Dylan Raiola embraces two-QB package with Heinrich Haarberg

Both freshman Dylan Raiola and junior Heinrich Haarberg shared the field in a two-quarterback look where Haarberg lined up at running back, wide receiver and quarterback in a three-play span. After catching an 8-yard pass from Raiola, Haarberg took a handoff from him and then handled a snap on his own while Raiola was split out wide.

Sharing the spotlight might affect some starting quarterbacks, but not Raiola.

“I love it,” Raiola said of sharing the field with Haarberg. “I love when my guy, my (quarterback) partner is next to me and making plays. Whenever I hear it in the headset I get really excited for him and just know that the crowd loves him.”

Haarberg took over the Nebraska offense late in the fourth quarter, with head coach Matt Rhule saying that he liked what he saw from the quarterback. After trialing a similar look in Week 1 against UTEP where Haarberg lined up at quarterback and Raiola at wide receiver, Rhule was also glad to see Haarberg make an impact in a unique way.

“I think that there’s a lot of things that we want Heinrich to be able to do, and every time he goes in we don’t want him just to always be a Wildcat quarterback,” Rhule said.

Equally as important in Nebraska’s two-quarterback setup is the uncertainty and fear it may drive into opponents. Rhule and offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield dialed up the plays knowing that next week’s opponent, Illinois, will need to dedicate practice time to facing similar looks during an already short week of preparation.

“I just have to chew up 20 minutes of their time each day worrying about the option and those things,” Rhule said.