LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska completed a perfect nonconference portion of its season with a 34-3 victory on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium against Northern Iowa, moving to 3-0 for the first time since 2016.
It also produced a three-game winning streak for the second consecutive season after going seven years without one.
Freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola started red-hot and finished 17-for-23 passing for 247 yards and two scores. But the Huskers again sputtered after halftime and struggled defensively to get off the field against the Panthers of the Football Championship Subdivision.
Here are my takeaways from the decisive victory for the Huskers:
• Nebraska largely took what it wanted in the passing game against Northern Iowa. Raiola connected on 12 of his first 13 throws for 209 yards while spreading the ball to eight receivers. The Huskers’ edge through the air came as no surprise against an opponent from the Missouri Valley Football Conference. But it did shine a light on the upgrades that Nebraska has made since last season.
Every Nebraska player who factored in scoring three first-half touchdowns is new to the Huskers this year. Freshman receivers Carter Nelson and Jacory Barney found the end zone for the first time, and Raiola hit Texas transfer Isaiah Neyor for an 18-yard score.
How might this matchup have gone a year ago? Probably not much different. But the methods with which Nebraska can beat outmatched opponents have multiplied.
• No longer can opponents load the box against Nebraska and feel secure. As coach Matt Rhule said in July, the Huskers will “murder” a defense that fails to respect their passing game. It happened a few times on Saturday, notably when Raiola hit Nelson for a 24-yard TD over the middle to cap a 75-yard drive to open the game.
The freshman QB found Neyor equally wide-open in a coverage gap for the second touchdown. And Raiola side-stepped the UNI pass rush on the Huskers’ third drive to hit Jaylen Lloyd for a 59-yard gain.
The ramifications of a diversified offense mean everything to the Huskers as they head into Big Ten play next week against Illinois.
• The Huskers did not do everything right on offense. After a clean start to build a 21-3 lead, they stalled at the end of the first half in a two-minute situation. Raiola misfired on third and fourth down. Nebraska then settled for short field goals on its first two drives of the second half.
Nebraska accomplished the objective of playing backup QB Heinrich Haarberg alongside Raiola in the third quarter. Haarberg, the eight-game starter last season, entered for three plays. He caught an 8-yard pass from Raiola and took a handoff for 5 yards. Nebraska then sent Raiola to line up wide and Haarberg took a snap for 1 yard.
There’s a look for Illinois to ponder.
• Nebraska expected a different kind of challenge against Northern Iowa. And the Huskers got it. The Panthers dominated in time of possession. They had no interest in moving fast on offense like UTEP. And UNI featured none of the skill on the edge that Colorado brought to Lincoln last week.
Northern Iowa mixed its offensive attack with a measure of success in the first half. That is, until Nebraska defensive coordinator Tony White countered with a blitz on third-and-6 to end the Panthers’ second possession.
To that point, Nebraska failed to stop Northern Iowa just once on four third-down chances, and the Panthers followed their lone miss by converting a fourth down en route to three points at the end of a 15-play march.
Big back Tye Edwards and Amauri Pesek-Hickson packed a punch. That duo and quarterback Aidan Dunne forced the Huskers to wrap up. Dunne moved the chains with his legs. When Nebraska defenders tried to knock the Panthers off their feet, the UNI runners got more yardage.
It was a good test for Nebraska ahead of the physical games up next and ought to provide plenty of video footage for White and the defensive coaches to reinforce their points about the importance of solid tackling.
• Nothing quite as dramatic last week — when Nebraska blocked a field goal and Colorado blocked a punt — happened on special teams for the Huskers. Kicker Tristan Alvano, after missing from 32 yards against Colorado, hit from 31 and 21 yards on Saturday.
The Huskers made a change at long snapper in Week 3. Aidan Flege, a Lincoln Southeast graduate who played at Iowa Western CC and transferred to Nebraska last year without a spot on the football team, took over for Camden Witucki. Witucki struggled to snap consistently in the first two games, contributing to some of the kicking issues.
(Photo: Dylan Widger / USA Today)
