Talk about a case of regression to the mean.

It turns out that people like FOX Sports college football analyst Joel Klatt and many of his sports TV brethren who advised the nation to “buy stock in Nebraska” were a bit premature.

The Huskers (3-1) are a better team than they were last season, but a rare home game on Friday night made it painfully clear that they’re not ready to play a four-quarter game. They failed miserably in the final stretch in a 31-24 overtime loss to an undefeated Illinois team that won’t set the world on fire, though the Illini will likely finish in the top half of the Big Ten. One thing’s for sure: It was physical enough to give Nebraska’s offensive and defensive lines all sorts of problems.

The positive thing is that those of you who were worried that Matt Rhule or Tony White would get poached by (insert school name here) might be able to rest for a week.

The Huskers lost their fifth straight Big Ten opener and lost to a rated team for the 27th time in a row since 2016, all despite having a plus-one turnover margin.

It could have been different. The Huskers could have won the game — and probably would have — if Dylan Raiola had hit wide-open tight end Luke Lindenmeier in the end zone on third-and-three from the 21-yard line with about three minutes left in regulation.

Whether the Huskers would win had Isaiah Neyor been able to hold on to what appeared to be a touchdown pass that Raiola threw beautifully and Neyor tossed into the end zone midway through the second quarter. Instead, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound senior receiver let defensive back Torrie Cox wrestle the ball away as the two players touched down, giving Raiola his second dubiously ruled interception in two games. It was an effective but frustrating outing for Raiola, who failed to notice Neyor running up the middle for an easy touchdown three plays earlier and tossed an incomplete pass to another part of the field. The true freshman dropped below 70 percent for the first time, completing 24 of 35 passes for 297 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, bringing his season totals to eight touchdowns and two interceptions.

Illinois defensive coordinator Aaron Henry spent much of the night flooding the box with tacklers, gambling that Raiola couldn’t consistently beat him with his arm. It turned out to be a winning move. The Husker rushing game was disappointing, allowing just 48 yards on 33 carries while Raiola’s five sacks for 46 yards were stripped from the total. If a largely effective passing performance can’t relax the Big Ten defense against the run, Nebraska’s offensive front will have to step it up a notch. Can the veteran Husker line do that? Not tonight.

Defensive back Tommi Hill and left tackle Turner Corcoran left the game with injuries that were not specified after the game. Hill’s injury, if serious, would be costly. As for Corcoran, the Huskers moved the ball just as well or better with redshirt freshman Gunner Gottula filling in, but they’re now paper thin at that position if Corcoran can’t return.

The biggest problem for the Big Red was that they started taking hits in the second half instead of throwing them. The Illini started doing to Nebraska exactly what Rhule said he wanted to do to other teams.

“We didn’t seem like the most physical team,” Rhule said in the understatement of the night. “The moment came and we didn’t make the plays you need to make to win the game.”

It wasn’t a proud night for the Blackshirts, who gave up more than 24 points for the first time in 10 games and had just two tackles for loss. Illinois ran the ball down their throats in the fourth quarter, getting an astonishing 100 of their 166 rushing yards in the final stretch. Four different Illinois ball carriers cut the Huskers for gains of 11, 16, 7, 9, 8, 21 and 21 yards as they ran the ball 15 times in the fourth quarter and again in overtime.

The road game against Northern Iowa that supposedly helped Nebraska prepare for a physical team turned out to be fool’s gold. The Huskers couldn’t run the ball Friday night against Illinois, and they couldn’t stop Bret Bielema’s crew from running the ball either, at least not when the game was on the line.

It was scary. It wasn’t that Illinois wore down the Blackshirts. Nebraska actually had a slight possession advantage late in the fourth quarter. It was more an erosion of confidence and willpower. Never was it more evident than on the first play of overtime, when Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer sent three receivers down the right side of the field, sending one on the move to his left that locked down defensive end Ty Robinson, who got sucked in on a simple outside zone handoff that Kaden Feagin carried 21 yards to the 4-yard line just before Altmyer hit a wide-open Pat Bryant for his second touchdown catch of the night, giving Illinois the win. Child’s play for Bielema and his offensive staff.

When Illinois pressed late in the game, the Huskers had no answer. One short completion, three sacks and a penalty was all they could muster the last time they got the ball. It was the worst in a long line of ugly overtimes for Nebraska football, which has now lost eight straight overtime games since Bo Pelini was fired. The Husker offense, defense and coaching staff all looked confused by turns.

It might have been the heat. It might have been the bright lights. It might have been the pressure. Whatever it was, the result was this: In the biggest moments, the Huskers gave up. No matter how hard they tried, the 86,936 fans who sold out Memorial Stadium for the 400th consecutive season couldn’t get their Huskers to make big plays on defense in the big moments. That will have to wait for another day.

It wasn’t just a physical collapse, it was a disciplinary collapse for Nebraska, which committed nine penalties for 89 yards. Two major fouls led to a first-quarter field goal for Illinois, a personal foul helped the Illini to a third-quarter touchdown drive. A facemask penalty extended the Illini’s fourth-quarter touchdown drive, as the Blackshirts simply couldn’t get off the field when they needed to.

The Huskers currently lack a reliable field goal kicker. John Hohl, filling in for a seemingly injured Tristan Alvano, had a chance to give the Huskers a lead, but he fired his 39-yarder from the left hash mark about 12 inches too far to the left, tying the game with 2:59 left and giving the Huskers no realistic chance in regulation.

And other parts of the Husker kicking game fell flat as well. In addition to missing the potential game-winning field goal, the Huskers couldn’t cover a 50-yard Brian Buschini punt that sailed to the Illinois 6, giving up a 37-yard return to Hank Beatty to set up a 57-yard touchdown drive that tied the game at 17 late in the third quarter. Meanwhile, Nebraska had no punt return yardage.

At this point, despite a very visible misstep late in the game, a true freshman quarterback seems like the Husker’s best prepared for the rigors of Big Ten play. That shouldn’t be the case. It’s not healthy for the Huskers’ overall portfolio.

MORE: Gallery: No. 22 Nebraska Loses to No. 24 Illinois in Overtime

MORE: Carriker Gut Reaction: Nebraska’s Gut Punch from a Loss

WATCH: Nebraska Football Quarterback Dylan Raiola After the Game; Cornhuskers Lose to Illini in Overtime

MORE: WATCH: Nebraska Football Coach Matt Rhule After Game; Cornhuskers Lose to Illini in Overtime

MORE: No. 24 Illinois beats No. 22 Nebraska in overtime

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