I don’t know what’s worse – the numbness or the gallows humor which has started to flow.
For 55 minutes and 31 seconds, the game was NOT played in snow, rain and ice, but you couldn’t tell by watching the Washington and Nebraska offenses slog around the field on a mild and dry night.
Then Nebraska slapped that same old VHS tape in the video player and the real pain began yet again.
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Except it wasn’t.
For the last three weeks, the Huskers have played different movies that somehow all meet up for the same damned ending, another eyes-wide, jaws hanging open 4th-quarter collapse. It has truly been insane. Tonight I happened to be watching with a former Husker who simply said after, “I have no words.”
So let’s relive this one.
The score was only 7-3 after 55 minutes and 31 seconds. For Washington, it was being completely smothered by the Blackshirts who stuffed them again and again. For the Huskers, it was their inability to stop shooting themselves in the foot. Chief offenders were first Anthony Colandrea who, a day after his deal to return for 2027 was announced, celebrated by tossing three picks. it would have been four, but he was bailed out of that one by a Washington offsides flag.
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The other was kicker Kyle Cunanan, of whom fans had grown weary weeks ago, but coaches kept sticking with him. He missed a 40-yarder against Indiana in a 20-17 loss. He also missed one against Oregon in a 17-14 loss. See where I’m going with this?
Tonight, it was a 36-yarder after a 14-play 68-yard drive which would’ve given the Huskers a 10-3 lead. Following that, the Huskies embarked on an 81-yard TD drive, but without missing the short attempt, the game would still have been tied at 10.
And let’s talk about that to close this section out – The Huskers had only surrendered 186 yards prior to that drive. But Washington’s Jedd Fisch decided to try Dylan-ing Nebraska as Oregon did for the win. He replaced former backup Elijah Brown with regular starter Demond Williams who threw, scrambled and led the winning drive on a suddenly porous Blackshirt defense. 10-7 Washington. Colandrea then fired his final interception for a pick-6.
17-7.
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Opponents will be starting their backups for the remainder of 2027.
The final was 17-10 as Rhule pulled a “shut the barn door” by bringing in John Hohl to kick. He drilled a 42-yarder for the game’s final score and the possible the end to the Cunanan Era.
This really was Nebraska’s game to win.
But they truly couldn’t get out of their own way. Again.
Against Indiana, it was grabbing a 17-6 lead over the Hoosiers then failing to cover receiver Nick Marsh. Twice. Which was baffling in and of itself since he had already hauled in two long receptions prior to the 4th quarter.
Against Oregon, it was leaving the defense on the field for 12:45 of the 4th quarter. When the offense got the ball at the 7:30 mark, it seemed to be with the attitude of “let’s not make a mistake” instead of “the defense is exhausted, we better grab some first downs and hopefully a score or we’re screwed”.
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Tonight?
It started by rolling up 224 yards in the 1st half but managing only 7 points, thanks mostly to the interceptions. And 387 total yards may not be the Scoring Explosion, but they certainly should net a team more than 10 points. The 68-yard drive which ended in the missed field goal had already caused grumbles. A 19-yard shot by Nyziah Hunter, which was wiped out by a personal foul block in the back by Kwazi Gilmer, was overcome by a 31-yard completion to Jacory Barney which he snagged and ran 24 of those yards to the Huskies 5. Then two incompletions were followed by a ill-conceived QB draw.
Washington, of course, had multiple players watching Colandrea who forced him backwards for a 8-yard loss which set up the 36-yard attempt.
If the 4th quarter three-and-out in Oregon was the “oh, shit” moment, this week’s was the bungling around once they hit the Washington 5. If the entire stadium sensed it, is there any way none of the players did as well?
Again, there were positives for the Huskers until this week’s 4th quarter follies. They had considerably more explosive plays than their opponents, even if the just previously described end to the series had folks calling for Dana Holgorsen’s head. The Blackshirts frustrated the Huskies all night. They had 4 sacks and 9 tackles for loss. Archie Wilson, who struggled a bit earlier in the season, averaged almost 50 yards per kick putting 4 of them inside the 20 and one inside the 5. Jamal Rule appeared to suffer no ill effects from his ankle sprain carrying 13 times for 72 yards.
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Colandrea after two straight picks, took the team 95 yards for their only TD on the very next drive, finishing it off with a 24-yard toss to Carter Nelson who did an excellent job separating from his coverage. Donovan Jones made the game’s biggest defensive play when Demond Williams was inserted for a trick play. Brown took the snap and flipped it to Williams and headed upfield. Demond looked his way and then threw across the field to Dezman Roebuck who was waiting with a wall of 4-5 blockers. He picked up a chunk but likely would have had 30 or more yards had Jones not knifed through all the beef and taken him out at the legs.
There were referee shenanigans of course. Two blatant targetings on Barney were not called, one ignored, one overturned as were multiple obvious pass interference calls. If my math is right, they did not call a single post-snap penalty on Washington all night. I may be wrong, I just don’t have time to go play-by-play to confirm. But were they the reason? Of course not – Nebraska still had the lead and the ball multiple times in the 4th quarter.
Kwazi Gilmer, who has been magnificent at times this season, has also had drop issues. Tonight, Colandrea put one in his hands in the end zone on the opening drive and Gilmer couldn’t hold it. The very next play resulted in the first of Colandrea’s three picks. Would simply have hauling that one in have altered history enough to squeak out a “W” in front of the black-clad Husker crowd?
Or would Nebraska simply have dug in and just found a different way to muck it up?
Hey, we did have a little fun – you know. Earlier. | Stephen Bruce