Tag: Nebraska football coach Matt Rhule

Nebraska falls in overtime to Wisconsin

Based off the first two drives, it seemed as though Nebraska came to dominate on offense against Wisconsin.

Based on the first two drives, it seemed as though Nebraska came to dominate on offense against Wisconsin. But those hopes were soon extinguished on a gutsy fourth-down call by head coach Matt Rhule. Instead of attempting a 50-yard field, the Huskers went for it on fourth and one, only to be halted by the Badgers.

Then everything changed. Wisconsin outscored Nebraska 24-3 from there on out, resulting in a 24-17 overtime win for the Badgers.

Chubba Purdy earned the start for the Huskers and delivered the best showing by a Nebraska quarterback in the last few weeks. Purdy threw for 169 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 105 yards and a touchdown. Purdy’s touchdown pass saw him throw a dot to freshman Jaylen Lloyd, who broke a tackle and took off for a score.

But Nebraska never found its way into the endzone after that. Tristan Alvano sent the game into overtime with a 30-yard field goal after missing a 42-yarder earlier, but the inconsistent offensive play resulted in the loss.

Despite surrendering 24 points, the defense made big stops on the night, including back-to-back fourth down stops and holding Braelon Allen to just 62 yards rushing. Allen did score two touchdowns as Wisconsin slowly but surely worked its way into the endzone each time.

Nebraska falls to 5-6 on the season and will return home to host Iowa on Friday afternoon. The Huskers need to win their season finale to become bowl-eligible. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. and can be viewed on CBS.

Huskers preparing for pass-happy Maryland

The Nebraska Cornhuskers are preparing to host the Maryland Terrapins this Saturday at Memorial Stadium.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers are preparing to host the Maryland Terrapins this Saturday at Memorial Stadium. A significant focus of the preparation has been on the offense of the Terps. 

Maryland boasts the second-ranked passing offense in the Big Ten, with an average of 280 passing yards a game. Starting quarterback Taulia Tagovailoa has thrown for 2,486 yards with 21 touchdowns and seven interceptions on the year. 

Head coach Matt Rhule says that his team is excited by the challenge. 

“Yeah it’s a heck of a challenge and an opportunity. The great thing about Maryland is that all of our guys know how good they are. They’ve seen them and they know who Maryland is. It was 17-17 against Ohio State late in the third quarter. They are an excellent, excellent football team. To me the challenge for us has always been to humbly prepare for the other teams and the opponent but to never make it about the opponent. To not sit there and say, ‘What if they do this and do that?’ Instead make it about us. 

Through nine games this season, Nebraska has been surrendering 221 passing yards a game while boasting the third-best rushing defense in the country, only allowing 70.4 rushing yards per game. Rhule said that his team knows what to expect this weekend. 

“So again the lessons always go back to just, ‘Hey guys trust yourself. Trust your technique. Do your assignment. Play hard. Play together.’ And we are probably going to have a chance to win games. And even though we didn’t do that the whole game it’s still 20-17 late in the game. So you still had a chance with the ball to win the game. So let’s just build off of that. It’s a really explosive offense. It’s a real challenge for our guys. They know what’s coming and they won’t be surprised. They will have to play their best to have a chance against this offense.” 

Nebraska will next take the field this Saturday when the Huskers host the Maryland Terrapins. Kick-off is at 11:00 a.m. and can be seen on Peacock.