Husker Big Red Daily: No word on Oregon’s QB, Matt Rhule defends 4th-down call

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Nebraska football coach Matt Rhule met with the media on Monday to discuss the Oregon Ducks and the Indiana Hoosiers.

Rhule said the Huskers are “angry” that they let one get away against the seventh-ranked team in the country. A program-changing win would have catapulted Nebraska football into the national conversation for the College Football Playoff.

Still, the effort against Indiana has earned the Huskers some credibility. If they can find a way to win the 10 p.m. game against Oregon, things could get really interesting in November.

Rhule was asked about his decision to go for it on fourth-and-9 against Indiana with just under five minutes left. The Nebraska football coach said he trusted his quarterback.

“I followed the analytics, and the analytics said to go for it up until fourth-and-10,” Rhule said. “So, I just wanted to follow the analytics and put the ball in Anthony’s hands.”

“I don’t always follow the analytics. But I felt like our defense would get the stop. More importantly, I just felt like I need to put this ball in my guy’s hands, and I will ride and die with Anthony Colandrea all day, every day.”

Nebraska had converted 10 third downs up to that point, some of which were 11, 7, 8 and 9 yards. It was in Colandrea’s wheelhouse. The defense did get Nebraska the ball back after the fourth down, but if Rhule had punted and Indiana had been able to run out the clock, the critics would have been calling for him to go for it.

Leaving the offense on the field was the right call. Rhule admitted he should have called a timeout before the 41-yard touchdown on fourth-and-1. He also said the Huskers were in press quarters coverage on the 75-yard touchdown. The safety came up aggressively, and it was game over.

Maybe the Huskers could have gone more conservative at that point, but how many teams have lost games because they abandoned what worked on defense? The lack of execution in scoring touchdowns in the red zone is what cost Nebraska the game.

The Huskers scored 10 points on three red-zone trips. That’s not good enough against a team like Indiana. It won’t be good enough against Oregon either.

Oregon mum on the starting quarterback

Rhule said Nebraska would prepare for all three quarterbacks: Dante Moore, Dylan Raiola and Brock Thomas. We will get more information later this week on Moore’s injury status.

However, it feels more like either Thomas or Raiola will start. Lanning said the two were “competing” this week.

Dylan Raiola, the former Nebraska quarterback, was spectacular against USC, throwing for 289 yards and two touchdowns. However, he struggled last week against UCLA, completing just 6 of 19 passes for 49 yards with three turnovers.

Raiola also doesn’t bring much of a running element to the offense. Brock Thomas, a 5-foot-11 senior, has limited experience, with just 36 career pass attempts. He’s completed 26 (70 percent) for 306 yards and two touchdowns. Thomas has 11 career carries for 12 yards, so he’s not a significant running threat either.

It sounds like Oregon is changing some things up on the offensive staff, although Dan Lanning freaked out at the media when reporters asked for more details.

This is a must-win game for Oregon. Nebraska better treat it as such because it feels like the Ducks are a wounded animal. I would expect their best effort, and if Raiola is the starting quarterback, I’d expect him to be at his best.

Raiola isn’t as bad as he looked against UCLA. He’s also probably not quite as good as he was against USC. The truth is somewhere in the middle.

Harper Murray is Big Ten Player of the Week

Nebraska’s Harper Murray is hitting her stride. Thanks to 20 kills and a .471 hitting percentage against seventh-ranked Wisconsin, Murray was named Big Ten Player of the Week. She also had 11 kills, seven digs, and two blocks against Indiana, hitting .429 for the week.

Bergen Reilly earned Setter of the Week, and Manaia Ogbechie was named Defensive Player of the Week.

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