Western CC and transferred to Nebraska last year without a spot on the football team, took over for Camden Witucki. Witucki struggled to snap consistently in the first two games, contributing to some of the kicking issues.
• Defensive end Jimari Butler missed the victory with a minor injury. He’s set to return next week. Offensive guard Micah Mazzccua also did not play.
Rhule said he would address Mazzccua’s absence later.
“Coach’s decision,” he said. “He’s still with us.”
(Photo: Dylan Widger / USA Today)
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Publish date : 2024-09-14 15:58:00
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