Nebraska walked out of Saturday’s 20-17 loss to Indiana with the kind of sting that lingers. Blowing a 17-6 fourth-quarter lead will do that.
But if the frustration is obvious, so is the bigger picture: this wasn’t a game where everyone wore the same label. Some Huskers delivered.
Some didn’t. And a few left a clear imprint in a game that nearly turned into a breakthrough.
Jacory Barney Jr. was one of the bright spots. The wide receiver finally looked like the explosive piece Nebraska has been waiting for, matching a career high with 9 catches and finishing with 108 yards.
It was a sharp rebound after a quiet stretch - he had 8 receptions for 115 yards and 2 touchdowns against Bowling Green, then managed only 2, 1 and 2 catches in the next three games combined before Saturday. Even with Kwazi Gilmer leading the team overall with 32 catches for 418 yards and 6 touchdowns, Barney showed he can be a dangerous complement in this passing game.
Luke Lindenmeyer also made his case for a bigger role. Nebraska has been talking up the tight end since spring, and against Indiana he gave the offense exactly the kind of steady outlet it needed.
Lindenmeyer tied a career high with 7 receptions and finished with 45 yards, his best yardage total of the season and the second-highest of his career. When nothing opened up downfield, he became a reliable safety valve for Anthony Colandrea.
Colandrea leaned on that kind of help because the Huskers never got much going on the ground from their backs. Nebraska’s running game was a real problem again.
Jamal Rule returned after missing Maryland and sitting out since getting hurt against Michigan State, and he led the team with 53 yards on 15 carries, a 3.5-yard average. As a team, Nebraska managed just 128 rushing yards at 3.3 yards per carry.
Colandrea’s legs gave the offense some juice - he carried it 17 times and had the game’s longest run, the touchdown that pushed Nebraska ahead 17-6 - but the backfield production around him never arrived. That has been a recurring issue since Big Ten play began.
The defense had its own split personality. Nebraska was vulnerable in the passing game, but the front held up against Indiana’s run.
That matters, especially with Turbo Richard and Lee Beebe Jr. in the mix. The Huskers gave up only 65 rushing yards on 32 carries, and Indiana’s longest run was a 16-yard scramble by quarterback Josh Hoover.
After a loss, it’s easy to miss the positives, but that kind of run defense can matter as the schedule moves deeper into the Big Ten.
Owen Chambliss was another reason Nebraska had a chance at all. After missing the first few games, the linebacker looked every bit the player Nebraska expected based on his San Diego State background.
He finished with 5 tackles, added 1 tackle for loss, and was especially effective in coverage. Indiana targeted him four times, and he allowed just one catch for 4 yards.
In a game where Nebraska’s defense had to answer some ugly moments, Chambliss brought stability in the middle.
The ugly moments came through the air. Nebraska gave up 263 passing yards on just 12 completions and allowed 2 touchdowns, but the number alone doesn’t tell the whole story.
On Indiana’s first two drives, the Huskers lost receivers for long completions, then settled in enough to force field goals after absorbing 80 yards on two plays. That felt manageable until the fourth quarter, when the game flipped.
Indiana hit Nebraska with back-to-back busts that turned a 17-6 lead into a 20-17 deficit, and both times Nick Marsh was left wide open - first for a 75-yard touchdown, then for a 44-yard catch with no defender within 30 yards.
That’s the kind of breakdown that can’t be ignored, especially because it’s becoming a pattern. The repeated issue isn’t just the explosive gains.
It’s the lack of safety help when those plays happen, whether that comes from Rob Aurich’s calls, busted reads, or confusion in the secondary. Nebraska had enough good individual performances to make Saturday feel like a missed opportunity instead of a total collapse.
But the defensive busts, the stalled run game, and the late-game fade are the parts that will stick.
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Nebraska spent much of the afternoon doing enough things to put itself in position to win against Indiana, controlling the ball longer and piling up more yards in a game that felt very much there for the taking. Still, the Cornhuskers came away empty, undone by a missed field goal, a handful of defensive coverage lapses and a few coaching choices that left plenty of room for second-guessing once the final whistle sounded.
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The quarterback situation is the part Nebraska will be watching closest. Dylan Raiola was benched in Oregons recent loss, and that adds a fresh layer to an already tricky matchup as the Cornhuskers try to bounce back. For a team that has already seen one setback, the next move under center could shape how it approaches the Ducks long before kickoff. [Read more 🡒]