Matt Rhule confirms Marcus Washington sat first half of Minnesota game due to academic suspension

Nebraska wide receiver Marcus Washington did not play in the first half of Thursday’s 13-10 loss to Minnesota because of an academic suspension, head coach Matt Rhule confirmed after the game.

“He was suspended in the first half from the summer,” Rhule said in his post-game press conference. “Nothing disciplinary just academic concerns.”

It was a long day at the offense for the Nebraska offense, which managed only 295 yards of offense during the game.

Washington, who was the team’s second-leading receiver last season, finished the game with three catches for 31 yards.

Last season, Washington finished the year with 31 catches for 471 yards and one touchdown as one of the team’s top options after star wideout Trey Palmer.

“It’s good to get Marcus out there. He loves to play the game,” Rhule said. “It was good to see him get out there and fly around. He’s healthy. He sat the first half, came in the second half. Moving forward I think he’ll be a key contributor for us.”

It made Rhule’s first-ever game as the Cornhuskers coach not one to remember as the defense held the Golden Gophers to only 13 points, but not enough to pull off the win.

New quarterback Jeff Sims threw for only 114 yards while tossing three interceptions during the game. However, he did pace the running game with 91 yards on the ground.

“Obviously, as a quarterback, you can’t have those turnovers, right?” Rhule said. “Even right before the half, it was kind of an odd sequence, right? It’s either a touchdown or it’s a false start. It was kind of weird how that happened…I thought he had some really good moments,” Rhule said. “He had some key throws, especially in that two-minute drive moving us down the field. Obviously, he ran for over 100 yards. He was a dynamic threat in the zone read game.”

The Cornhuskers will now look to bounce back against an old rival who also has a new face leading its program: Colorado and head coach Deion Sanders. Nebraska travels to Boulder, Colo., to face the Buffaloes next Saturday with the game scheduled to be the Big Noon Kickoff game of the week on Fox.