Question: Is Indiana as good as their ranking indicates or are they simply riding the coattails of last year’s National Championship?
I think your answer to that question likely informs how you felt about Nebraska’s 20-17 loss to seventh-ranked Indiana.
If Indiana is as good as their ranking indicates, then we saw Nebraska compete with and at times shut down the Hoosiers. Nebraska was two explosive plays away from running away with the biggest win in well over a decade. At the 12:01 mark in the fourth
quarter, Nebraska’s Anthony Colandrea scored to put Nebraska up 17-6. At that point in the game, Nebraska had dominated Indiana and Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, NE was rocking. There was a feeling that Nebraska was finally going to get over the hump. They were going to get that signature win that would push Matt Rhule and the program to the next big step.
However, that is not how football works and Nebraska suffered the consequences of a 75-yard touchdown reception by Nick Marsh and then a 44-yard touchdown reception by, again, Nick Marsh on a weird fourth down play by Indiana.
Either Nebraska was two explosive plays away from shutting the door on one of the best teams in the country or they let an overrated Indiana team come in and beat them.
Until proven otherwise, I believe we saw two good football teams compete and Nebraska unfortunately came up short on Saturday. That is not what we have been watching over the past decade. This is not the 2021 Michigan-Nebraska game when Adrian Martinez fumbled the ball with 1:45 left in the fourth quarter to let ninth-ranked Michigan hit a field goal to go up 32-29, which ended up being the final score. That was a team that felt like they were just barely holding on against a superior team.
That is not what I watched yesterday. I saw Nebraska competing on the same level as 7th-ranked and reigning National Champion Indiana.
To be clear, this is not a moral victory. Hopefully those days are over. Matt Rhule has a team that can go into Oregon next week and get a win. It won’t be given to them, and unfortunately it looks like Dylan Raiola will not be starting as he was apparently benched in Oregon’s loss to UCLA.
The season is right there for the taking. Hopefully, when Nebraska gets their next opportunity for a big win that they finally shut the door and lock it.
This. Completely Agree with Jeremiah Sirles.
The Morning After
Steven Sipple: Nebraska was better team for most of game, but Husker fans probably don’t want to hear itThere was a distinct feeling Saturday in Memorial Stadium during the immediate aftermath of seventh-ranked Indiana’s 20-17 win against homestanding Nebraska.
The feeling was hardly anyone in Nebraska colors — Husker fans or players or coaches — was in the mood to hear that Nebraska largely outplayed Indiana for three quarters of the game.
What we learned from Nebraska’s loss to IndianaFacing far and away its most difficult test yet, Nebraska’s undefeated season came to an end on Saturday in a 20-17 loss to defending national champion Indiana.
Here are our five biggest takeaways from the defeat and what it means for head coach Matt Rhule and the Huskers going forward…
Rhule postgame comments: Huskers brought the fight, but Hoosiers finish with the win, 20-17The old stadium was alive.
Anthony Colandrea had just zipped, then zagged for a 39-yard touchdown, pointing to the sideline as he headed toward paydirt.
Nebraska football was pointed toward something truly significant.
Close is not OK. Nebraska and Matt Rhule know that, and it keeps happening anywayLINCOLN, Neb. — Close is not OK.
Nebraska Cornhuskers football has been close to victory over the past decade and lost against better teams than the Indiana Hoosiers squad that skated out of Memorial Stadium on Saturday with a 20-17 victory.
Thirteen of the Huskers’ 31 consecutive defeats against AP-ranked opponents have come by one score. Ohio State twice, Michigan twice, Iowa on repeat. And now the defending national champion, whose winning streak lives to see 22 games.
IF WINNING WAS EASY EVERY TEAM WOULD DO IT EVERY WEEKNothing went Indiana’s way today. Not the wind. Not the officiating. Not the crowd.
Today’s win was a reminder of just how hard it is to succeed in college football, something that, since Curt Cignetti took over in 2024, this program has made look easy. The Hoosiers have now won 22-straight games, giving themselves a shot to tie the Big Ten record for the College Football Playoff-era next week against Ohio State.
