Mike Riley just cant seem to catch a break thus far in his tenure as Nebraska’s head coach, as the Huskers lost in heartbreaking fashion to the Miami Hurricanes Saturday afternoon. The Huskers showed fantastic heart in coming back from a 23 point 4th quarter deficit to force overtime, but costly penalties and turnovers doomed the Huskers to a 36-33 loss, dropping them to 1-2 for the first time since 1960. Here are the final grades for the Nebraska Cornhuskers as well as looking ahead to Nebraska’s next opponent.
Miami vs. Nebraska Review
FINAL GRADES
Quarterback: C+
You’ve got to feel for Tommy Armstrong, as the junior played his heart out Saturday and nearly brought his team all the way back for an epic win, but two costly mistakes crushed his comeback bid. Armstrong’s stat line isn’t all that impressive, as he completed less than 50% of his passes and threw 3 interceptions, but he also saved several broken plays with his ability to scramble and made some incredible throws in the second half to make things close. Unfortunately, his interception in the 2nd quarter killed Nebraska’s momentum heading into the half, and his overtime interception in which he woefully underthrew a wide open Taariq Allen are what fans will remember about today’s game.
Running Backs: C
Terrell Newby didn’t really get a chance to get into a rhythm, as Miami jumped out to a 14 point lead early in the 1st quarter and held it for the majority of the game. When Newby did get a chance to run the ball, he was solid, getting what was blocked for him and consistently getting positive yardage. He wasn’t spectacular, but he wasn’t a liability. Senior Imani Cross got some carries early in the game, but he spent most of the 2nd half on the sidelines as the Huskers went to the pass game.
Tight Ends: D
Nebraska fans had waited two extra weeks to see junior Cethan Carter in action, the young man from New Orleans had been tabbed by many to be the breakout star of the new Husker offense, as it would finally give him a chance to show off his unique athletic skills. Well Carter’s debut came and went, and all Husker fans got to show for it was 1 catch for 7 yards, as well as a costly drop on what would have been a 25 yard gain. Disappointing start to the season for the young man all od Nebraska had high expectations for. Fellow junior Sam Cotton saw time as well and continued his solid season, providing solid run blocking and catching 1 pass for 8 yards.
Wide Receivers: C+
The young wide receiving corps, especially junior Lane Hovey, struggled with drops early on in the contest. This stalled Nebraska’s offense early on and allowed Miami to race to an early lead. In the second half the receivers calmed down and started making plays, and Husker fans saw the emergence of Nebraska’s big 3 at wide receiver. Junior Jordan Westerkamp had a fantastic game, catching 5 passes for 95 yards and 1 touchdown while also providing the Huskers with a spark on punt returns. Junior Brandon Reilly came up huge for Nebraska in the 4th quarter, catching a 21 yard touchdown pass on 4th and 12 to bring the Huskers within 8, then catching a 41 yard pass while absorbing a massive hit to bring the Huskers into the Miami red zone on their game tying drive. Finally freshman Stanley Morgan Jr. had his breakout game for the Scarlet & Cream, catching 4 passes for 78 yards as well as the game tying touchdown with 33 seconds left on the clock.
Offensive Line: D
Nebraska was decent running the ball on Saturday, rushing for 153 yards and averaging just under 5 yards per carry. But I cant overlook the issues with pass protection and the boneheaded penalties that this line committed. Tommy Armstrong was only sacked once Saturday, but he was forced to bail out of the pocket and scramble way to often, forcing him to give up on some pass plays and get what he could with his legs. Now the penalties, Nebraska committed 12 penalties for 126 yards, with 6 of them being committed by the offensive line. Senior captain Alex Lewis in particular had a rough night, as he was called for holding and illegal hands to the face on separate plays, both of those penalties wiped out 20+ yard pass completions. But his biggest mistake came in overtime, when the senior Left Tackle committed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty following Tommy Armstrong’s interception, this allowed Miami to start its drive on the 12 yard line and got them close enough for a Michael Badgley field goal that just snuck in.
Defensive Line: D-
Nebraska’s best defensive lineman right now is redshirt freshman Freedom Akinmoladun, a converted Tight End making just his second career start. While that’s nice for Akinmoladun, it doesn’t say much for Juniors Maliek Collins and Greg McMullen, two talented players that were expected to take the next step and become dominant defenders this season. Nebraska got no pressure on Brad Kaaya except for one sack by Akinmoladun and Joseph Yearby to rush for 125 yards against them. Disappointing day for a unit that Nebraska needs to play well if they are going to make a run at the division title.
Linebackers: D
Dedrick Young finally looked a true freshman Saturday, as the youngster from Arizona struggled to make his fits in the run game and was isolated and exposed by Miami’s speedy slot receivers in the pass game. Junior Josh Banderas had a rough outing as well, as he did not look 100% after injuring his groin against BYU and missed some key tackles in the first half. Junior Michael Rose-Ivey had the best game of the three, but he was exposed at times in space against the Hurricanes speedy skill position players.
Secondary: D-
The only thing saving this grade from being an “F” is Joshua Kalu’s interception early in the 4th quarter that kept the Hurricanes from taking a 37-10 lead and officially blowing the game wide open. Senior Daniel Davie had another rough outing, as he was picked on and exposed on the Hurricanes first two scoring drives before being benched in favor of Jonathan Rose. Joshua Kalu and Byerson Cockrell also struggled in one on one situations, and Junior Nate Gerry did his best to hold things together but didn’t appear to be playing at 100%.
Special Teams: B-
Sam Foltz returned from an ankle injury and struggled early before finding his groove late in the first half. Sophomore Drew Brown nailed a 49 yard field goal that got Nebraska on the board and helped the young man’s confidence. Westerkamp and Morgan Jr. were both solid in the return game, with Westerkamp in particular providing a spark with his punt returns.
Final Grade: C-
This was another gut wrenching loss for the Cornhuskers, as they did a tremendous job of battling back and held all the momentum going into overtime before seeing it all go up in smoke. The valiant comeback effort cannot fully mask the flaw of this Nebraska team. Nebraska’s Offensive line has to get more push in the run game and play with much better discipline. Nebraska’s Defensive line has to find a way to get pressure on the quarterback without blitzing, and the secondary just needs to find some confidence after being shredded for three straight weeks. Until they iron out these problems, the Huskers will struggle to win in Big 10 play.
LOOKING AHEAD
Nebraska’s next game will take place next Saturday at 11:00 A.M against the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles. The Eagles are in their 3rd year under Todd Monken and appear to be on their way back to their winning tradition. The Eagles began the season with a 34-16 loss to the Mississippi State Bulldogs, followed by a 52-6 blowout victory over FCS opponent Austin PA. On Saturday the Eagles won a shootout over the Texas State Bobcats, winning 56-50 behind a 230 yard rushing performance by senior Jalen Richard.
