Rohr’s Four: Four reactions, impressions, reflections, concerns and questions after Nebraska’s 38-27 win over Michigan State.
1-They found a way
A program that has made just one bowl game in seven years has plenty of warts. But toward the top of the list is this: when the game counts, the Huskers can’t make a play. And when the slide starts, they can’t pull themselves out of it.
The Huskers seemed in full slide in the third quarter. After Nebraska bolted out a 14-0 lead, the offense was stuck in neutral. 23 plays, 19 yards. Dylan Raiola had just thrown an interception, setting up a brief 7-play, 38-yard touchdown drive, giving the Spartans their first lead of the game, 21-14, 2:37 to go in the third quarter. The Huskers seemed still stuck after getting the ball back, with Raiola’s first two passes falling incomplete.
But then, believe it or not, Nebraska made a play. On third-and-10, Raiola dropped back and found Jacory Barney, Jr., 20 yards downfield. Barney weaved and darted for 25 more yards to the MSU 30. The Huskers pulse started again. Two plays later, Emmett Johnson hustled 23 yards for the game-tying touchdown, and Nebraska was alive again. The wind knocked down the ensuing kickoff, and the Huskers recovered. Not only was the slide stopped, but things were starting to go in their direction.
How many times have we asked for Nebraska to just make a play? With all the one-score losses over the years, one play has separated victory from defeat so often. Yet, the Huskers made a play. Really, Nebraska has made “that” play twice this year. The pass from Raiola to Barney got Nebraska going after running into the ground. The interception by Malcolm Hartzog, Jr., at the end of the Cincinnati game snuffed out a potential touchdown drive and clinched the game.
Nebraska has been in position to win plenty, but not taken advantage. This year, at least twice in the heat of the battle, they have made a play and found a way.
2-Playmakers make plays
Nick Saban always said, when the game was on the line, think players, not plays. Not surprisingly, in its moment of need, Nebraska looked toward wide receiver Jacory Barney, Jr. Barney is the most explosive, exciting Husker since at least J.D. Spielman, maybe farther back. Barney showed explosiveness not only on offense, but also as a punt returner. His punt return for a touchdown was called back, but his ability to weave through chaos and get into the open field was still on display.
Good things just seem to happen when the ball is in Barney’s hands. Yet, he had the ball in his hands just six times against MSU, four returns and two receptions. He was targeted in the pass game four times. Why not make him a bigger part of the game? Swing passes. Jet sweeps. Middle screens. Do what it takes to get Barney the ball. Line him up at running back once in a while just to present a different look. The point is: the Huskers are better off when Barney is a big part of the game. And while certain offensive concepts can spotlight him and raise the chances of him making a catch downfield, I think it would do this team well to get Barney the ball more intentionally. The more he has it, the better this team is.
3-And sometimes playmakers emerge
In this space after the Michigan game, we detailed the struggles of Nebraska’s front seven and the lack of havoc caused by the Blackshirts. The Huskers’ defense apparently grew by leaps and bounds in the idle week. After mustering just six sacks in four games, Nebraska sacked MSU quarterback Aidan Chiles four times. After 24 tackles for loss in the first four games, the Huskers totaled 12 tackles for loss against the Spartans. Nebraska had just 5.5 tackles for loss on the season from its defensive linemen in the first four games, mostly in garbage time. But Williams Nwaneri stepped up: 1.5 sacks, 1.5 tackles for loss. Cameron Lenhardt, Elijah Jeudy and Keona Davis all added a TFL. Add to that great work by linebacker Javin Wright: 3.5 tackles for loss, 10 tackles total, and it was a top-notch day for Nebraska’s front seven.
Maybe it was the idle week that allowed the defense to settle into Terry Bradden as the D-Line coach. Maybe the light went on for Williams Nwaneri, who joined the Huskers with high accolades and plenty of hype. Maybe the Michigan game humbled the D-Line. But after doing very little in those first four games (even against physically overmatched Akron and Houston Christian), the defensive front was a positive factor for Nebraska against the Spartans. The Huskers will need that to continue if they’re going to win at Maryland.
4-The special teams were special
Another common lament from Husker fans the last decade or so: If only our special teams were even average, never mind good, we’d have enough to win. Unfortunately, for the better part of the last decade, that’s been a bar too high for Nebraska to reach. Michigan State grabbed the win in 2021 as a result of a bad punt that went the precise opposite direction that it should have, leaving the field open for the Spartans to return for a touchdown to send the game to overtime.
But with the hiring of Mike Ekeler as special teams coordinator, the days of hiding Nebraska’s special teams are over. Jamir Conn blocked a punt, and not a person on the Husker sideline was surprised that he did, least of all Carter Nelson, who scooped up the ball and walked in three yards for a touchdown. Barney was important in the return game, picking up 81 yards on four returns. 20 yards per return is the difference between an okay drive that gets to midfield and a drive that goes into field goal range. Kyle Cunanan hit the one field goal he attempted. Cunanan and John Hohl both kept kickoffs in bounds. The Huskers got lucky in that the wind knocked down a kickoff, but NU had Mehki Nelson right in position to recover it. The only blemish was Archie Wilson’s punting, but that can be chalked up to an inexperienced punter dealing with nasty wind.
The small margins that determine Big Ten games are often found in special teams. Ask Iowa how many games you can win being good on special teams and vaguely competent everywhere else. But with a good offense and a defense that is already tops against the pass, and getting better up front, the special teams will work to drive this program forward.
