Thursday night, the Nebraska Cornhuskers won their season opener 20-17 over the Cincinnati Bearcats at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.
The stadium was jam-packed to the rafters with more than 60,000 rabid red-clad Husker fans making the trip to KC. Technically, UC was the home team, but Husker fans knew better.
So what are Husker fans to make of the game? NU was favored by 6.5 points and UC had been on a five-game losing streak. So why did the game come down to the final seconds?
After all, didn’t Matt Rhule just give high praise to his team? Didn’t he say the Husker D-line was “Hell on wheels”?
I sense Husker fans are happy with the win, but maybe some expected a bigger margin of victory.
So what went wrong?
The Pressure Game
One thing that may have affected Nebraska’s performance Thursday night was the pressure NU was facing by playing in front of over sixty thousand Husker fans. NU had to win the game. They couldn’t disappoint them.
Remember in 2015 when the Husker volleyball team played Texas for the NC at the Century Link Center in Omaha? In that game, the players and coaches were under a ton of pressure to win the game. It was played in front of a record crowd of 17,561 fans-almost all were rooting for the Huskers. NU won the game and the NC.
I know NU’s game in Kansas City wasn’t for a NC, but the pressure to win Thursday was still great.
Also, give some credit to Cincinnati for opening its season in front of a hostile environment. NU may not face a better dual-threat QB this fall than Kyle Sorsby.
Here are some things worth noting.
1.) Husker won a one-possession game. This was Matt Rhule’s second in a row at Nebraska.
2.) The win boosted Rhule’s record at NU to 13-13.
3.) NU found a way to win the game.
4.) NU won the time of possession by 39:30 to 20:30.
5.) The Huskers won a “winnable” game and protected their “home” field.
6.) NU had some foolish penalties – one that cost them a potential TD. For the game, NU was tagged three times for 27 yards. Not bad.
7.) NU suffered one potential serious injury when Janiran Bonner was tackled low. Hope he gets back in the lineup soon.
8.) NU did not get off to a fast start. The Huskers had two scoreless quarters (1st and 3rd). But in order to start a win streak, a team must win the first one.. And they did.
Game
1.) Dylan Raiola completed 78.5% of his passes. He continues to display maturity and poise.
2.) NU rushed for only 110 yards, and 108 were by Emmett Johnson
3.) The Blackshirts didn’t register a sack all game.
4.) DeShon Singleton led the Huskers in tackles with 7.
5.) NU held UC to 271 total yards, including just 69 passing yards.
Plays of the game
Offense:
Nyziah Hunter’s amazing one-handed, second-quarter TD catch.
Defense
This is a no-brainer. Malcolm Hartzog Jr.’s last-minute INT that saved the game for NU.
Special Teams
Kyle Cunanan’s second-quarter 52-yard FG that put NU on the board.
Players of the game
Offense
Dylan Raiola
He threw for 243 yards, 2 TDs, no INTs and completed 78.5% of his passes.
Defense
DeShon Singleton
He led all Husker defenders with seven total tackles. Honorable Mention: Malcolm Hartzog Jr.
Special Teams
Kyle Cunanan
MVP
This award goes to all the Husker fans who made the trip to Arrowhead and made the night miserable for Cincinnati.
You can email me at HuskerDan@cox.net
Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.
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