Nebraska pitched a 31-0 shutout at Rutgers on Saturday at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, N.J., the Huskers’ first shutout since joining the Big Ten and their first against a conference opponent since 2003. The official recap and box score list Nebraska at 6-4 and 3-4 in the Big Ten. Rutgers fell to 2-8 and 1-6. Six wins is the FBS standard for bowl eligibility.
The official box score is final: Nebraska 7-7-7-10, Rutgers 0-0-0-0, in front of 36,425 at SHI Stadium. The Huskers outgained the Scarlet Knights 429 yards to 143, ran 68 plays to 49, and held the ball 33:09 to 26:51. Nebraska was 4-for-4 in the red zone. Rutgers went 1-for-11 on third down and 0-for-1 in the red zone, with two interceptions.
The Huskers opened with a 16-play, 94-yard drive that took 9:17 and ended with a 15-yard Anthony Colandrea touchdown pass to Luke Lindenmeyer, with 20 seconds left in the first quarter. A 40-yard completion to Carter Nelson set up Colandrea’s 6-yard touchdown run with 1:55 left in the first half for a 14-0 lead.
Caleb Benning intercepted Rutgers quarterback AJ Surace to start the third quarter, giving Nebraska the ball at its own 49. Mekhi Nelson capped that drive with an 11-yard touchdown run, 21-0. Colandrea found Carter Nelson for a 13-yard score at 14:30 of the fourth, and John Hohl added a 41-yard field goal at 9:45 to make it 31-0. Hohl was 4-for-4 on extra points and 1-for-1 on field goals. Kamdyn Koch held.
Jamal Rule led the Huskers with 103 yards on 22 carries, his third 100-yard game of the season. Nebraska rushed for 237 yards on 43 attempts. Colandrea completed 15 of 22 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns, to Lindenmeyer and Carter Nelson. Nebraska’s team passing line was 16 of 25 for 192 yards, with no interceptions. Carter Nelson had 53 yards on two catches.
The Blackshirts held Rutgers to 42 net passing yards and 101 rushing yards. Vincent Shavers Jr. led Nebraska with 10 tackles. Benning and Jeremiah Charles had the interceptions. Jordan Ochoa and Jahsear Whittington each recorded a sack; the box score lists two sacks for 7 yards. Surace completed 4 of 12 passes for 24 yards.
Nebraska returns to Memorial Stadium to play No. 21 Ohio State on Saturday, Nov. 21. The official recap says a kickoff time and television network have not been announced.
Sources: the official huskers.com recap and the official box score.
Featured image: Photo: ajay_suresh. CC BY 4.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Shi_Stadium_-_Rutgers_Football_(55140894287).jpg.
