Report card: Nebraska vs. Iowa
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Here are the final takes and grades following Nebraska’13-10 loss to Iowa on Friday night at Kinnick Stadium.
The Hawkeyes beat the Huskers with a walk-off field goal for the fourth time in the last seven years.
Subscribe to get exclusive Huskers content on HuskerOnline today! Get 7 days of access for $1!
Rushing offense: B+
Nebrasska ran for 165 sack-adjusted rush yards, which heading into the game anyone would’ve though was more than enough to win at Iowa. NU got 142 yards on 35 carries out of the running back position, one of its best showings on the ground vs. Iowa in years.
Passing offense: C
There was so much meat left on the bone for the Husker passing offense, and we saw the game’s critical turnover in the final seconds also come on a pass play. Yes, QB Dylan Raiola was 22-of-32 for 190 yards passing, but the plays NU missed were more the story. Isaiah Neyor let a possible game changing touchdown go right through his hands. We also saw a couple of other big misses by Raiola that might have broken the game open.
Top 10
- 1
Big 12 title game scenarios
Updated paths to championship game
- 2
Saban halts Corso
'Not so fast' on Iron Bowl
- 3
Kirk Herbstreit
Quinn Ewers or Arch Manning
- 4Hot
Georgia-GT ref controversy
Outcry over officiating
- 5New
Trolling Michigan
ODOT trolls Wolverines ahead of The Game
Rushing defense: A
Iowa had just 55 sack adjusted rushing yards in the game. NU won nearly ever single short-yardage rushing down in this game. Kaleb Johnson had just 45 yard rushing on 17 carries. This is another stat that if you told me NU’s back would go for 142 compared to 45 yards for Johnson, the Huskers win this game nearly every time. Unfortunately there was more to the story on Friday.
Passing defense: C-
73 of Iowa’s 115 passing yards came on one play. Johnson’s 72 yard touchdown was a play NU had bottled up. It was a more or less a check down or a swing pass where the Huskers had several defenders in the area to stop it well short of the first down. Johnson made one of the best plays of the game, and that was the difference on Friday.
Special teams: F
Iowa finds a way to win this phase. They won field position on special teams, and they dominated the return game 81 to 36 yards. Brian Buchini also had punts of 28 and 22 yards early in the game, but the defense bailed him out. The backbreaker though was freshman linebacker Vincent Shavers touching a ball inside the 5-yard line that gave Iowa possession and its first points of the day. Then we also saw a bad snap on a field goal that should’ve made the game 13-0 Huskers midway through the third quarter. There weren’t many big moments on Friday, but these were two Iowa completely maximized along with making a 52-yard field goal to win the game.
Sean Callahan can be reached at [email protected] and is heard daily at 6:45 am and 5:05 pm on Big Red Radio 1110 KFAB in Omaha during the football season. He can also be seen on KETV Channel 7 in Omaha during the fall, and each week, he appears on Nebraska Public Media’s Big Red Wrap-Up Tuesdays at 7 pm.
