10 things we learned from NU’s loss to Oklahoma

NORMAN, Okla. – Here are 10 of our biggest takeaways from Nebraska’s 23-16 loss to No. 3 Oklahoma on Saturday afternoon…

Most people didn’t give Nebraska a chance at upsetting No. 3 Oklahoma on Saturday. The 23-point point spread that never wavered all week backed that up.

When the final whistle sounded in the Huskers’ 23-16 loss, many of those doubters were left more surprised and optimistic about the season than they’d been since Week 0.

As quarterback Adrian Martinez said after the game, NU didn’t want to cling to moral victories. The final result was still a loss, the program’s 22nd in its last 36 games.

When the emotions settle down, and Nebraska can reflect on its performance in Norman, though, it will see that it put together arguably the most encouraging effort of the Scott Frost era.

Now the challenge is finding a way to carry over all of that fight and resilience to a crucial game at Michigan State next week.

In a game featuring Heisman Trophy frontrunner Spencer Rattler, Adrian Martinez ended up with the more impressive individual performance.

The fourth-year junior accounted for 323 yards of total offense and two touchdowns, completing 19-of-25 passes for 289 yards and a touchdown with 17 carries for 34 yards and a score.

Even his interception was a net positive, as his fourth-down throw ended up pinning OU at its 3-yard line.

Frost and the rest of the Huskers had nothing but praise for Martinez’s effort after the game. While the running game was still inconsistent and the offensive line had another rough day, he again put the offense on his back and nearly did enough to lead NU to a stunning upset.

Martinez became the first Nebraska quarterback to throw for 1,000 yards in four seasons and joined Tommy Armstrong as the fastest Huskers to reach 1,000 passing yards in their first four games.

It was hard to determine how well Nebraska’s defense had played over the past two games, considering the level of competition it faced vs. Fordham and Buffalo.

There was no denying how good the Blackshirts were against Oklahoma on Saturday.

Going up against one of the best quarterbacks in college football and most prolific offenses in the country, the Huskers held Oklahoma to 408 total yards (119 less than its season average) and 23 points, snapping a streak of 68 games where the Sooners had scored at least 27 points.

Oklahoma had just seven points in the first half, the first time it had been held in single digits at halftime since Sept. 9, 2017, at Ohio State. It was also OU’s lowest first-half scoring output since being held to six points by Notre Dame in 2012.

Between two missed field goals and a blocked extra point that Oklahoma returned for two points, Nebraska’s kicking game put the team at a nine-point disadvantage in a seven-point defeat.

To say that element has been an issue of the Huskers this season couldn’t be a much bigger understatement.

Connor Culp, the reigning Big Ten Kicker of the Year, continued to be an absolute mess. After missing two extra points last week vs. Buffalo, Culp had a 50-yard field goal bounce off the right upright and then a 35-yard attempt sail wide left.

Frost eventually benched Culp for NU’s next extra point try, not just because he missed the two kicks but also because of how he reacted to them afterward.

The change didn’t solve anything, as Oklahoma blocked Kelen Meyer’s PAT and then took it to the house to turn a potentially 14-10 game into a 16-9 deficit.

Frost insisted that he still had faith in Culp and said the sixth-year senior might still be working his way back from an injury that kept him out of most of fall camp. But the Huskers aren’t going to beat anyone left on their schedule, let alone the No. 3 team in the country, with the kicking game being such a liability.

While there were moments where Nebraska’s offensive line seemed to take some steps forward, Saturday was another bad day for the unit overall.

The Huskers only rushed for 95 yards on 38 carries (2.8 ypc) and gave up five sacks (two on the game’s final drive) and four quarterback hurries.

All of that wasn’t even the worst of it.

Of NU’s eight penalties in the loss, six were committed by the offensive line. They had back-to-back false starts before even taking an offensive snap, and center Cam Jurgens was flagged for two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.

All five starters on the o-line were called for a penalty in the game.

“Man, if I had a nickel for everything we’re doing to try to avoid those mistakes, I’d have a lot of nickels,” Frost said. “We got to lock-in. Crowd noise can be a factor. It’s a factor in our home stadium too. But the penalties don’t seem to go our way. We’ll just double down and keep trying to make sure those things don’t happen.”

Nebraska tried to improve its offensive line play by shaking up its starting group for the first time this season.

Junior Trent Hixson got the start at left guard over redshirt freshman Ethan Piper, who had struggled over the first three games. Hixson didn’t do much to spark the unit, as he was one of the culprits of the two false starts before NU’s opening snap.

Hixson did get dinged up at one point, and Piper took over for a stretch. Still, the Huskers are trying to find a better combination up front after four straight weeks of poor protection and inability to control the line of scrimmage in the running game.

When Nebraska wrapped up fall camp back in August, it appeared that three candidates had emerged as the top contenders for the starting running back job this season.

None of them were Rahmir Johnson.

The redshirt freshman vaulted his way up the depth chart and made his first career start at Oklahoma. Johnson rushed 11 times for a team-high 42 yards and hauled in three receptions for 48 yards, including a 26-yard catch and run.

Markese Stepp, who at times looked like NU’s most consistent back this year, did not play a single offensive snap in the loss. Gabe Ervin was the No. 2 behind Johnson, but he looked to have suffered a significant knee injury in the third quarter.

Sevion Morrison was the only other running back to play on offense, and he had one carry for one yard.

Frost said the competition at running back had been so tight all year that NU got to a point where the top players each week in practice would be the ones who played the most in the games. That means Johnson could maintain his spot atop the depth chart next week and beyond.

“I thought that’s the hardest I’ve seen Rahmir run,” Frost said. “He’s got speed that makes him a little bit different, and thought he played a good game.”

It’s not exactly a ground-breaking take, but there was no doubt how much better Nebraska’s offense looked when the majority of its best players were on the field together for the first time this season.

The Huskers got some welcomed returns from skill players who had been out or listed as questionable with injuries. Tight end Travis Vokolek made his season debut after missing the first three games and caught a 38-yard pass.

Tight end Austin Allen, who left last week’s game with a head injury, came back and caught a team-high six passes for 43 yards. Receiver Omar Manning, who also sat out against Buffalo, had his best performance as a Husker with two catches for 51 yards, including a 21-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Wideout Zavier Betts, who was knocked out of last week’s win, had three catches for 61 yards, highlighted by a 55-yard bomb in the fourth quarter.

“Yeah, we look different with those guys out there,” Frost said. “I thought the tight ends did a great job in the run game. We need to keep putting the ball in the air downfield and back people up. Omar and Zavier are going to help us do that. We were more of a complete team today.”

After trying to get Australian freshman Daniel Cerni up to speed on American football enough to be its punter of the future, Nebraska decided to go back to a familiar name to handle the punting duties on Saturday.

William Przystup, who started six games in 2020 before being injured, was back as the No. 1 punter against Oklahoma. The former Michigan State transfer took full advantage of his opportunity, too.

Przystup only punted two times in the loss, but he booted his first attempt 52 yards and his second 48 yards. His 52-yarder was Nebraska’s longest punt of the season, and Pryzstup’s sixth career punt of at least 50 yards.

Cerni averaged just 36.0 yards on his 12 punts through the first three games, and none went longer than 46 yards.

In part with the 50th anniversary of the Game of the Century, Nebraska made some noticeable uniform changes on Saturday to match what the team wore during its unforgettable win over Oklahoma in 1971.

Along with a commemorative decal on the back of their helmets, the Huskers also had grey face masks instead of the traditional red.

They also wore red pants with white stripes for the first time since 2017, as Frost switched NU to solid white/red pants when he took over in 2018.

Lastly, all of the players wore black cleats instead of white.