Topline Takeaways: Nebraska Breaks Colorado's Will

Huskers dominate their former conference rival on the way to an impressive victory, a top 25 ranking, and hope for much bigger things to come.

Sep 7, 2024; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Colorado Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders (2) throws away the ball against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the second quarter at Memorial Stadium. / Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Nebraska stuffed Colorado into a locker on Saturday. The Huskers were like a schoolyard bully, chasing the Buffaloes up and down Tom Osborne field as they physically dominated the game from the first series. Colorado’s offensive line was completely overmatched against Nebraska’s defense, leaving CU quarterback Shedeur Sanders to get smacked to the turf repeatedly. Ty Robinson set the tone on the very first play from scrimmage, breaking into the backfield and deflecting Sanders’ first pass attempt of the night. The Buffs would go three and out, and never seemed to get on track in a meaningful way.

Husker defenders were everywhere. They were flying to the ball, tackling in open space, and getting penetration all night long. Sanders was running for his life; he could never get comfortable and so the offense never settled in. In the 1st half, Nebraska’s offensive line got in on the act as well, getting a great push that allowed the Huskers to run the ball at will. Yes, the offense sputtered and things got a little sloppy in the 2nd half. More on that below, but the great thing was it didn’t matter. 

Nebraska’s defense never flinched. The Huskers legitimately broke Colorado’s will. The Buffs got knocked in the chin strap early, were in a big hole by halftime, and flat out quit by the 4th quarter. I wouldn’t be surprised if Colorado doesn’t recover from this one. The Buffaloes waltzed into Memorial Stadium with a boatload of swagger; it ended up buried on the turf under a pile of Blackshirts. 

This was a thoroughly enjoyable night. All Husker fans deserved it. More than that, it felt like a new beginning. Optimism in Husker Nation has not been this high in a very long time. 

Now, onto the topline takeaways. 

CHEERS TO THAT

Dominant in the Trenches. Every level of Nebraska’s defense looks elite. Mikai Gbayor and John Bullock led the linebackers with stellar performances. The defensive backs stood tall against Colorado’s athletic wide receivers, arguably the best players on the CU team. But the defensive line is downright special. Ty Robinson, Nash Hutmacher, and Jimari Butler lead a deep and talented group that can go toe-to-toe with any team in the country. They have talent, size, and perhaps most importantly, experience. This is the anchor of Tony White’s defense, which currently ranks #5 in rushing defense and #24 in total defense nationally, while being tied for #6 in sacks and tied for #8 in tackles for loss. 

Not Melting Down When Things Go Wrong. The Huskers went 3-and-out and were forced to punt with about two minutes left before halftime. Previous Husker teams would have promptly given up points. This Husker team forced a punt, got the ball back and went 70 yards in three plays for a touchdown right before halftime. That’s a sign that Matt Rhule’s efforts to install a winning mindset in this team are taking hold. And that wasn’t the only example. The Big Red missed a field goal late in the 1st quarter that would have put them up 17-0. The offense stalled in the 2nd half, which turned into a bit of a sloppy penalty-fest (involving multiple highly questionable calls I might add). It feels like any of these things would have led recent Nebraska teams to melt down, let the other team back in the game, and quite possibly lose. Coach Rhule has talked about helping the team learn how to win again. Early results show he is doing just that.

Dylan > Shedeur. Dylan Raiola completed 23 of his 30 passing attempts for 185 yards and a touchdown. Shedeur Sanders went 23-for-38 for 244 yards and a touchdown. Raiola’s QB rating of 54.4 was well ahead of Sanders at 24.4. I was curious to see how the true freshman Raiola would handle the big game, under the lights on national television against one of Nebraska’s historic rivals. He answered the bell. I believe he looked better than Sanders, and the numbers bear that out. Raiola is already ready for prime time; it’s exciting to think about how much better he’s going to get as he plays more college football. 

Here’s to Husker Nation. What a scene at Memorial Stadium. Nebraska fans once again proved why we are the best fans on planet earth. We’ve been through nearly a decade of some of the worst football in Nebraska history. We keep showing up, and keep filling up that beautiful stadium. As Tom Shatel has said, Nebraska fans are undefeated against apathy. That loyalty was rewarded on Saturday night, and I have a feeling it will continue to be rewarded in 2024 and beyond. 

DIDN’T LOVE THAT

Untimely Penalties. Nebraska had 12 penalties for 105 yards on the night. Some of them were flat out bad calls, like the ridiculous holding call on Rahmir Johnson that negated a 50+ yard completion to Jacorey Barney late in the game (side note: was it me or did NBC's officiating guy get every single replay call wrong?) But some of the penalties were not bad calls, and they always seemed to occur after something good had just happened. Rhule talked after the game about a team needing to learn how to play with a lead, and cleaning up the penalty issues will be part of that process moving forward. 

The Offense's Disappearing Act in the 2nd Half. Look, it was a great night. It’s hard to be too critical about anything. But it was a bit concerning to see the offense go into a shell in the 2nd half, after playing so well in the first 30 minutes. I’m sure part of that was offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield getting more conservative with his play calling in order to protect the big lead. But you would have liked to have seen the Big Red continue to run the ball, get more 1st downs, and milk the clock. And I certainly didn’t expect the Huskers to get shut out for the entire half. 

QUESTIONS GOING INTO WEEK 3

Kicking Game/Special Teams. The blocked punt when Nebraska had a chance to pin Colorado deep in the 4th quarter was annoying, and certainly notable, but I won’t lose too much sleep over that one (unless we see it start happening on a regular basis). Punter Brian Buschini had a fantastic night overall. What I’m much more concerned about is the missed field goal. Nebraska is going to be in closer games this year. We are going to play better defenses. We will absolutely be in situations where we need to take three points when we can get three points. Missing field goals could literally be the difference in winning and losing some Big Ten games. I have high hopes for Tristan Alvano, and we know he battled an injury recently. But I have a feeling Coach Rhule won’t have a lot of patience with the kicking game. Does one of the other two kickers on the roster get an opportunity in week 3?

Offensive Line. After the great 1st half, I genuinely believed the offensive line would come out and push Colorado around in the 2nd half. Instead, the Huskers had a really hard time getting the running game going for most of the half. What’s more, most of the aforementioned killer penalties were committed by offensive linemen. I was a little concerned after the UTEP game that Dylan Raiola seemed to be running for his life a little too often. I have more concerns now. This is a veteran, seasoned group. It feels like it should look better than this, even though it’s only been two games. We know we will play some of the best defenses in the country in conference play. Can we expect the offensive line to step it up moving forward? Let’s hope the underwhelming 2nd half performance wasn’t a sign of things to come. 

Can the Big Red Avoid a Letdown Next Week? After a magical, emotional night at Memorial Stadium, the Huskers welcome Northern Iowa to town next week. It will likely be a bit more difficult to get up for an FCS opponent than it was for Colorado. I fully expect a Nebraska victory, but I’ll be watching to see how dialed in Nebraska looks for the game. This will be another teaching moment for Coach Rhule in his efforts to build a consistent winner at Nebraska. 

FINAL THOUGHT

On Sunday, Nebraska found themselves back in the AP poll (#23) and coaches poll (#24) for the first time in years. I haven’t felt this strongly that we are really back in a long, long time. Saturday night felt like both an exorcizing of demons and a turning of the page. In one fell swoop, we released all the angst and rage and failure of the last seven years, and took it out on one of our most hated rivals to boot. At the same time, we opened the book to a new era of Nebraska football, one where the team expects to win, and the fanbase watches with joy and optimism instead of nervous anguish. This season is just getting started, and it’s going to be so much fun. 

As always, GBR for LIFE. 

MORE: Deion Sanders: Colorado Buffaloes 'Never Got it Together' Against Nebraska Football

MORE: Big Ten Football Week 2 Capsules

MORE: Stukenholtz: Nebraska Football's Road Back to National Relevance

MORE: WATCH: Nebraska Football Quarterback Dylan Raiola Meets with the Media Following Colorado Win

MORE: WATCH: Nebraska Football Coach Matt Rhule Meets with the Media Following Colorado Win

---

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, following HuskerMax on X, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.