Report Card: Huskers 40, UTEP Miners 7

It was finally time for Nebraska to open the season with a game like this…and frankly, it was especially important for Nebraska to open the 2024 season like this. Nebraska opened the previous four seasons with a conference game away from Lincoln; a combination that is especially ill-advised with a true freshman quarterback starting his first game. With a new head coach and only seven returning starters from a three-win team, UTEP is a team that shouldn’t have presented a particularly tough test in week one. And they weren’t.

It’s a combination that allowed Dylan Raiola to ease into the starting quarterback role, and Raiola delivered a solid introductory performance. Of course, it wasn’t just Raiola making the difference; the entire receiver corp is COMPLETELY different. “Pro-style” offenses have had a bad track record at Nebraska in the modern era, over-hyping but ultimately underperforming to near catastrophic levels. Bill Callahan (Harrison Beck??? Sam Keller???) never recruited a quarterback like Dylan Raiola. Mike Riley (Tanner Lee??? Patrick O’Brien???) never did either. That’s the easy observation.

In all of the attention that Raiola grabbed, Rhule’s rebuilt receiver room isn’t getting nearly enough attention. I dare say that Nebraska hasn’t had a receiver room, with guys like Isaiah Neyor, Jahmal Banks and Jacory Barney matching up with Jaylen Lloyd and Malachi Coleman. Frankly, it’s probably the biggest upgrade on this offense.

Nebraska had the defense by the end of last season to compete with most of the Big Ten. Now, it looks like Nebraska might have the pieces to do the same on offense. It’s just one game against an outmatched opponent, but it looks like something is coming together in Lincoln.

With that, it’s onto a pretty easy report card. Easy, because there frankly wasn’t much negative to note. It was a workman like performance that gives us a tangible feeling of hope.

QB: Even before Patrick Mahomes retweeted “Lil cuzzo’s” 60 yard bomb to Isaiah Neyor, I had already made the Mahomes comparison:

Yeah, that was a great play…but THIS side-arm flip earlier in the game to Neyor was Mahomes-like.

By the way, did anybody notice how well Heinrich Haarberg played in relief? 5-for-5 passing in relief in the second half certainly looks different. Grade: A

I-Backs: I think I see why the first depth chart had four “Or-backs,” though in this game, I think two backs separated themselves. Rahmir Johnson started and got the most carries, but also appeared to be the least effective in the first half; his lone third-quarter 14 yard gain was his best of the day. Dante Dowdell ran with power and arguably could have laid claim to the starting job next week until he fumbled near the goal line. (That’s the sole demerit on this report card.) Emmett Johnson had the 42 yard run, and he showed a consistent ability to gain extra yards after contact. Gabe Ervin may be setting himself up to be the short-yardage guy when you need two yards. And you know it was a good game when the fifth and sixth-string backs combine for eight carries. Grade: A-

Wide Receivers: I don’t think Nebraska has had a pair of receivers like Isaiah Neyor or Jahmal Banks in years. Both Nebraska receiving touchdowns were impressive physical plays; Neyor shaking off two Miner defensive backs like they were junior high players, or Banks leaping to finish off a two-minute drill. Thomas Fidone wasn’t put into the best situations in this game; I suspect he’ll be a much bigger weapon in the coming weeks. But hello, Carter Nelson! Grade: A

Offensive Line: Pretty much did their job against an undersized, but experienced UTEP defensive line. You can tell the line is getting a push when it looks like a running back didn’t gain anything from the end zone view, yet still manages to get a three yard gain. Grade: A

Defensive Line: I probably would have graded the defensive line with an “A” even if Ty Robinson hadn’t responded to the Dowdell fumble with a safety. Looking forward to Saturday night to watch the race between Shedeur Sanders and the Husker defensive line. North Dakota State had Sanders running for his life, but seemed to always have just enough time to find a receiver. Hoping that’s not the case next Saturday night. Grade: A

Linebacker: Mikai Gbayor made some noise on Saturday afternoon; he looks like the heir to Luke Reimer in the middle. And true freshman Vincent Shavers got an awful lot of playing time; we’re going to need big contributions from him in November. Grade: A

Secondary: Two interceptions (Malcolm Hertzog and Rahmir Stewart) earns them a pretty good grade. They did get beat on UTEP’s second drive when the Miners went tempo, but other than that, it was solid performance. Grade: A

Overall: A I’ve heard differing accounts that Nebraska played somewhere around 106 or 108 players on Saturday against UTEP. That was a dominating performance and a day to remember for dozens of families who got to see their name on the back of a Husker jersey in a football game that counted.

Elsewhere in Memorial Stadium

Wifi: 0. I know the wifi situation at Memorial Stadium has been pretty bad, but simply just waiving the white flag and shutting it down in the stadium bowl wasn’t the answer. The cellular towers were overtaxed, and when I had bars on my phone, it was only with “SOS” mode.

New Tunnel Walk Lights: F Again, not sure what the game management people are thinking here. Putting an array of flashing lights in front of the tunnel walk gates is a waste of time and effort until we have a night game in the second half of the season.

Elsewhere in College Football

Florida: F I know the Gators are used to hitting the panic button, but maybe hold back a little while. Panicking hasn’t done a dog-gone thing for Florida football thus far.

Clempson: F Dabo Swinney has been a great coach, but until he accepts the new rules of the transfer portal and NIL, he’s not long for this new era.

#B1GafterDark: B I’ll miss “The Final Drive” wrapup show on BTN as I’m heading to bed after a long day of football, but give me that relevant game in the late timeslot.

Michigan, Oregon, UCLA: D I see your sluggish starts to the new season. Better get your acts together.