Nebraska football final thoughts: 7 takeaways from Huskers’ landmark bowl win

NEW YORK — Nebraska cleared a hurdle in the Pinstripe Bowl by using its offense to turn away a late rally and secure a 20-15 victory against Boston College.

“It was the first time the offense took the ball,” coach Matt Rhule said, “and said, ‘Enough is enough.’”

He’s not kidding. The first time in two seasons, in fact.

Nebraska lost in 10 of 12 games decided by eight points or fewer under Rhule before Saturday. In each loss, the Huskers held the ball late with a shot to win or force overtime. Eight last-ditch drives ended in turnovers. All but one failed. And against Wisconsin when Nebraska kicked a field goal at the end of regulation, it saved the interception for OT.

In the two victories, defense won it for the Huskers with late stops. Moreover, Nebraska won those games against Northwestern last year and Rutgers in October despite its offense, which managed two first downs in the final 12 minutes and did not move the ball across midfield.

At Yankee Stadium in this 25th game with Rhule as its coach, Nebraska took possession with 4:11 to play and drove 55 yards. It gained a third and final first down on a fourth-and-1 run for 11 yards by Pinstripe MVP Rahmir Johnson.

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It was, for all of that, a landmark win. The way Nebraska won resonates to enter 2025 for a program that’s playing catch-up offensively under new coordinator Dana Holgorsen.

Rhule spelled it out after the game: The Huskers are looking for slight improvements next year on defense, a significant jump on offense and a “complete and total overhaul” of its special teams.

Nebraska got a few breaks during that final march. Officials did not review a catch by Thomas Fidone after his first-play gain of 15 yards, which may have been ruled incomplete if they’d taken a look.

Boston College defender Carter Davis was flagged for a late hit on Dylan Raiola’s first-down run from the Nebraska 36. Did Raiola slide too late for Davis to avoid contact? Maybe. Regardless, it was called. A few flags and no-calls hurt the Huskers, too.

But in the closing sequence, the Huskers came out on the right side — a stroke of good fortune for which they’ve seemingly waited forever.

“We were going to win the game,” Raiola said of the offensive mindset. “We weren’t going to give them the ball back. That’s exactly what we did. We ended with the ball, and we got to line up in the best formation in football — no thinking, no motion, nothing. Victory. Can’t get any better than that.”

Here are seven thoughts to take into the new year, one for each Nebraska win in 2024:

1. Nebraska had no blueprint on how to manage December. Nonstop noise from the transfer portal dominated the calendar through the middle of last week. The Huskers nabbed a Christmas Eve commitment from former Kentucky wide receiver Dane Key and a pledge on Christmas day from ex-Idaho cornerback Andrew Marshall.

They’ve added 11 players from the portal and will go hunting for more in January.

On the coaching front, three assistants left in December. Rhule solidified the offensive and defensive coordinator spots and hired five assistant coaches.

The month was chaos. One constant, Rhule said, came from the players. They did their jobs. Nobody missed meetings, Rhule said, or stepped out of line in New York.

“I just think the mindset of ‘Hey, we got it done in the postseason’ prepares us for the future,” Rhule said. “We played a lot of young players (against Boston College), so now they have perspective. This was a really good three or four weeks for us.”

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2. Raiola started every game as a true freshman and finished with 2,826 passing yards to surpass the Nebraska freshman record of 2,617 set by Adrian Martinez in 2018. Raiola completed 67.2 percent of his throws, tossing 13 touchdowns with 11 interceptions.

“I think he’s had a great first year,” Rhule said. “Playing quarterback as a freshman in the Big Ten is not easy.

3. Rhule saw the final drive Saturday as a key moment, too, for the growth of Raiola. He pulled the ball in on read plays and ran in twice. He showed a fiery side after the late-hit penalty. He pushed hard to lead the Huskers across terrain that has collapsed around them repeatedly.

“That’s what I’m looking for in a quarterback,” Rhule said.

“Tell me the guys who do hard things to win. And that’s who I want to be my quarterback.”

4. The special teams conundrum hangs over the Huskers’ heads as the offseason begins. Rhule promised an overhaul. What does it mean for Ed Foley, the special teams coordinator who has worked alongside Rhule for 10 of the past 12 seasons at four stops?

A blocked extra point and a blocked punt led directly to nine points for Boston College on Saturday. The mishaps brought the total number of kicks blocked by Nebraska opponents in 2024 to 10.

Far above the threshold for acceptability.

“I always put those things on my shoulders,” Rhule said. “We’ll get it done. But it has not been good enough this year.”

Nebraska signed punter Jack McCallister from Washington and long snapper Kevin Gallic from New Hampshire out of the portal. Status quo on the coaching lineup appears unlikely.

5. Saturday was for the seniors.

The light shined bright on Johnson, but the likes of defensive linemen Ty Robinson and Nash Hutmacher, linebacker John Bullock, defensive backs Isaac Gifford and DeShon Singleton, receiver Jahmal Banks, offensive linemen Bryce Benhart and Ben Scott and punter Brian Buschini went out with a bang in New York.

All of the above except Scott, the two-year starting center, and Banks, who arrived in 2024 from Wake Forest and led Nebraska with 587 receiving yards, persevered through the coaching transition to Rhule.

6. Rhule offered advice before the game to Robinson, the top NFL prospect among the departing Huskers.

“I told Ty Robinson, ‘I don’t think I’d play,’” Rhule said. “I think he should be a first- or second-round pick. And he was like, ‘I didn’t do all this to not play.’”

Robinson contributed four tackles, one sack and a pass breakup. As a lead blocker on offense, he helped open the hole for Johnson to gain the clinching first down.

“I love those seniors,” Rhule said, “and I’m grateful for them.”

7. The spring semester begins Jan. 21. Coaches will be busy for the next three weeks, but the players headed home after the Pinstripe experience to spend time with their families.

“We have big plans when we come back,” Rhule said. “We’re going to work. We’re going to double down on what we’ve done. That’s the only way to make a jump. And I think they all understand that. And I think they all have aspirations of (doing) something really special at Nebraska.”

A seven-win finish signifies progress. Rhule said he didn’t want to think about the alternate outcome on Saturday, which would have left the Huskers to contemplate an eighth consecutive losing season.

They’d have continued forward, Rhule said, but without the same level of momentum. Rhule said he likes the results of Nebraska’s recruiting work out of high schools and the transfer portal. It signed a 20-player class this month that ranked in the top 25 nationally.

Young players factored more heavily in the Pinstripe Bowl than in any regular-season game.

“We’ll put the picture together really well,” Rhule said, “and I’ll let you guys have the rest of the offseason to ponder what we’ll look like next year.”

(Photo: Vincent Carchietta / Imagn Images)