Nebraska walked out of East Lansing with a Big Ten road win, and the part that should make Huskers fans sit up a little straighter is how it happened. The Blackshirts came with real bite, the offense stayed on schedule enough to avoid the usual late-game anxiety, and Nebraska is now 4-0, with only two wins left between it and bowl eligibility.
The defensive headline was impossible to miss. Nebraska put together six sacks and three takeaways, and it wasn’t just empty pressure - the hits were there, the kind DeMoine Adams pointed out mattered because the defenders were doing more than just hanging on and waiting for help.
Williams Nwaneri led the way with two sacks, the secondary came up with two interceptions, and Michigan State never found the end zone after halftime. The Spartans were held to 39 net rushing yards, which made Nebraska’s trip look a lot less like a test and a lot more like a statement.
That said, the edge comes with some caution tape wrapped around it. Michigan State was dealing with injuries, and both of its quarterbacks had trouble throwing outside the numbers.
On the show, SMQ raised the question of whether Nebraska could be stressed by a more committed power-running attack up the middle. Adams’ response was that this front is built to rush the passer, and that the staff has the personnel to change the look when the matchup calls for it.
Nebraska’s offensive line did its part, too. The Huskers didn’t allow a sack, and Anthony Colandrea kept the offense moving with 212 passing yards, two touchdown passes and 66 rushing yards.
His ability to extend plays gives Nebraska a layer it didn’t really have last season. Adams added an important reminder, though: Colandrea has to protect himself and trust the guys around him, because Nebraska will need him healthy once the schedule gets tougher.
The ground game was productive, but not without a few questions attached. Nebraska finished with 157 rushing yards and averaged 3.8 yards per carry, a drop from the 200-plus-yard outputs it posted in each of its first three games.
Jamal Rule left the game, and Mekhi Nelson stepped in with 61 yards and a touchdown. Vincent Genatone, the North Platte walk-on, scored twice - once on his first career catch and once on the ground - giving Nebraska a nice depth story and a couple of highlight moments.
It still didn’t answer the bigger question of what happens when the Huskers need to grind out four yards against a defense that knows exactly what’s coming.
Even with those loose ends, Nebraska handled a conference road game the way a confident team should. It won the trenches, protected the quarterback, forced turnovers and avoided the fourth-quarter drama that has so often turned a lead into a stress test.
The defense has earned some trust. The run game and interior defense still have some proving to do.
At 4-0, that’s not a bad place to be.
Adams wrapped things up with a Blackshirt chant loud enough, we hope, to annoy the neighbors. Go Big Red.
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