Nebraska

Deadspin | Resurgent No. 22 Nebraska, No. 24 Illinois clash in Big Ten opener

Published

1 year ago

September 17, 2024

Deadspin | Resurgent No. 22 Nebraska, No. 24 Illinois clash in Big Ten opener

Sep 7, 2024; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers quarterback Dylan Raiola (15) hands the ball off to running back Dante Dowdell (23) for a touchdown run against the Colorado Buffaloes during the first quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

For the first time since October 2011, No. 22 Nebraska and No. 24 Illinois find themselves listed in the same Associated Press Top 25 poll. They’ll meet in a Big Ten opener Friday night in Lincoln, Neb., to decide which team gets to stay there.

The Cornhuskers (3-0) are off to their best start since 2016 — their most recent bowl season — while the Illini are 3-0 for the first time since 2011.

After cruising through their respective non-conference schedules, both teams will get a much better picture of their might while they clash in front of Nebraska’s 400th consecutive home sellout.

“To have two big teams ranked on a Friday night game is a little bit unusual,” said Illinois coach Bret Bielema, who has his program in the polls for just the second time in the last 13 years. “It doesn’t happen all the time. To see it play out and be a part of it is awesome. Give a lot of credit to their team and what they’ve accomplished to this point. I told our guys to continue to keep our focus, our mentality, and see where it can go.”

The Huskers have three blowouts under their belt — they led at halftime against UTEP, Colorado and Northern Iowa by a combined score of 79-10 — but head coach Matt Rhule hasn’t been overly impressed yet.

“I think any time you don’t punt in the game, you feel pretty good,” Rhule said. “So I felt pretty good about what we did Saturday offensively (against Northern Iowa). But that was all preseason to me. Now the season starts. We’ll find out where we are. This will be such a different challenge playing against these guys.”

The Illini enter Friday’s game tied for second nationally in turnover margin (+8) and tied for fifth in turnovers forced (9). Defensive back Xavier Scott is one of four FBS players with at least 3 interceptions through three games, and he has forced four turnovers overall.

But Scott and company haven’t faced a passer like Nebraska’s Dylan Raiola. Even on the rare occasions when the pass rush has forced him to improvise, the five-star freshman has appeared unflappable while completing 73.8 percent of his passes for 670 yards, five touchdowns and just one interception.

“He brings a different element immediately,” Bielema said. “He’s a very talented young man that’s got a great deep ball throw. They maximize him pretty well. There’s some things you can literally see him get better on every series — just very impressive to see.”

Rhule seems eager to find out how Raiola will handle an Illinois group that ranks 12th nationally in pass efficiency defense (an 87.98 rating versus Raiola’s 162.22).

“They’ve altered a lot of what they’re doing,” said Rhule, noting how Illinois second-year defensive coordinator Aaron Henry has been using more disguises this season. “They’ll show man and play Cover 2. They’ll show man and play zone. With a young quarterback, he’s got to recognize because they don’t show it to you. He’s got to recognize zone on the snap. And they’re taking the ball away at a high level.”

On the flip side, Bielema wants to see his rushing attack be more reliable. The Illini’s quartet of backs have been satisfactory (153.3 yards per game), but Illinois hasn’t faced anything like the Huskers’ defense, which surrenders just 2.5 yards per carry and 70.3 rushing yards per game.

“If we’re going to win in the Big Ten, we’re going to have to run the ball in certain situations,” Bielema said. “I think the greatest definition of a team is a team that can run the ball effectively when they want to run it against good competition.”

–Field Level Media

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Nebraska

Former Husker Medically Retires from Football, Forgoes NFL Draft

Published

3 hours ago

January 5, 2026

Press Room

Former Husker Medically Retires from Football, Forgoes NFL Draft

Ernest Hausmann is electing to hang it up after a four-year run in college football.

The former Nebraska football and Michigan linebacker announced on social media Saturday that he is medically retiring rather than pursuing a pro football career. Hausmann concludes his college football career with over 250 career tackles in 50 career games. The Columbus, Neb., product finished his final season as Wolverines with 44 tackles, including 5.5 tackles for loss and a sack.

Prior to becoming a national champion with Michigan during his sophomore campaign in 2023, Hausmann was a true freshman standout for Nebraska, playing for his in-state team. The Columbus High School graduate was one of the top prospects in Nebraska during his prep career, becoming an All-Nebraska selection and earning a three-star recruitment rating as the No. 5 player in the state for the Discoverers. Hausmann signed with Nebraska over Arizona State, Iowa, Kansas State, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota and others.

The linebacker would play in every game of the 2022 season as a true freshman, earning seven starts while finishing with 54 tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, a sack, and a fumble recovery in Scott Frost’s final season as head coach. After Frost was fired early in the season, interim coach Mickey Joseph led lead the team as Hausmann’s play improved as the season continued. The linebacker had a 12-tackle performance at Wisconsin in Nebraska’s 15-14 loss in his second-to-last performance as a Cornhusker before ending the year with six solo tackles and a fumble recovery in a Nebraska win at Iowa.

Hausmann entered the transfer portal after his freshman campaign, electing to join the Michigan Wolverines for the 2023 season. He appeared in all 15 games in the Wolverines’ 2023 national championship run, finishing third on the team with 46 total tackles, including two tackles for loss. He also earned Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week honors in Michigan’s Big Ten Championship Game win over Iowa, totaling eight tackles against the Hawkeyes.

Hausmann started all 13 games as a junior for Michigan in 2024, leading the team with 89 tackles, seven tackles for loss, two sacks, two pass breakups, and one interception. His performance led to an All-Big Ten honorable mention selection by the media and coaches, as well as earning a ReliaQuest Bowl win over Alabama while being named a captain for the game.

Oct 18, 2025; Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA; Michigan Wolverines linebacker Cole Sullivan (23) and linebacker Ernest Hausmann (15) celebrates in the first half against the Washington Huskies at Michigan Stadium. | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

During his senior campaign, Hausmann was named a Jason Witten Collegiate Man of the Year semifinalist while earning an All-Big Ten Third-Team selection. He earned four Defensive Player of the Week honors for the Wolverines, and started in Michigan’s 30-27 win at Nebraska on Sept. 20, totaling nine tackles and a sack.

Hausmann was born in Uganda and was legally adopted when he was two years old, but did not join his Hausmann family until he was five years old in 2008. Prior to his senior campaign at Michigan, Hausmann returned to Africa and later partnered with One Million Wells, a nonprofit that seeks to provide water to impoverished communities.

The Wolverine linebacker began communication with his biological family through social media in the past few years, as Hausmann was able to speak to his mother for the first time in 2024. His return journey to Uganda was featured on ESPN’s College GameDay as a feature story earlier in the college football season.

Hausmann stated in his social media post that it was time to “focus on my true purpose on this earth full time.” He added that he would finish his degree at the University of Michigan.

Apex Receives Exploration Permit for Rift REE Project, Nebraska; Drill Program Preparation Underway

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15 hours ago

January 5, 2026

Press Room

Apex Receives Exploration Permit for Rift REE Project, Nebraska; Drill Program Preparation Underway

VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESS Newswire / January 5, 2026 /Apex Critical Metals Corp. (CSE:APXC)(OTCQX:APXCF)(FWB:KL9) (“Apex” or the “Company”), a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on the identification and development of critical and strategic …

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Nebraska

Challenging Week Ahead in Nebraska Men’s Basketball

Published

1 day ago

January 4, 2026

Press Room

Challenging Week Ahead in Nebraska Men’s Basketball

If this were a football road trip for Nebraska, yikes. The Huskers this week visit Ohio State and Indiana.

But maybe, given Nebraska’s 14-0 basketball start, it’s the Buckeyes and Hoosiers who should be concerned.

The basketball version of the Buckeyes and Hoosiers is difficult enough, as both Nebraska opponents are formidable, both are capable of making the NCAA Tournament and both are capable of pinning that first loss on the Huskers.

Nebraska has played one true road game, a victory at Illinois. The Huskers play Ohio State on Monday and Indiana on Saturday, Jan. 10. The No. 13 Huskers are flying, coming off a 58-56 victory over No. 9 Michigan State on Friday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Defeating the Spartans was the kind of tense victory over a legitimate basketball powerhouse that could define the Huskers’ season.

Back to reality for Huskers

“Everybody that played, I think, made a big contribution,” Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said at a postgame news conference about the victory over Michigan State.

The victory led to a wild, court-filled celebration at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

But, now, back to the harsh reality of life in the difficult Big Ten. There’s not much turnaround time for Nebraska before the Ohio State game.

“We’ve got to bounce back [Saturday, Jan. 3] with a good mental day [of] prep and get one more day,” Hoiberg said.

Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg has led his team to a 14-0 record with road games this week at Ohio State and Indiana. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

“We’ll practice a little bit, and travel day, but it was a hell of a tough turnaround to play back-to-back 8 o’clock games with two days’ prep, and now you go on the road for two.

“So, it’s a great win for us. I’m not going to discount that. Huge win for our program but we got to get past it and move on to Ohio State.”

The Huskers are tied for first place in the Big Ten with Michigan and Purdue at 3-0. One of these teams is not the like the others, at least based on preseason projections and historical precedent. Purdue and Michigan were expected to be Big Ten contenders. Nebraska was not, but has become one of the best national college basketball success stories so far this season.

‘It’s been a fun ride’

“We’ve done something that hasn’t been done in this program ever … running the table in the non-conference hasn’t been done in almost 100 years,” Hoiberg said. “So, there’s a lot of things these guys can be proud of, but at the same time, the most impressive thing to me about this group is how they’ve handled it. They haven’t gotten big-headed.

“You know, a lot of things have been written and listen, if it flips, it’s going to go the other way and they got to handle that well.

“Hopefully, it doesn’t, but it’s been a fun ride with this team and they’ve seen how much effort and time you’re putting into it to go out and execute game plans, get chewed out at halftime and handle it and respond.

“Again, I’ve talked a lot about this group. They’ve been a joy to be around and they’ve been fun because of their daily approach …

“When you go on the road, you got to be fresh physically and mentally as much as possible. Had guys play a lot. Rienk [Mast] hadn’t played this amount of minutes in awhile. So, it’s going to be important to get him back fresh and go out and hopefully play well on the road.”

Nebraska at Ohio State

When: Monday, 5:30 p.m. CT
Where: Schottenstein Center, Columbus
Records: Nebraska 14-0, 3-0 in Big Ten; Ohio State, 10-3, 2-1 in Big Ten. The Buckeyes are 7-1 at home.
TV: FS1

Rankings updated based on games through Saturday.

Ohio State rankings

* Associated Press Top 25: Not ranked
* NCAA Net Ratings: 46 (dropped two places)
* USA Today Coaches Poll: Not ranked
* Kenpom.com: 39
* ESPN Power Rankings: 36
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 62

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Ohio State is an 11-seed as one of the “last four in” for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Nebraska rankings

* Associated Press Top 25: 13 (new poll is released Monday)
* NCAA Net Ratings: 11 (improved four places)
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 13
* Kenpom.com: 22
* ESPN Power Rankings: 26 (dropped one place)
* Top 25 and 1: 9 (improved four places)
* Team Rankings.com: 7 (improved one place)

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Nebraska is a 4-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Nebraska-Ohio State analysis

Something to watch: How Nebraska bounces back from a highly emotional win over Michigan State. The Ohio State crowd will be revved up at the sight of the 14-0 Huskers. The Buckeyes can enhance their NCAA resume with a win over the Huskers. If Hoiberg has his team focused and the players are “business-like” as the coach says they are, Nebraska could be in good position to keep the winning streak going. Last season, the Huskers lost in Columbus, 116-114, in double overtime on March 4, a defeat that likely hurt their NCAA chances.

Nebraska at Indiana

When: Saturday, 11 a.m. CT
Where: Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, Bloomington
Records: Nebraska 14-0, 3-0 in Big Ten; Indiana, 10-3, 1-1 in Big Ten. The Hoosiers are 9-0 at home.
TV: BTN

Indiana rankings

* Associated Press Top 25: Not ranked
* NCAA Net Ratings: 33
* USA Today Coaches Poll: 39
* Kenpom.com: 28
* ESPN Power Rankings: 17 (improved by two places)
* Top 25 and 1: Not ranked
* Team Rankings.com: 68 (dropped three places)

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Indiana is an 11-seed as one of the “last four byes” for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Nebraska rankings

In Joe Lunardi’s latest Bracketology projections, Nebraska is a 4-seed for the 68-team NCAA Tournament.

Indiana guard Lamar Wilkerson is averaging 20.2 points in home games. Nebraska is at Indiana on Saturday. | Robert Goddin-Imagn Images

Nebraska-Indiana analysis

Indiana is 9-0 at home and has two games before Nebraska comes to Bloomington — Sunday vs. Washington (the Hoosiers’ first game since Dec. 22), and Wednesday at Maryland.

If the Hoosiers can stay focused and not be distracted by the football team’s run to the College Football Playoff semifinals, IU won’t be easy for Nebraska.

Indiana features balanced scoring. Indiana guard Lamar Wilkerson — no relation to the legendary Hoosier Bobby Wilkerson of the 1976 NCAA championship team — should be the focus of the Huskers’ defense. Wilkerson, a 6-foot-6 senior, can light it up, averaging 20.2 points in home games and 19.0 points overall.