Nebraska Football Fans Have Been Watching the Same Movie for Nearly a Decade

Nebraska lost 28-20 to USC at the Coliseum on Saturday in a game that pretty well summed up the last decade of Husker football. The unlucky bounces, the inability to make crucial stops on defense when needed, the offense not being able to convert key opportunities: every part of that game was all too familiar to the Big Red faithful. After a 5-1 start, the Huskers have now lost four in a row, and fans are left to wonder if we’re staring down the barrel of an eighth straight season without a bowl game. 

We’ll try to make sense of it all in the topline takeaways. 

CHEERS TO THAT

Husker Fans at the Coliseum. The Omaha World Herald estimated around 15,000 Nebraska fans were in attendance at the game. The TV announcers were even commenting on the noise the visiting fans were making. Once again, Husker football fans showed why we are the best fanbase in college football. Despite a subpar product on the field for many years now, along with the aforementioned bowl-less streak, Nebraska fans continue to show up. These fans deserve a winner more than anyone in sports. 

Ceyair Wright. Wright transferred from USC after last season, and he made sure his former teammates felt his presence on Saturday afternoon. The junior cornerback was responsible for the first points of the game, as he intercepted quarterback Jayden Maiava and took it all the way to the house. Later in the game, he made a crucial block on what was basically a chip shot field goal attempt for the Trojans, keeping the score at 21-20 (surprising absolutely no one, the offense went three-and-out and gave the ball right back to USC). 

Wright finished with four tackles to go along with his blocked field goal and pick six. He’s been a bright spot for this defense since getting his first start against Purdue on September 28 in place of an injured Tommi Hill. One has to assume he has locked down one of the starting cornerback spots for 2025. 

Nebraska Came Ready to Play. There have been games this season where it felt like Nebraska came out of the gate flat footed. This was not one of them. The Huskers came out ready to fight against the Trojans. The Blackshirts made stops on USC’s first two offensive drives (one of which was Wright’s pick six). Then, after USC’s offense had two quick scores to make it 14-7, the Nebraska offense responded with a touchdown drive of its own. I also felt like the coaching staff had a better game plan against USC than what we’ve seen in recent games (especially against UCLA). It wasn’t a perfect performance by any stretch, but the Big Red showed plenty of fight. 

DIDN’T LIKE THAT

Second Verse, Same as the First. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: Nebraska had the ball trailing 21-20 in the 4th quarter with a chance to take the lead, but wound up punting. The Trojans would go down and score to make it 28-20, and Nebraska’s last ditch drive to try to force overtime ended in an interception in the end zone. If this was a movie or a Netflix show, it would get panned for lacking creativity, and continuing to reuse the same story lines over and over and over again. It’s been talked about ad nauseam, but that’s because the same thing keeps happening! It always feels like the offense is just a couple plays short, or the defense plays well except when we absolutely have to get a stop. 

It’s a maddening feeling that can make it seem like Nebraska football is at the same time close to turning a corner and further away than ever all in the same game or season. We’ve seen the same variation of the same game and the same season going back over multiple coaches and rosters now. At some point, Nebraska football will get over the hump. But fans could be excused for wondering if there are supernatural factors at play at this point. 

Clock Management. I just flat out don’t understand some of the clock management decisions made by head coach Matt Rhule. At the end of the first half, USC had the ball and committed a penalty with one minute and 26 seconds left on the clock. Due to the penalty, Nebraska accepted the option to have ten seconds run off the clock. It seemed the Huskers were trying to let the clock run out and get to halftime. I have no qualms with that. However, once the Blackshirts made a stop on third down, Rhule then took a timeout with 37 seconds left. If Nebraska was trying to run the clock out, why take the timeout? If they were trying to go down and get points, why run ten seconds off the clock on the previous play? Nebraska’s timeout forced USC to punt, and the Trojans pinned the Huskers back up against their own end zone. Thankfully Nebraska was able to run one play without disaster striking, but I can’t for the life of me figure out what Rhule was trying to accomplish at the end of the half. 

There were a handful of other head scratching moments when it came to game/clock management, and it seems like we see a few of these with every game. This is one more thing the Huskers need to try and clean up in 2025.  

Maddening, Unlucky Bounces. On two of USC’s four touchdown drives, the Trojans got some of the luckiest bounces I’ve ever seen in a football game. On their second touchdown of the game, Nebraska defensive back Malcolm Hartzog made a leaping attempt at an interception, but the ball went through his fingertips. The ball then bounced off of the receiver’s chest, but instead of falling harmlessly to the ground, it ricocheted off of Hartzog and right back to the receiver for a touchdown. Then, it was 3rd and long on USC’s last drive, and the Husker defense did everything right. They got pressure on Maiava and deflected the pass attempt. The USC receiver got a hand on the ball, which then bounced off of Nebraska defender Javin Wright and went right back into the receiver’s hands. Instead of 4th and long and an almost certain punting situation, USC had 4th and inches, which they converted on the way to their final touchdown of the game. Talk about feeling cursed. 

Officiating, Once Again. Look, I’m tired of being in a position where we’re dependent on calls (or non calls) to decide the game. The product on the field isn’t good enough and that’s why Nebraska is losing games. We don’t want to be a program that blames officiating for every loss.

Having said all of that, it’s mind boggling how bad the Big Ten officiating has been this season. On one of Nebraska’s field goal drives, a USC defender pulled on Jahmal Banks’ jersey in what was an obvious pass interference. It happened right in front of the official, who kept the flag in his pocket. A pass interference call there, and Nebraska has it 1st and goal at about the 2 yard line, and likely scores a touchdown instead of settling for a field goal. Separately, on the last play of the game, when Dylan Raiola threw it up into the end zone in a desperate attempt to score, there was an even more egregious interference that wasn’t called. I don’t know if Banks would have caught the ball, but his effort surely was impeded by the defender grabbing his jersey. Throwing the flag there would have at least given the Huskers one more chance at the end zone. 

With all of the money these conferences are making, they need to spend the offseason figuring out something with regard to the officiating. 

FINAL THOUGHT.

Nebraska being 5-1 feels like a lifetime ago. Losing four straight, including three in all too familiar, gut-punch fashion, is not fun for anyone. There will be plenty of time in the offseason to dissect and try to diagnose what went wrong with this once-promising season. I think it’s safe to say Matt Rhule will have to consider more shake ups to his coaching staff going into the 2025 season. 

At this point though, the Huskers need to do whatever they can to get that sixth win and get to a bowl game. A bowl game would be a sign of progress for the program. A bowl game would allow them 15 additional, much needed practices. A bowl game gives you a shot at a seventh win, and the first winning record since 2016. Let’s strap in, fellow Common Fans, and devote all of our Nebraska football-focused energy on this week’s game against Wisconsin. The Huskers have to find a way to beat the Badgers and get the bowl monkey off their backs. 

As always, GBR for LIFE. 

MORE: Wisconsin Fires OC Phil Longo Ahead of Nebraska Game

MORE: Lincoln Riley: USC ‘Didn’t Flinch’ in Win over Nebraska

MORE: Big Ten Remains Top-Heavy in Associated Press, Coaches Polls

MORE: Nebraska Men’s Basketball Drops Tough Battle to Saint Mary’s, 77-74

MORE: After Nebrasketball: Huskers Suffer First Loss of the Season to Saint Mary’s

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.