Nebraska opens its season Saturday morning at Memorial Stadium, and the oddsmakers see a clear gap between the Huskers and Ohio. Fan Duel lists Nebraska as a 23.5-point favorite in the 11 a.m. kickoff, with the over/under set at 46.5 points.
The Huskers come into the opener trying to keep a good run going after back-to-back 7-6 seasons. That marks the first time Nebraska has posted consecutive winning seasons since 2013 and 2014.
A new season also means a new face at quarterback. After two years with Dylan Raiola running the offense, Nebraska turns to Anthony Colandrea.
He arrives from UNLV after one season there, and the numbers were loud: 3,459 passing yards, 23 touchdowns, and more than 250 yards per game on average. Colandrea was also the Mountain West Player of the Year in 2025.
Nebraska’s defense brings back six starters from a 2025 unit that finished in the top 30 nationally. Cameron Lenhardt, Vincent Shavers Jr., and Andrew Marshall are among the key names back in the fold.
Ohio is also entering a new chapter. The Bobcats have a new coach and are rebuilding around just five returning starters from the 2025 season.
They, too, are making a quarterback change, with Nick Poulos stepping in after starting one game in 2024 and redshirting the 2025 season. Poulos is a dual threat, and Ohio will likely lean on his legs against a Nebraska defense that ranked 98th against the run a year ago.
The lone returning starter on the Bobcat offense is wide receiver Dom Dorwart, who caught 11 passes for 119 yards.
Even though Nebraska and Ohio have never faced each other before, Saturday’s game carries a shared connection through Frank Solich. He’s a major figure at both schools.
Solich spent 19 seasons as an assistant under Tom Osborne from 1979-1997, then served as Nebraska’s head coach from 1998-2003, winning 58 games and taking the Huskers to the 2001 title game. He later moved on to Ohio, where he helped build the program from 2005-2020 and piled up 115 wins, the most by a head coach in Mid-American Conference history.
Solich will be in attendance Saturday. He is set to receive the Legends Award from the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame and will also serve as honorary coin toss captain. It gives both programs a chance to salute a coach who left a mark on each of them.
In Other News...
Justin Evans Just Became A Powerful Symbol Of Nebraska's New Culture
Justin Evans has become one of the clearer signposts of where Nebraska football wants to go under Matt Rhule, earning recognition from teammates and the coaching staff as the Huskers prepare for the 2026 season. A lineman by trade and now a more complete presence than he was when he first started reshaping his role in 2023, Evans has grown into the kind of steady voice and dependable figure a team wants setting the tone up front. He has also helped anchor an offensive line that brings back several experienced players, which matters for a program trying to build something more durable than one good week at a time.
The clearest measure of that respect came in the teams leadership voting, where Evans drew the most votes ever for an offensive lineman eligible for one of Nebraskas single-digit leadership jerseys. He still cannot wear that number on game days, but the distinction says plenty about how his teammates see him heading into a season that opens with Ohio and carries the usual pressure that comes with a program trying to turn culture into results. For Nebraska, Evans is not just part of the line - he has become a symbol of the line the Huskers want to be. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraskas Blackshirt Debate Is Back And Fans Know Why
Rob Aurich is still sorting out one of Nebraska footballs most recognizable traditions, and that alone has kept the Blackshirt conversation humming around the program. The new defensive coordinator has not decided when or how hell hand out the coveted Blackshirts, the symbolic gear reserved for starting defensive players, and he has made clear that the timing will depend on how the unit develops as the season unfolds.
For Nebraska fans, that uncertainty is part of the appeal and part of the debate. The Blackshirts carry real weight in Lincoln, so every delay invites more questions about the criteria, the rollout, and what Aurich wants to see before making the call. Until he settles on a plan, the speculation figures to keep following the defense wherever it goes next. [Read more 🡒]
Rutgers Just Gave Nebraska Fans A Very Different Reason To Look Closer
Rutgers opened its season with a home loss to UMass, a result that immediately rippled beyond the Big Ten East because of who was driving the Minutemen offense. Pop Watson, once a Nebraska commit, was sharp from the start and kept Rutgers on its heels while UMass snapped through a matchup many expected the Scarlet Knights to control.
For Nebraska fans, the relevance is obvious. Watson finished 19 of 22 for 197 yards and three touchdowns, a reminder of the arm talent the Huskers once had in their recruiting database, while Rutgers quarterback Dylan Lonergan never found rhythm and was eventually replaced late after a rough night. It was the kind of opener that leaves both Rutgers looking for answers and Nebraska followers wondering what might have been. [Read more 🡒]