3 takeaways from Nebraska football win over Cincinnati

Nebraska football didn’t play a perfect game against Cincinnati. But the Kansas City Classic wasn’t about being perfect. It was about starting 1-0, and the Huskers did that.

There was a minute or two there, where you started to doubt it. Nebraska football fans have seen the Huskers blow a 10-point lead before, and in the most heartbreaking ways imaginable.

When Brendan Sorsby took a shot in the final minute, I’d be lying if I didn’t think, at least for a second, “Here we go again.”

But instead of a Bearcats touchdown, Malcolm Hartzog, the single-digit senior, came down with a game-clinching interception one play after committing a penalty that put Cincinnati in range for a tying field goal.

The Bearcats went for the win. It burned them. The secondary, which was stellar in the opener, allowed just 69 passing yards. Hartzog’s interception was the second takeaway.

Nebraska doesn’t win without either. It also doesn’t win without a fourth-down conversion by Dylan Raiola, who hit Dane Key for a two-yard touchdown pass. It pushed the lead to 10, and without those points, the outcome might have been different.

Here are three takeaways as the Huskers are off to a 1-0 start.

Dylan Raiola checked all the boxes

Emmett Johnson was a warrior, but Nebraska football doesn’t win without Dylan Raiola. Matt Rhule was right to attempt both fourth-down plays, and Raiola rewarded that confidence with the game-clinching TD to Dane Key.

That was one of three third or fourth-down conversions by Raiola on the drive. He rushed for minus one yard, but his mobility was noticeably better. He had one first-down run, yet was able to buy time in other instances.

The decision-making was sound. He only averaged 5.7 yards per attempt. That will need to go up. However, that doesn’t change the fact that we saw clear growth from Raiola Thursday night.

The D-line is an issue

Nebraska was 47th in college football last season in sacks. The pass rush was mediocre, and that’s a good way to describe what we saw in the season opener.

There was very little pressure, from the edge or the interior. Anytime there was pressure, it was usually from a blitz or due to good coverage. The D-line just didn’t get much of a push. Four Cincinnati players had runs of more than 10 yards as the Bearcats rushed for 202 yards.

Sorsby ran 13 times for 96 yards. The two Cincinnati running backs had 12 attempts for 82 yards (6.8 average), so this wasn’t just about not being able to contain the quarterback.

It’s only one game. Yet, with some of the teams on the schedule, Michigan included, Nebraska football fans are right to be concerned.

Meat left on the bone

Nebraska didn’t cover the spread, but it should have. If Elijah Pritchett doesn’t false start, that’s at least four more points on the board. Nebraska had a few other drives on the Cincinnati side of the field that didn’t end in touchdowns.

The most concerning thing is that only once did Nebraska drive the field and score a touchdown. Vincent Shavers forced a fumble, giving the offense a short field to work with on the first touchdown.

Raiola engineered three long drives for points (two field goals and a TD). Nebraska also had five drives across the Cincinnati 50 that ended in a kick or a turnover on downs. The Huskers need to be more efficient with their opportunities.

If you had told me before the game that Nebraska was plus two in turnover differential, I would have predicted a two or three-score win.

That Nebraska had to sweat it out does give me cause for concern. Still, it’s Week 1. Most importantly, the Huskers are 1-0.

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