Husker Big Red Daily: Nebraska players shine in PFF grades, Ohio fallout, more

Welcome to Husker Big Red Daily, your daily stop for the latest Nebraska football news, recruiting buzz, transfer portal updates, and Huskers headlines. Here’s a quick look at the latest storylines surrounding Nebraska athletics.

Nebraska football opened the season with a 49-21 win over the Ohio Bobcats. The score was 14-13 at halftime. Ohio opened the game with a 68-yard pass.

There were some negatives, but a lot more positives, such as the five consecutive touchdown drives to end the game, or the fact that the Huskers outscored their opponent 35-8 in the second half.

Anthony Colandrea was outstanding. He accounted for 298 total yards and four touchdowns (one rushing). Pro Football Focus was a big fan of his work, too, giving him a grade of 84.3, the highest of anyone on the offense. Jamal Rule was given a grade of 83.8, while Luke Lindenmeyer was rated an 80.

Colandrea didn’t have a single turnover-worthy play. The offensive line also didn’t allow a single sack. Nebraska football gave up two sacks, but they weren’t the fault of the O-line.

Freshman running back Jamal Rule was so good that he overshadowed Colandrea, turning 17 touches into 169 yards and three touchdowns. Rule ran 15 times for 122 yards. All three running backs were successful and made things happen after contact.

One of our takeaways was that Rule’s debut was one of the best by a freshman since T-Magic. We also looked back on five things we learned. One thing is that the defense played better than Nebraska football fans are giving it credit for.

Nebraska forced six straight stops at one point. After the opening play, Nebraska didn’t allow a single play of more than 20 yards. Outside of some QB runs, the Bobcats averaged just more than three yards per carry.

It wasn’t perfect, but Mekhi Nelson and Rule combined for 298 yards on 28 carries. The offense generated explosive plays with ease, which is hopefully a sign of things to come.

Nebraska volleyball match suspended

The Huskers were supposed to play at Wrigley Field in volleyball on Sunday night, but the court didn’t cooperate. There was moisture on the court, which led to the match being postponed. Here’s a statement from Troy Dannen.

“It was very unfortunate we were not able to complete the match tonight vs Missouri. The temperatures cooled quickly after sunset and combined with high humidity, it was impossible to keep condensation from developing on the court. We appreciated the effort from the Big 10 Conference to find a solution, and ultimately their discretion in ending the match. Wrigley Field was awash in red. The team was most disappointed that the fans lost the chance to watch this match in this incredible venue.”

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