Nebraska’s season opener had the kind of first quarter that can send a fan base spiraling. For a stretch, it looked uncomfortably possible that the Huskers were headed for another rough night against a MAC opponent. But once Nebraska settled in, the gap in talent showed up, and the game started going the way it probably should have from the opening kickoff.
That doesn’t mean every concern vanished. It also doesn’t mean every bright spot should be crowned as something bigger than one September Saturday.
The first game comes after a long layoff, and Nebraska is still sorting through a roster and coaching staff with plenty of new pieces. The Huskers were also without linebacker Owen Chambliss, who sat out because of a hamstring injury.
The biggest offensive headline belonged to Jamal Rule, who delivered the kind of debut most freshmen can only dream about. He became the first true freshman to post a 100-yard rushing game for Nebraska since 2004, and he did it without even starting the game. Rule piled up 122 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries, then added two catches for 47 yards and another score.
For much of the second and third quarters, it looked like Rule might slam the door on the RB1 conversation right away. But Mekhi Nelson took over in the fourth quarter and gave the staff plenty of reason to feel good about the running back-by-committee setup it opened the season with.
On the other side of the ball, there’s still work to do. Rob Aurich is going to be under a bright spotlight all season, and the opening quarter did nothing to make life easier. Nebraska’s defense had some ugly blown coverages early, and Ohio found too much room to operate.
Still, the full picture was a little more encouraging than the first-quarter panic suggested. After Ohio opened by carving up the defense on its first two drives, quarterback Nick Poulos finished 14 of 31 for 164 passing yards.
And 68 of those yards came on the fifth play of the game, when a clear busted coverage left a huge play on the field. The secondary was far from spotless, but it looked better than the immediate reaction might have indicated.
Anthony Colandrea, meanwhile, gave Nebraska exactly the kind of debut it wanted from him. The concern coming in was simple: would the bad plays outweigh the good ones?
On Saturday, that never really materialized. Colandrea went 18 of 32 for 275 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions, while also running 10 times for 23 yards and another score.
Just as important, he looked calm in the pocket. When pressure came, he didn’t have the shaky, deer-in-the-headlights look Dylan Raiola showed too often over the last two years.
Ohio is not Big Ten competition, so it would be a mistake to rush to declare Colandrea the answer based on one game. But with another 60-yard touchdown pass wiped out by what looked like an iffy blocking penalty, and with his receivers dropping too many balls, his Nebraska debut still came out very strong.
In Other News...
Nebraska Just Made A Strong Early Impression On Key Recruits
Nebraskas season opener against Ohio turned into more than just the start of a new football year. The program brought in more than 30 recruits for the game, giving several top commits and targets a first-hand look at the atmosphere in Lincoln and a chance to see how the staff presented itself on a busy early-season weekend. Among those in attendance were Barrett Kitrell, Thatcher Shelton, Elias Schafer, Isaiah Grant, Devin Hill Jr. and Nicholas Payne Jr., a group that reflected how wide the Huskers cast their net on the recruiting trail.
What stood out afterward was not only the crowd and the setting, but the way the visit connected the recruits to the programs offensive showing and to the people around it. Some of the visitors walked away with offers or invitations to come back, while others talked about the relationships they felt building with coaches and players during the trip. For Nebraska, that kind of early impression matters, especially when the first home game can set the tone for how the staff sells the rest of the season. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraskas Slim Halftime Lead Comes With Two Big Warning Signs
Nebraska carried a narrow 14-13 lead into halftime at Memorial Stadium, but the first 30 minutes hardly felt clean. Ohio got on the board early after a defensive miscommunication, and the Cornhuskers kept making life harder on themselves with six first-half penalties, including one that erased a Nebraska touchdown and stalled an opportunity to separate.
Ohio quarterback Nick Poulos looked sharp in the first quarter, while Nebraskas defense spent the opening stretch searching for answers before settling in some midway through the second quarter. The halftime margin still left the Cornhuskers in front, but the warning signs were obvious enough that the lead felt a lot thinner than the scoreboard suggested. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraskas New-Look Defense Already Revealed A Few Early Tone-Setters
Nebraska got a first real look at its reworked defense in the season opener against Ohio, and the early signs were more about depth and roles than final answers. Thirty-four defenders saw the field, with the front especially busy as 18 players cycled through the defensive line rotation, helping keep the Bobcats from finding much ground success outside of quarterback runs. The unit still gave up 303 yards over 65 plays, but it also showed the kind of layered approach this staff seems intent on using.
Vincent Shavers emerged as a workload leader at linebacker, while Victor Evans III posted the top overall grade in the secondary, two encouraging markers for a group sorting out its identity early. There was also a timely takeaway from Rex Guthrie, who picked off his first career interception, and enough pressure to suggest the pass rush has something to build on, even if the sack total was limited. For Nebraska, the opener offered a useful snapshot of who can set the tone as the season moves forward. [Read more 🡒]