Tag: Tristan Alvano

Kicker Tristan Alvano out for Purdue game

Redshirt freshman John Hohl will start in place of the injured Tristan Alvano.

Nebraska’s kicking situation just became more complicated. Head coach Matt Rhule announced on the Huskers Radio Network on Wednesday night that kicker Tristan Alvano is out, and John Hohl will start the Purdue game.

The head coach also confirmed that Alvano is still a few weeks away from being cleared to return. Alvano is three-of-four on field goals and a perfect 12-for-12 on extra points this season. Hohl is one-of-two on field goals and four-of-four on extra points.

Hohl previously attended Iowa Western Community College and redshirted his freshman year in 2023. He arrived at Nebraska this summer with four years of eligibility remaining. Hohl garnered attention from his performance at a Kohl’s Kicking showcase in late May.

His performance earned him the rank of top transfer kicker at the event. Following the event, Hohl also received an offer from Coastal Carolina, temporarily joining the Chanticleers. However, Hohl opted to walk on at Nebraska, earning a spot on the roster.

Nebraska will travel to West Lafayette this Saturday to face the Purdue Boilermakers. Kickoff is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. CT, and the game can be seen on Peacock.

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Huskers coach Matt Rhule reveals timeline on starting kicker decision

The starting kicker position has been an interesting one to follow over the course of fall camp.

Nebraska football coach Matt Rhule discussed some injury updates during his press conference on Monday as the team prepares for UTEP. He revealed that the decision on who will kick in Saturday’s game will be decided either Thursday or Friday.

The incumbent kicker is Tristan Alvano. He went nine-of-15 on field goals last season. He made all 27 of his extra points in an up-and-down freshman campaign.

The coaching staff has previously praised new addition John Hohl. He has been impressive during preseason camp, making for an interesting battle at the kicking position.

With that in mind, Rhule indicated that there would be a set timeframe for when the starting kicker would be decided.

Tristan (Alvano) is kicking, he’s in the mix. We’ll make a decision probably Thursday or Friday for who’s going to kick.”

It will be interesting to see who gets the job. It would be good to get stability in a position that has not had it over the past couple of seasons.

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Huskers have leading kicker with Tristan Alvano limited in practice

There appears to be a kicking battle emerging for the Huskers in camp.

Nebraska football may have a kicking battle on their hands, as John Hohl is currently the leading kicker in camp. Coach Matt Rhule mentioned this development in his press conference with the media on Saturday afternoon.

I think Hohl is really coming on well and to be quite honest today was not a big special teams day today was like we kicked field goals in rhythm so meaning if it was a field goal attempt in a game we would have gone a field goal attempt.

Hohl transferred in from Iowa Western Community College. He redshirted in his lone season at Iowa Western before transferring to Nebraska.

This past spring, he was tabbed as the top transfer kicker at a Kohl’s Kicking Showcase. His family has a history with the program.

Hohl’s father was a tight end at Nebraska and was a member of the 1994 national championship team. His brother Jacob was a punter of the 2022 and 2023 teams.

Last season’s kicker, Tristan Alvano, has been working through a groin injury that has bothered him since the beginning of training camp. The sophomore was 9-of-15 on field goals and made all 27 extra-point attempts in 2023.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out. Depth at the kicking position is undoubtedly a positive, as Nebraska has struggled with special teams in recent years.

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Nebraska Football Countdown to Kickoff: No. 30 K Tristan Alvano

Only 30 days remain until the start of Nebraska’s 2024 season.

The countdown to kickoff for Nebraska’s 2024 season is officially less than a month away. The Huskers season opener agaisnt the UTEP Miners at Memorial Stadium is just 30 days away and that puts Huskers sophomore kicker Tristan Alvano in to today’s player spotlight.

The 6-foot-1 Alavano is originally out of Omaha, playing his high school football at Omaha Westside where he was one of the most succesful kickers in Nebraska high school football history, making 27 field goals over his career, the most in Nebraska Class A state history.

As a freshman, Alvano made an immeidate impact for the Huskers, making all 27 of his extra point attempts and making 9-of-15 field goal attempts includnig a season long 55-yard field goal against Purdue.

He was perfect from within 30-yards, was 4-for-5 from between 30 and 40 yards and then struggled on his further attempts, making just 3-of-8 attempts.

This season, Alavano is expected to remain the program’s starting kicker but will be limited to start fall camp.

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Nebraska kicker limited to start fall camp

Nebraska’s coaching staff met with the media on Tuesday morning.

Nebraska’s coaching staff met with the media on Tuesday morning. Special teams were a topic of conversation with head coach Matt Rhule and coordinator Ed Foley discussing the injury to last year’s kick, Tristan Alvano.

Alvano will be limited to start training camp, but Rhule is comfortable with the other kickers on the roster.

“Between (Jacob) Hohl and Nico (Ottomanelli). I think the thing we realized is that the close games this season are going to come down to kicking. We know what we have in Tristan (Alvano) so it’s better not to rush him and get him healthy. Nico was a high-priority recruit for us. We had a chance to coach Hohl’s brother who was a fantastic young man and Jacob has a strong leg. They will all compete for the starting role and we will see what happens.”

Nico Ottomanelli is a freshman out of Old Tappan, New Jersey, while Hohl is a transfer from Iowa Western Community College. Ed Foley believes that Alvano is making progress as the training camp begins.

“I watched him kick the other day, it was a rehab thing so I was watching from afar, just to see what it looked like and what his reaction was. I was more looking at it from an evaluation standpoint and he was fine. He’s kicking, he’s just not at the point where he’s going to kickoff right now in terms of that kind of push. As of right now, I’m not overly concerned.

Last season, Alvano went 9-of-15 with a long of 55 yards. He was also 27-of-27 on extra points.

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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.

Nebraska football comes up short against Michigan State

The Huskers traveled to East Lansing, Michigan for a chance to punch their ticket to a bowl game for the first time since 2016.

The Huskers traveled to East Lansing, Michigan, for a chance to punch their ticket to a bowl game for the first time since 2016. This ended up being easier said than done. Nebraska hit the roadblock that was Michigan State. The Huskers battled the Spartans and saw numerous opportunities to win. The options fell by the wayside, resulting in a 20-17 loss for Nebraska.

The Huskers’ offense saw most of these opportunities but struggled to take advantage of them. Their biggest came in the fourth quarter. After scoring a touchdown to cut the deficit to three, Nebraska got the ball back with over two minutes left. The Huskers fumbled, resulting in a Michigan State takeaway. Nebraska got the ball one more time with under a minute left but once again failed to take advantage.

Heinrich Haarberg went 12-of-28 for 129 yards and two interceptions, his worst outing as Nebraska’s starting quarterback this season. Haarberg also rushed for 37 yards off 14 carries and a touchdown. However, they also fumbled twice, one resulting in a turnover and the other on the team’s final drive.

Freshman Emmett Johnson led the charge for the Huskers in rushing, going for 57 yards and a touchdown off 13 carries. This all culminated in just 17 points, an ongoing flaw that finally caught up with Nebraska’s defense. The Blackshirts held the Spartans to just 63 yards rushing but surrendered 232 yards passing and two touchdowns.

The Huskers fall to 5-4 and will face three difficult opponents for its remaining regular-season outings. They will travel back home to host Maryland next Saturday. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. and can be viewed on Peacock.

Rhule still believes in his freshman kicker

Nebraska’s field goal-kicking has been a roller coaster experience during the 2023 season.

Nebraska’s field goal-kicking has been a roller coaster experience during the 2023 season. Since winning the job during the offseason, freshman Tristan Alvano has gone 3-7 on field goals with a long of 37 yards.

Regardless of the early struggles, head coach Matt Rhule says he’s still very confident in his young kickers.

“The thing I love about Tristan is I don’t really feel like ‘oh man I’ve got be careful here.’ I don’t feel a drop in his confidence because when he does miss it’s just technical. He missed the one kick last week but it was a bobbled snap and hold. For him to get the ball as close as it was, was really a challenge.

In fact, the head coach says he likes it when young players struggle as it allows him to evaluate a player’s reaction to adversity.

I’m happy with where he is. I love the fact that when young players struggle to go through some adversity we see them not cracking but getting stronger. Either you crack this thing or you get cracked. He is at the precipice of something great. He is handling it well.”

Alvano made headlines during his senior year of high school when he went five-for-five on field goals in Omaha Westside’s 43-41 win over Gretna in the NSAA State Championship game. During his senior year, Alvano was 16-20 in field goals with a career-long of 57 yards.

The Nebraska native is highly thought of as a talent. Radio analyst and former Husker I-back Damon Benning has stated that he believes Alavano is a ‘Sunday talent.’ Rhule also believes that the freshman will only get better as he grows into the role.

“He will only get better and better. I have confidence in him and even in that game we put him out there a third time to make it a three-score game. He’s handled it really well and I think he’ll play well.”

Nebraska will take the field again on Saturday against Northwestern when the Wildcats visit Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. and can be seen on the Big Ten Network.

Nebraska football takes down Louisiana Tech 28-14

The Nebraska football team hosted its second game of the season on Saturday afternoon.

The Nebraska football team hosted its second game of the season on Saturday afternoon. After taking down Northern Illinois to improve to 1-2, the Huskers welcomed in Louisiana Tech. Though Nebraska snatched win number two for the 2023 season, it was closer than last week’s victory, walking away with a 28-14 win.

Heinrich Haarberg started for Nebraska for the second straight week and led the Huskers both in the pass and ground games. Haarberg went 8-of-17 in the air for 107 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 157 yards and one touchdown off 19 carries. Haarberg’s touchdown run came off a huge 72-yard option, which put Nebraska up 28-7 with over 11 minutes to go in the game.

Anthony Grant and Thomas Fidone II also found their way into the endzone for the second straight week. Grant scored on the ground off a two-yard run, adding to his 135-yard rushing on the day. Fidone had only one catch in the game but made a big one, scoring a 29-yard touchdown.

Billy Kemp IV finished as the top receiver for the Huskers, hauling in five catches for 62 yards. Kemp also scored Nebraska’s first touchdown of the game off a jet sweep, which came after a fake field goal by the Huskers. Louisiana Tech responded quickly to the score, running in for a touchdown on its next drive.

Nebraska’s defense, however, delivered another big showing in the run game, holding the Bulldogs to 46 total yards. The Huskers did surrender 292 passing yards, 146 of them coming in the fourth quarter, which led to Louisiana Tech’s second touchdown. Another significant factor in the game was the Bulldogs’ penalties. Louisiana Tech surrendered 12 penalties for 100 yards, which halted many of its drives and even kept some of Nebraska’s drives alive.

The Huskers improve to 2-2 on the season but face a significant task next week as they welcome in No. 2 Michigan. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. and can be viewed on FOX.

Huskers name starting kicker

Head coach Matt Rhule officially named Nebraska’s starting kicker for their season opener.

Head coach Matt Rhule officially named Nebraska’s starting kicker for their season opener. Freshman Tristan Alvano beat out junior Timmy Bleekrode for the starting job for the season opener in Minnesota.

Rhule told the media at his Tuesday press conference that Alvano’s young age never played a factor in his decision.

“I don’t ever want to use age as an excuse. They don’t. Tristian Alvano is the starting kicker for the University of Nebraska. That means something. There’s a long lineage of elite specialists… if the kick comes down to the end, I’m going to put him out there, and he’s going to make it.”

Alvano made headlines last season this year when he went five-for-five on field goals in Omaha Westside’s 43-41 win over Gretna in the NSAA State Championship game. During his senior year, Alvano was 16-20 in field goals with a career-long of 57 yards.

Rhule did not say if Alvano would also handle kickoff duties. Punter Brian Buschini may be responsible for kickoffs but the head coach did not specify.