On a beautiful night at Memorial Stadium, celebrating its 400th consecutive sellout, the Illinois Illini defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers 31-24 in overtime. If you’re a Husker opponent and can extend the game into overtime, you have a pretty good chance of success, as the Huskers have now gone eight straight without scoring in overtime since a 2014 win over Iowa. It was Nebraska’s fifth straight loss in a Big Ten opener and the 24th straight time they’ve been beaten by a ranked opponent since the 2016 season. To add to the misery, it was another one-score loss, the kind of game Nebraska has only had twice in the past three years.

After beating three overmatched non-conference opponents, the Huskers seemed unprepared for the physical nature of the Big Ten. They were getting beaten in the trenches on both sides of the ball, and the hype videos on the big screen only seemed to make the opposition tougher. Despite leading for most of the game and having multiple chances to win the game in the fourth quarter, the Huskers crumbled in the final minutes as Illinois dominated,

While Nebraska has improved as a team under Matt Rhule, Illinois seems to have improved even more under Bret Bielema, a team that Nebraska defeated 20-7 in Champaign last year. Illinois hammered the Blackshirts in the second half in particular. After allowing just 37 rushing yards in the first half, Illinois gained 129 yards after halftime with 79 in the fourth quarter. They did to Nebraska what Nebraska wants to do to opponents, play smashmouth football and create huge holes for the running backs to run through.

As in previous games, Nebraska played well in the first half, converting 7 of 10 third downs and eating up 18:32 of the clock. But in the second half, Nebraska failed to convert a first down in the third quarter, going 1 of 5 on third down and 0 of 1 on fourth down. Meanwhile, the Illini held the ball for 10:45 in the third quarter, converting 4 of 6 third downs and going 2 of 2 on fourth downs in the second half (although one of those conversions appeared to be the result of a suspect spot).

Speaking of the officials, they were generally bad, missing calls for both teams. But the three that probably hurt the most were 1) not calling defensive pass interference on a 2nd and goal from three on Nebraska’s second possession. After a 1st and goal from five, Nebraska settled for a field goal; 2) not calling a block in the back on the Illini’s 37-yard punt return in the third quarter that tied the game, and 3) not calling a late hit out of bounds on Nebraska’s disastrous overtime possession that would have given the Huskers a first down despite it being 3rd and 42. But let’s face it, Big Ten officials are generally incompetently inept.

Despite being dominated in the trenches and the Blackshirts putting on a very forgettable performance, if the Huskers had taken advantage of just one of their many opportunities to put more points on the board, the game might never have gone into overtime. As mentioned, a 1st and goal at the 5 and settling for 3, a touchdown pass to Isaiah Neyor that was stolen for an interception, Dylan Raiola missing a wide open Luke Lindenmeyer in the end zone on a 3rd and 3 from the 21-yard line with about three minutes left in regulation, and finally, a missed 39-yard field goal on the next play due to a questionable snap. Good teams don’t leave points on the field like that. Illinois led twice the entire game, after the TD on their opening drive and after their two-play touchdown drive in overtime.

Dylan Raiola completed 24 of 35 passes for 297 yards and three touchdowns, finishing sub-70% in completion percentage for the first time this year. The 297 passing yards were a career high for Raiola, surpassing his 247 yards from last week against UNI. Raiola also had 5 sacks for -46 rushing yards and had two other carries that lost another 6 yards net. At times in this game he looked like a true freshman prone to the mistakes of inexperience and at times he showed the maturity we’ve seen in previous games. In short, he’ll be a more consistent and accurate passer if the Huskers can establish a running game.

Dante Dowdell led Nebraska rushers with a career-high 20 carries for 72 yards, and Rahmir Johnson added 17 yards on four carries. In total, the Huskers had 107 yards in gains and 59 yards in losses to manage a pitiful 48 yards rushing (an average of 1.5 yards). The loss of Turner Corcoran on a first-quarter field goal didn’t help matters, but the line failed to consistently open holes and then failed in pass protection late in the game.

Jahmal Banks led the way among receivers with eight catches for 94 yards, including five catches for 61 yards in the first half. Isaiah Neyor had a 6-yard TD reception in the first quarter and an 11-yard toe-dragging touchdown catch in the second quarter, giving him a team-leading four touchdown receptions this season. Neyor finished the game with four catches for 90 yards. Neyor had catches of 44 and 29 yards in the second half and has three catches of at least 29 yards this season. He entered tonight’s game averaging 20.4 receiving yards on his 65 career catches. Tight end Thomas Fidone caught two passes for 46 yards in the game. His 46 receiving yards were a career best, and his 29-yard reception in the third quarter tied his career long reception. Janiran Bonner had an end-around 1-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer dominated Nebraska in the short and intermediate passing game, finishing 21-of-27 for 215 yards and four touchdowns. He even completed a fourth-quarter tying touchdown on a 4th-and-6 pass to a 335-lb tackle who qualified for the play. Nebraska continues to struggle against mobile quarterbacks, as Altmyer gained 28 yards on a scramble. The defense will have to make some serious adjustments before Nebraska takes on pass-happy Purdue next Saturday. Not the least of which is learning to play with more discipline, as Husker penalties extended three Illinois drives that led to points.

Linebacker John Bullock led the defense with a career-high nine tackles, including a sack, a forced fumble in the first quarter that led to a Nebraska touchdown, and he also had a pass breakup. Deshon Singleton (6 tackles) recovered that fumble. Ceyair Wright, replacing an injured Tommi Hill, had six tackles and had the only other Husker sack on a corner blitz that forced a fumble recovered by Mikai Gbayor (6 tackles).

With Tristan Alvano still nursing an injury, John Hohl made a 21-yard field goal and then missed from 39 yards out with just three minutes left. With the Husker place-kicking in such disarray, will Matt Rhule opt to keep the offense on the field on fourth downs? Brian Buschini averaged 50.3 yards on 3-pointers but appeared to outpace his coverage twice. Kickoff and punt coverage were hit and miss throughout. Special teams will need to improve for the Huskers to be consistent winners.

It was a thrill to be in the stadium on Friday night. The crowd was loud and the fan day experience and light show were exceptional. The card tricks celebrating the 400th sold out game were a visual treat. But the outcome was incredibly disappointing for most in attendance. It was said by more than one person before the game that the Illinois game would show how far the Huskers have come in their renaissance toward excellence. Unfortunately, it looks like we’ll have to go back to the drawing board to see if the Huskers can exorcise the demons and win close games, let alone pull off a four-quarter performance. Next Saturday, the Huskers will try to go 1-0 again in their first road game against the Boilermakers in West Lafayette. Go for big red!!!

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