The Nebraska football team is 5-1, with more optimism surrounding the program than we’ve seen in many years. With the bye week coming exactly halfway through Huskers’ season, it’s a good time to look back on some of the top moments from the year to date.
10. Raiola’s Commitment. OK, technically this happened in December, about eight months before the 2024 season kicked off. But since the very first moment there was a hint that 5 star, Husker legacy quarterback Dylan Raiola was considering flipping his commitment from Georgia to Nebraska, this became the story of the offseason. The hope that comes with a player of Raiola’s talent and abilities–at the most important position in football–cannot be overstated. It wasn’t just a good player committing to the Huskers. It was an immediate impact, ready-to-play, star quarterback with an NFL arm to go along with poise and brains beyond his years. This commitment completely changed the narrative of the offseason, and injected the fan base with a hope and belief that had been missing for years. The fact that he’s the son of an All American Husker lineman–one of the best in program history–makes it all the sweeter for Nebraska fans. So far in 2024, the young Raiola has lived up to the hype and then some.
9. Offensive Turnaround. Bear with me here. I realize this Nebraska offense is not the 1983 Scoring Explosion. The Huskers currently rank 77th nationally in total offense, 74th in scoring offense, 55th in passing offense, and 90th in rushing offense. Those numbers don’t exactly jump off the page. BUT, let’s not forget how bad the Husker offense was last year. It was terrible. We have said countless times on the Common Fan Podcast that, with the defense as good as it was in 2023, all we needed was an average offense and the Big Red would probably have won two or three more games. They almost certainly would have made a bowl game. In the offseason, the Nebraska coaching staff went and got Raiola, transfer wide receivers Jahmal Banks and Isaiah Neyor, transfer running back Dante Dowdell, and true freshmen impact players Jacorey Barney and Carter Nelson. They also brought in co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Glenn Thomas to help design the offense. What we’re seeing in 2024 is a step forward. At times, it has been outstanding. Other times, very inconsistent. But you have to assume Raiola will only get better, and there is a lot of young talent on the offensive side of the ball. The Big Red will face some salty defenses in the second half of the season, but the long term trajectory for the offense is trending in the right direction.
8. 2nd half against Purdue. It’s easy to forget after a 28-10 victory, but Nebraska played a sloppy 1st half against Purdue and went into the locker room tied 0-0. What’s more, the Boilermakers took the opening kickoff of the 2nd half, took almost 7 minutes of time off the clock, and kicked a field goal to take a 3-0 lead halfway through the 3rd quarter. Husker fans had been there before. Suddenly, the boys in red were losing a close game in the 2nd half against a team we felt we should beat. Too many times in the past, Nebraska teams folded in similar moments. In this instance, however, the Huskers didn’t panic, and instead ran off 28 unanswered points before allowing a late Purdue touchdown during garbage time. This game is a perfect microcosm of the first half of the season. It hasn’t always been easy for Nebraska; the performance hasn’t always been consistent. But they’re finding ways to win, which they failed to do more often than not in recent years. Believe it or not, fellow Common Fans, this is progress.
7. Emergence of Freshmen Contributors. Jacorey Barney. Carter Nelson. Vincent Shavers. Keona Davis. Gunnar Gottula. Rahmir Stewart. Willis McGahee IV. These are just some of the freshmen who have made a meaningful impact so far this season. As of the Rutgers game week, there were 15 true freshmen or redshirt freshmen on Nebraska’s depth chart. To me, this speaks to two things: 1) Matt Rhule’s coaching staff’s ability to identify talented recruits who can come into the program and contribute right away, and 2) the staff’s willingness to let talented players play. As Rhule goes about trying to build a consistent winner at Nebraska, the experience these young guys are getting will be invaluable in future years. There is no substitute for live game reps. What’s more, it’s extremely useful to be able to show future recruits that if they come to Nebraska, work hard, and are good enough to get on the field, they’re going to play.
6. Winning One Score Games. I’m going to lump both Purdue and Rutgers into this one. Rutgers was a legitimate one-score win, as the Huskers took a 14-0 lead into halftime and held on to win 14-7. Purdue, obviously, was an 18 point win for the Big Red. But considering that Nebraska was losing midway through the 3rd quarter–a situation they have flat out not been able to handle in recent years–I’ll go ahead and give them credit for that one too. Coach Rhule talks often about how the team is still learning how to win, and winning close games is essential to that process. If the Huskers want to go bowling, and perhaps play for much more, they will need to win more close games in the second half of the season.
5. Goal line stand vs. Rutgers. It was a thing of beauty. When Nebraska gave up their second blocked punt of the game (decidedly not a thing of beauty), Rutgers began the drive with 1st and goal at the 2 yard line. After the Huskers pushed the Scarlet Knights back three yards for 2nd and goal at the 5, a penalty put Rutgers right back at 1st and goal at the 2. Remarkably, having made two stops already, the Blackshirts held firm on four more plays and kept the Knights out of the end zone. The stop made a decisive difference in the one score game, but it felt bigger than that. After what they admitted was a disappointing showing against Illinois, the Nebraska defense has responded with two stellar performances against Purdue and Rutgers. The goal line stand against Rutgers was a perfect encapsulation of that resolve. It felt like a prove-it moment for the Husker defense, and they answered the bell.
4. 400th Consecutive Sellout. Count this Common Fan as a sucker for all the Husker history, traditions, and streaks, and that includes the sellout streak. I know it’s been on life support a few times in recent years, given the subpar product on the field. But to me, the sellout streak is an indication of the faith, passion, and resilience of the Nebraska fan base, and it’s been worth the effort to preserve it. It stands as a testament to the fact that we are the greatest fans in college football. Even in some of those lean years when there was not a butt in every single seat, and donors had to buy up the last handful of tickets for some games, the stadium was still almost entirely full. As Omaha World Herald columnist Tom Shatel has said, “Nebraska fans remain undefeated against apathy.” Husker fans keep coming back. We keep filling up that beautiful stadium, even when the team is flat out bad. This fan base deserves a winner, and I believe Coach Rhule is in the process of building just that. With the positive trajectory of the program, you can bet the sellout streak will be alive and well for years to come.
3. Win Over Colorado. Boy oh boy, this one was sweet, wasn’t it? The Huskers had lost to the Buffaloes the last three times the teams had faced each other. During both Nebraska-Colorado games of the Frost era, it felt like the Big Red gave those games away, blowing 4th quarter leads in each. Last year, Nebraska went into Boulder and never seemed to get on track, turning the ball over early and often and playing from behind the entire game. This was the win the fan base needed. It wasn’t just that Nebraske beat Colorado. It was the sheer domination of our former conference rival that was so thoroughly satisfying. The Blackshirts imposed their will from start to finish, only giving up 10 points to an offense with several future NFL players on it. The Nebraska offense looked dang near perfect in the first half, scoring 21 points, and did enough in the 2nd half to hold the ball, bleed clock, and allow the Huskers to win comfortably. The Memorial Stadium crowd was incredible, and they were treated to a beatdown of one of Nebraska’s most hated rivals. As I wrote in my topline takeaways column after the game, “The Buffs got knocked in the chin strap early, were in a big hole by halftime, and flat out quit by the 4th quarter…The Buffaloes waltzed into Memorial Stadium with a boatload of swagger; it ended up buried on the turf under a pile of Blackshirts.” Knowing that Nebraska doesn’t have Colorado on the schedule for any future season at this point, this was the perfect way to leave the series (for now) on a high note.
2. Dylan’s debut. After a full eight months of offseason obsessing over the new look Nebraska offense, led by all world Husker legacy Dylan Raiola, Memorial Stadium was bursting at the seams to see his debut in the home opener against UTEP. He didn’t disappoint. On the opening drive, Raiola completed five of seven passes, and with beautiful back-to-back throws, turned a 2nd-and-30 into 3rd-and-11, and 3rd-and-11 into a 1st down. He led the team to a touchdown on that drive, and was 19-for-27 on the day for 238 yards and two touchdowns. He has been outstanding all season long, but there was something so special about that first game. To see him command the offense and live up to expectations felt like a combination of exhilaration and relief for Husker fans. It was confirmation that he really is the real deal, and it led Big Red imaginations to run wild about what’s possible, now and into the future, with Raiola at the helm.
1. Support for Greg Sharpe. Longtime play-by-play announcer Greg Sharpe revealed in April that he was being treated for pancreatic cancer. Many Husker fans got more of a glimpse into Greg’s battle when Tom Rinaldi interviewed him before the Rutgers game. Sharpe said his goal in April was to make it long enough to call the first Nebraska game on August 31. He’s done that and more; his next goal is to make it to his daughter’s wedding in February. It’s tough stuff when you’re thinking in terms of days and months, instead of years, and Greg is putting up an incredible fight.
So many have been impacted by cancer. If you’ve seen it up close, especially a terminal cancer diagnosis, you know it’s one of the most difficult things someone can face. And yet, a hardship of that nature also brings out what’s best about humanity. The outpouring of love and support from Husker fans has been outstanding. During Nebraska’s first away game at Purdue, the Purdue Athletic Department gave him a “Hammer Down Cancer” hat along with a heartfelt note, and the Boilermakers student section hoisted a sign that read “Hammer Down Cancer, Sharpe Strong.” Sharpe and his family were also honored recently at the Kansas City Chiefs Monday Night Football game. It’s heartening to see the level of support he has received, both from Husker Nation and beyond. It’s a reminder of how Nebraska football is more than just a game; it’s part of who we are as a people, one great Big Red family.
We’re pulling for you Greg, to be dancing in the streets when the Huskers get back to a bowl game, and to be dancing at your daughter’s wedding.