Nebraska’s 2026 schedule already looked brutal on paper. Now there’s another layer to it: if one preseason quarterback list is any indication, the Huskers may be staring down five of the top 21 passers in the country.
That comes from Antonio Morales and Sam Kahn Jr. of The Athletic, who put together a projected starting quarterback ranking for every Division I program. On that list, Nebraska’s 2026 opponents include Oregon’s Dante Moore at No.
2, Ohio State’s Julian Sayin at No. 4, Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza at No.
5, Washington’s Demond Williams Jr. at No. 20 and Illinois’ Luke Altmyer at No. 21.
For a Nebraska team trying to take a step forward, that’s a nasty draw.
The good news, at least from a Husker perspective, is that the next quarterback on the list who directly factors into Nebraska’s own fortunes is Anthony Colandrea at No. 39.
After that, the Big Ten names relevant to Nebraska drop further down the board: Katin Houser of Illinois is No. 41, Alessio Milivojevic of Michigan State is No.
69, Jeremy Hecklinski of Iowa is No. 106, and Dylan Lonergan of Rutgers is No. 107.
And yes, Iowa being Iowa still makes that one feel a little less relevant.
That quarterback ranking fits neatly into the bigger picture around Nebraska’s 2026 slate, which already includes three of the top five teams in the country based on preseason expectations: Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana. Add in Iowa, Washington and Illinois, and the Huskers are looking at a schedule that will ask plenty from a team trying to show real progress.
The larger conversation around the Big Ten is rolling right along, too. Big Ten Media Days are beginning as the conference’s momentum keeps building, Tom Osborne has made history, and Nebraska’s 2026 outlook is starting to sharpen.
There’s also plenty else moving around the sport. Fall camp is close, Nebraska is preparing for what could be the toughest schedule of the Matt Rhule era, and the opponents include several offenses that were in the College Football Playoff a year ago. With a new 4-2-5 scheme, transfers and returning Blackshirts, first-year defensive coordinator Rob Aurich will have his hands full.
The quarterback discussion isn’t limited to Nebraska, either. The Athletic also highlighted ten rising college football quarterbacks who could make a jump this season, noting that its ranking of the 138 projected starters for 2026 includes familiar names near the top such as Trinidad Chambliss at No.
1, CJ Carr at No. 3 and Arch Manning at No. 7.
Two of those players, Chambliss and Carr, were not exactly household names at this point last year. Carr arrived as a former top-100 recruit at Notre Dame, but he hadn’t thrown a college pass and wasn’t even a locked-in starter. Chambliss was projected as a backup after transferring from Division II.
Elsewhere, former Huskers are reporting for NFL training camps, and this will be the first one in nearly 15 years without Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David, who retired in the offseason. Still, plenty of Nebraska alums are on NFL rosters and getting ready to fight for roles, while others are chasing 53-man spots.
And in the WNBA, Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark picked up her seventh technical foul of the season in Wednesday night’s 123-88 home win over the Connecticut Sun, leaving her one technical away from an automatic one-game suspension. Clark’s seven technicals are tied with Atlanta Dream forward Angel Reese for the most in the league, and she now has 15 in her career, the second most through a player’s first three seasons in WNBA history, behind Reese’s 19, according to Elias Sports Bureau.
Vokolek, 28, made the announcement on Instagram on Wednesday night.
In Other News...
Nebraska Is Finally Giving Anthony Colandrea The Offense Fans Wanted
Anthony Colandrea looks set to be Nebraskas starting quarterback, and the early signs suggest the Huskers are trying to make the offense fit him instead of forcing him into a rigid system. Colandrea has already praised Dana Holgorsen for adjusting the scheme to include elements from his time at UNLV, a notable shift for a program that has spent plenty of time searching for the right formula under center.
For Nebraska, that matters because Colandrea arrives with a track record of production and a style that can change how the whole offense feels. The same momentum around the program is showing up on the recruiting trail, too, with the Huskers offering defensive lineman Simon Nuamah and expecting him on campus, while the schedule ahead also gives Nebraska a pair of familiar MAC matchups in Ohio and Bowling Green as the 2026 slate starts to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Three Nebraska Wild Cards Could Reshape Fall Camp Fast
Fall camp is about to give Nebraska a clearer look at a few players who could matter a lot by the time the 2026 season rolls around. Janiran Bonner, Dawson Merritt and Carter Nelson all missed spring practice because of injuries, but each still sits in the group of wild cards who could change the feel of the roster if they get on the field and stay there.
Bonners versatility gives the staff plenty to think about, Merritt brings the kind of linebacker upside that keeps coaches interested even after a stop-start injury path, and Nelson remains one of the more intriguing developmental pieces on the roster after moving from wide receiver to tight end. The common thread is health, and Nebraska will spend camp finding out whether these three can turn potential into something more concrete before the season starts to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraska's Offense Is Drawing Real Belief From Its New Quarterback
Anthony Colandrea has spent spring practice getting a closer look at what Nebraska wants to be on offense, and the early impression is a confident one. The quarterback said he likes the way Dana Holgorsen has blended concepts from his previous stop at UNLV into the Huskers system, with Colandrea pointing to a group of receivers and an offensive line that give the unit a chance to do more than just get by.
There is still a learning curve, though, and Colandrea did not gloss over it. He talked about the jump from the Mountain West to the Big Ten and the challenge of facing a defense that has been complex throughout camp, but he also said the offense is starting to get more comfortable with the system. For a Nebraska attack looking for a cleaner identity, that kind of belief from the new quarterback matters, even if the real proof is still ahead. [Read more 🡒]