Nebraska held Washington to just three points for 58½ minutes of Saturday’s game and still found a way to lose.
As frustrating as it is, that’s the reality, a
Nebraska held Washington to just three points for 58½ minutes of Saturday’s game and still found a way to lose.
As frustrating as it is, that’s the reality, and Nebraska’s fan base, Rob Aurich, and the Blackshirts deserve more. Regardless, this isn’t a recap of the Washington game or a discussion of what we learned from the loss.
Instead, here are the final snap counts and grades for all 22 Husker defenders who saw action in Nebraska’s 17-10 loss, courtesy of Pro Football Focus. (Offensive grades coming soon.)
Player
Class
Snaps
Run Grade
Tackling
Pass Rush
Coverage
Overall
Whittington
3rd
53
65.0
71.9
62.6
59.7
63.0
Nwaneri
3rd
38
70.2
74.9
63.5
60.4
68.1
Pietrzak
2nd
29
65.4
73.2
63.4
61.1
68.3
Lenhardt
4th
29
71.0
34.2
54.1
61.1
63.6
Ochoa
3rd
27
61.2
–
52.0
60.0
54.4
Stoudmire
6th
25
62.7
73.8
61.1
–
63.4
Van Poppel
4th
23
71.6
73.4
62.1
–
70.8
Goldman
4th
21
60.0
71.3
59.5
60.5
48.3
Terry
2nd
7
64.5
78.4
56.8
57.2
59.0
Jones
2nd
6
–
–
54.8
–
54.5
Berymon
1st
3
–
–
–
–
–
Simpson
2nd
3
–
–
–
–
–
Defensive Line
Despite being without starting edge rusher Anthony Jones, who suffered a foot injury against Oregon, NU’s defensive line again found ways to disrupt the opposition in Week 9. The Blackshirts limited Washington to just 32 rushing yards on 19 attempts (1.7 yards per carry) and totaled four sacks. Even after adjusting for sacks, UW managed just 56 rushing yards (3.7 yards per attempt).
The stat sheet might not fully reflect it, but Kade Pietrzak played perhaps the best game of his collegiate career. On a season-high 29 snaps, the North Dakota native was credited with three pressures and one of the Big Red’s four sacks.
Jahsear Whittington was once again able to get after the opposing QB. He now has 16 tackles, 4.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery through eight games. Others, including Mason Goldman (1.0 sack) and Riley Van Poppel (0.5 sack), brought down the opposing quarterback as well. Van Poppel saw his first action since the Maryland game, playing 23 snaps.
Player
Class
Snaps
Run Grade
Tackling
Pass Rush
Coverage
Overall
Chambliss
4th
64
76.4
81.0
64.9
56.4
64.3
Shavers
3rd
50
46.8
76.1
79.4
60.7
65.9
Foster
3rd
17
64.8
78.4
56.8
57.2
59.0
Merritt
2nd
7
–
–
64.6
61.7
67.2
Linebackers
Nebraska’s linebacker corps saw mixed results, though the unit’s overall performance was a net positive against the Huskies on Halloween night. Owen Chambliss, who played 64 defensive snaps, recorded his second-lowest overall grade of the season, while Vincent Shavers arguably turned in his best performance of 2026.
Chambliss was again heavily targeted on passing downs. Against Oregon, the San Diego State transfer was targeted eight times, allowing five receptions for 24 yards. Washington went after him nine times, completing six passes for 43 yards.
Sophomore linebacker Dawson Merritt saw his first action since the Maryland game. To my knowledge, Merritt wasn’t dealing with an injury, NU just appeared to trust players like Shavers and Oregon State transfer Dexter Foster more in recent weeks. Speaking of Foster, he played a season-low 17 defensive snaps.
Player
Class
Snaps
Run Grade
Tackling
Pass Rush
Coverage
Overall
D. Jones
3rd
67
71.0
81.7
52.7
70.6
70.6
Benning
3rd
67
68.5
85.7
59.4
77.3
76.8
McDougle
5th
67
69.8
70.1
58.9
66.5
65.0
Marshall
4th
66
64.9
46.5
55.7
61.1
61.4
Evans
4th
61
61.9
81.7
–
75.3
75.4
Odem
1st
7
60.0
74.2
–
72.9
74.1
Defensive Backs
There’s no other way to put it: Caleb Benning has been playing his butt off over the past few weeks. After earning an 84.2 overall grade against Oregon in his first collegiate start, he followed it up with a team-high grade of 76.8 against Washington while again filling in for the injured Jamir Conn.
On the flip side, Andrew Marshall, who was named a Midseason All-American by On3 and Sports Illustrated, has struggled over the last two games. The senior was targeted six times against the Ducks, allowing four receptions for 47 yards. On Saturday, he was targeted eight times, allowing four more catches for 50 yards while being flagged for two penalties.
Donovan Jones made several noteworthy plays against Washington’s rushing and screen game but struggled in pass coverage. The junior nickel defender allowed seven completions on eight targets for 42 yards.
Washington wide receiver Chris Lawson’s 12 receptions were the most by an opposing pass-catcher against Nebraska this fall. He finished with 130 receiving yards and the go-ahead touchdown, putting the Huskies ahead 10-7 with 1:30 remaining in the game.
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