Exhale, Husker Nation: That’s What It’s Supposed to Look Like for Nebraska Football

The QB Room. Dylan Raiola shined on Saturday, completing 24 passes on 31 attempts for 364 yards and four touchdowns. The offense played a beautiful symphony and Raiola was the maestro. The Big Ten schedule will bring some stout defenses, but two games into the season, the young signal caller looks poised to take his game to another level. 

Perhaps just as exciting is the glimpse we got of backup quarterback TJ Lateef, who was six of seven for 128 yards and also had a rushing touchdown. Lateef is clearly a dual threat, and showed why he’s earned the #2 spot behind Raiola. 

Weapons on Offense. Lateef, Lindenmeyer, Mekhi Nelson, and Quinn Clark all scored their first touchdowns as Huskers. True freshmen Isaiah Mozee, Cortez Mills, and Jeremiah Jones all caught passes. Emmett Johnson rushed for 140 yards, while Jacorey Barney had 132 receiving yards to go along with 87 punt return yards. Transfer Nyziah Hunter had his second strong game in a row, catching four balls for 82 yards, while transfer Dane Key caught a touchdown pass for the second consecutive game. The playmakers were everywhere, and it was good to see so many young guys get a look with the game firmly in hand. The early returns suggest Emmett Johnson in particular could be putting together a special season.

Banner Day for the Blackshirts. It must feel good for new defensive coordinator John Butler to lead Nebraska’s first shutout in more than a decade in only his second game as coordinator. The Blackshirts set the tone early with a safety when the Huskers only led 7-0, and the Zips couldn’t get much of anything going on offense all game long. 40 – yes, that’s a four and a zero – different players made tackles for the Big Red. Tons of young guys saw the field and made impact plays. Some of these players are certainly headed for a redshirt, but the experience is crucial for their development. 

Special Teams Being Special. In addition to Jacorey Barney’s 87 punt return yards, the biggest highlight on special teams was Riley Van Poppel blocked field goal. Kyle Cunanan also made a field goal (his only attempt), remaining perfect on the season. Nebraska’s kick return unit is the only one that has yet to show much in the way of progress, but we won’t be too hard on them about that, given the improvement everywhere else. Two games into the season, Mike Ekeler is clearly having a major impact on all of Nebraska’s special teams units. David City, Nebraska for the win. 

REASONS FOR CONCERN

Well, Not Much. It’s hard to nitpick about too much of anything after a 68-0 win. It was slightly concerning to see the Huskers stall on their second and third drives of the game–the first when Emmett Johnson fumbled to turn the ball over, the second when the Big Red couldn’t get into the end zone on 4th and goal from the 1 yard line. But even at that point, there didn’t seem to be much concern from Matt Rhule’s bunch, or the fans in Memorial Stadium. Props to the Huskers for not letting the mole hill of a couple early miscues turn into any sort of mountain…or hill…or even speed bump. 

BOTTOM LINE

Expect more of the same next week against Houston Christian. These two games are critical tune-ups as Nebraska prepares for Big Ten play, and it’s huge that so many backups and young players are getting the opportunity to see the field. While I’m as excited as anyone to see how the boys in red stack up against stiffer competition, I’m in no hurry to race through the season, and am thoroughly enjoying watching the undefeated Huskers. Bring on the HCU Huskies. 

As always, GBR for LIFE. 


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