Four Observations from Nebraska Football’s 68-0 Rout of Akron

LINCOLN—Nebraska football improved to 2-0 with a 68-0 win over Akron in the home opener Saturday.

Scoring the most points since the Bo Pelini era, Nebraska dominated from start to finish at Memorial Stadium. While there was plenty of good over the 60 minutes, there were also issues that will need fixed. Here are my four observations from the Akron win.

The Shutout

The 187-game streak is over.

For the first time since the 2009 season ended in the Holiday Bowl against Arizona, Nebraska pitched a shutout. And this one didn’t need the starters to go back in to preserve it, either.

“A shutout was important to us because I believe in the defense having that,” Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said. “We were able to get a lot of players in the game, a lot of players who work hard, who sacrificed. So, to play them all and still continue to play to the standard and have the shutout was a really exciting uh moment for us.

“Proud of the guys, proud of their effort this week.”

Nebraska outgained Akron 728-175. The Zips were held to 113 yards rushing and 62 yards passing. Neither field goal attempt by Akron found the mark.

More than 100 players participated in Saturday’s win, but more on that later…

Early miscues in the red zone

The game seemed to take longer to get fully in hand than some would have preferred. The reason for that was the lack of red zone success early on.

After Emmett Johnson’s 47-yard touchdown run opened up the scoring, Nebraska’s offense struggled to find the end zone. The next three drives saw Nebraska get into the red zone, including twice to the goal line. Both of those goal line drives ended with no points, with one being a fumble and the other a turnover on downs. The third trip ended at the Akron 17, which Kyle Cunanan finished off with a successful field goal.

“Obviously, first and goal inside the five and to not get it in is not good enough,” Rhule said. “To fumble the ball in the goal line is not good enough. But at the same time, we also came back with sort of a what’s next attitude.”

What’s next for Nebraska was scoring touchdowns on the next eight possessions. That’s easier to do against a team like Akron who will wear down against the bigger and more talented bodies of the Cornhuskers. Rhule and the rest of the team know that in a couple weeks when Michigan visits, those red zone trips will need to be more efficient.

Getting guys on the field

Yes, you had Dylan Raiola throw for more than 300 yards and four touchdowns. Yes, Johnson rushed for 140 yards and two touchdowns, adding one receiving score. Plenty of other starters and regulars had moments on both sides of the ball.

But there were also a number of guys who got chances to shine under the lights of a packed Memorial Stadium.

Nebraska had 108 players see the field. That matches the mark from the UTEP game a year ago.

At quarterback, true freshman TJ Lateef got his first snaps as a Cornhusker. He finished 6-of-7 passing for 128 yards. He also ran the ball twice for 17 yards and a touchdown.

“Just the constant grind, and for him to have some success and all that work that he’s put in pay off, couldn’t be more proud of him,” Raiola said.

Behind Johnson, several underclassmen got work. Among them, Kwinten Ives, Mekhi Nelson, and Isaiah Mozee all got to show off their talents.

Ives ran the ball four times for 34 yards and a touchdown, while Nelson rushed five times for 12 yards and a score. Nelson also made three receptions for 52 yards, not far from Mozee’s three catches for 65 yards.

“I tell them every time, every time you guys get a chance to go in there, just make plays,” Johnson said. “All those guys are making plays, and that just shows the hard work they do in practice.”

Nebraska had 40 different players make a tackle on the night. Among them was sophomore Maverick Noonan. The Elkhorn South alumn had the lone takeaway for the Blackshirts with a fumble recovery in the fourth quarter.

Special Teams

For the second week in a row, special teams did not leave Big Red faithful in fits.

Archie Wilson was not needed to punt, which means the offense was moving the ball. And the one field goal attempt from Kyle Cunanan was true.

On punt return, Jacory Barney Jr. seemed to be just one more move from taking the ball to the house. He finished with four returns for 87 yards. In 2024, Nebraska had 15 returns for 73 yards.

Kickoff was once again a roller coaster. Cunanan took over for John Hohl after a pair of miscues in Kansas City. Cunanan started Saturday, with no issues. Once the game was in hand, Hohl got in the game to kick and did not have a prolem.

Tristan Alvano then gave kickoff a go, and put the ball out of bounds. The job returned to Cunanan for the next couple of kickoffs, with Hohl doing the last one of the game.

On Akron’s side of the ball, the Zips had a pair of chances to ruin the shutout. On the back of a pair of penalties, Akron got inside the Nebraska 30 in the closing seconds of the second quarter. The 46-yarder was denied by the left upright. In the third quarter, the Zips used tempo to get into Nebraska territory and again attempt a field goal. This time the 33-yarder was blocked by Riley Van Poppel.

BONUS!

How about that engagement right after the game? Tight end Luke Lindenmeyer proposed to his girlfriend, Kailyn Storovich, who is a Scarlet.

Lindenmeyer talked with the media about the moment. He said he asked Rhule if it was okay to do and got help from football chief of staff Dr. Susan Elza.

During his postgame session, Rhule talked about Lindenmeyer.

“Once the game was in hand, I think it was really important for me that his teammates were there,” Rhule said. “Luke’s a devout Christian, and he’s someone who openly shares his faith, and he’s someone who rallies teammates of all ages and all places and all ethnicities and diversity. He just is there for everybody, and he’s behind them all. So, just to see the joy on everyone’s face um to see him, I thought that was really, really cool.

“I think it’s one of the great stories of this era of Husker football. Here’s this kid who’s a walk-on that’s probably making a bigger impact off the field than he is on the field, but I think tonight he made a one-handed catch. Scored a touchdown. So I was like, if she’s ever going to say yes, she will tonight.

“I’m happy for him. I know he loves her and (it’s a) beautiful thing.”

In the game, Lindenmeyer had three receptions for 44 yards and a touchdown.

Have a question or comment for Kaleb? Send an email to kalebhenry.huskermax@gmail.com.

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