Nebraska didn’t just beat Bowling Green on Saturday night. The Huskers swallowed the game whole.
Behind a ruthless all-around showing in Memorial Stadium, Nebraska rolled to a 56-7 win and moved to 2-0 in the 2026 campaign. The night had the feel of a team that kept finding answers every time the Falcons tried to create a crack.
The biggest answer came on the ground, where Nebraska’s backfield keeps looking deeper by the week. True freshman Jamal Rule and junior Mekhi Nelson again looked like the kind of pairing that can stress a defense in different ways.
Together, they accounted for 170 all-purpose yards. Rule ripped off the signature play of the night with a 59-yard house call on a run up the middle, another flash of the breakaway speed that’s already making a loud case for him as one of the best running backs in the Big Ten, or better.
Nelson did his damage in a more layered way. The junior from Pennsylvania ran for 48 yards on eight carries and added 34 receiving yards on two catches. He also sprung two plays of 20-plus yards, both of them pushing the offense deep into Bowling Green territory.
Then there was Isaiah Mozee, who added his own punch to the mix. The sophomore carried the ball eight times for 55 yards and scored his first career touchdown.
The Kansas City native also logged two runs of 10 or more yards and finished at 6.9 yards per carry. Nebraska’s three-headed backfield doesn’t look like a temporary story.
It looks like a problem.
The passing game found its own breakout pieces, too. Jacory Barney Jr. turned a solid opener into a loud follow-up, catching eight passes for a team-high 115 yards and two touchdowns after posting five catches for 60 yards against Ohio.
Both scores came with Barney in full stride and cruising into the end zone. He was targeted 10 times and picked up 28 yards after the catch.
Kwazi Gilmer had his own moment in the spotlight after a rougher opener. The junior transfer from UCLA was more reliable this time, and the difference showed in the red zone.
He made multiple difficult catches in the end zone, including a diving grab on the right side that stretched Nebraska’s lead to 35-0 late in the second quarter. His night won’t draw as many headlines as Barney’s, but it was a clear step forward after Week 1.
Senior quarterback Anthony Colandrea deserves credit for both performances. He kept firing into tight windows and didn’t shy away from pushing the ball more than 30 yards downfield. That confidence was a big part of why Nebraska kept opening things up.
On defense, the Huskers got a welcome piece back in senior linebacker Owen Chambliss. The 2025 All-MWC first-teamer returned after missing the Ohio game because of a hamstring injury suffered in the offseason.
Wearing No. 0, Chambliss finished with four tackles in his first game at Memorial Stadium in scarlet and cream.
The stat line was modest, but the effect was immediate. In a loud building, Chambliss helped clean up the communication on a defense that hardly gave Bowling Green room to breathe. Nebraska allowed just seven points on 169 yards and controlled every phase.
Even with the lopsided finish, the game started with a small scare. After a 13-yard screen to Gilmer, Barney bobbled a pass that should have moved the chains. Bowling Green picked it off and started at its own 46-yard line after only two plays.
Nebraska answered that hiccup the same way it handled most of the night: by slamming the door. The Blackshirts forced a fourth-and-12 punt, and the Huskers rolled from there.
On the next offensive series, Colandrea led a nine-play, 59-yard drive and finished it himself by finding Barney wide open for a 35-yard touchdown. From that point on, Nebraska scored 35 unanswered points.
In the first half, Bowling Green managed just two first downs and punted four times.
Nebraska is back at Memorial Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 19, against North Dakota. Kickoff is set for 6:15 CT, with the game on BTN.
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Nebraska Showed Class In A Rivalry Moment Fans Wont Forget
A rivalry game in Lincoln took on a much different tone after the death of Derek Phillips, a member of the Iowa Hawkeyes marching band who collapsed from the heat during the game. In a setting usually defined by noise and color, both marching bands found a way to honor him, and Nebraska added Gold and Black ribbons in solidarity, a gesture that fit the moment as much as the rivalry stage did.
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Former Huskers Still Made Their Presence Felt On NFL Opening Weekend
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Nebraska's 2-0 Start Has Fans Asking One Big Question
Nebraskas 2-0 start has given the program a little of everything in the opening stretch: some encouraging offensive rhythm, a couple of comfortable wins over Bowling Green and Ohio, and a clearer sense that the Cornhuskers can move the ball when things are clicking. Quarterback Anthony Colandrea has been part of that early momentum, helping Nebraska look more dynamic than it did at points last season while giving fans a reason to think the offense may have some real upside.
Still, the first two games have also left room for the kind of questions that follow any fast start. Penalties have been an issue, and the defensive pressure has not always matched the teams overall dominance, which means Nebraska is hardly finished product heading into Big Ten play. The schedule is about to get more demanding, and what the Cornhuskers do next will say a lot more about their ceiling than the smooth beginning has so far. [Read more 🡒]