Nebraska is bowl eligible.

The most shameful run of football incompetence is FINALLY over. After nine straight losses following a fifth win in a season, Nebraska finally found a way to get that sixth win in a season. And honestly, there wasn’t really any doubt about the game after the first quarter.

Nebraska won just four games in 2017, 2018 and 2022. Three in 2020 and 2021. They lost to Iowa in 2019 after knocking off Maryland the week before. Last season, Nebraska finished 0 for November after winning the fifth game against Purdue in late October. The perennial losing streak became an albatross around the program, as Nebraska’s bowl ineligibility streak was the longest of any current Power Four conference football program. (Even Vanderbilt qualified for a bowl in 2018 and became bowl eligible for 2024 two weeks ago.)

Even more shocking, Nebraska’s offense finally emerged from a nearly two-month layoff to score a season-high 44 points. Clearly, Matt Rhule’s bold gamble to bring in Dana Holgorsen as offensive coordinator three weeks ago paid off this week. You saw some sparks on offense last week; this week it was almost an explosion. Gone was the lateral passing game that stagnated as the defense recognized Marcus Satterfield’s lack of interest in expanding the field. Holgorsen’s Air Raid philosophy was based on Satterfield’s playbook, where he got true freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola into a rhythm and didn’t have to worry about how many blitzers were sent his way. Add in a renewed emphasis on perimeter blocking by the receivers and tight ends and bringing in Emmett Johnson as the running back, and BOOM.

You have the Nebraska offense that we thought we would see in mid-September.

It wasn’t all sunshine and lollipops, however. The Blackshirt defense continues to be on a downward trajectory, allowing Wisconsin to throw for 292 yards this time, a week after the Badgers fired their offensive coordinator. Injuries and a bad flu certainly have their impact, but the Blackshirts haven’t had a good defensive performance since the Ohio State game a month ago. Injuries may not heal in a short week, but flu symptoms may work their way out of the program.

But getting the win against the program that Nebraska has faced the most since joining the Big Ten is a remarkable achievement. A trophy was created for this game, and Nebraska had never claimed it until this weekend. I know Iowa is the rivalry between the two, but continued losses to Wisconsin have been at the heart of the dissatisfaction with the direction of the football program for the past dozen years. Now, a win over the Badgers gives us hope that Nebraska football is finally moving in the right direction.

That brings it to the report, and as always your feedback is welcome in the comments.

QB: Three weeks ago I thought Dylan Raiola would have to sit out a series or two if he continued to struggle. Turns out he just needed another playcaller. Raiola was efficient and in control throughout the match after being put in a position to succeed by Holgorsen. We also saw Heinrich Haarberg come in to run several times, with Raiola splitting wide. I can’t help but think Holgorsen was arranging more things for Iowa defensive coordinator Phil Parker to get ready for this week. Haarberg has been a more efficient passer in limited play this season, so there are certainly options outside of the quarterback keeper if he comes into the game. Figure: A

I-back: Emmett Johnson got the start and emphatically staked a claim for the start on Blackshirt Friday, rushing for 113 yards while averaging 7.1 yards per carry. Add in his six catches for 85 yards, and that’s a sharp rush of 198 yards from No. 21. I would have liked to see Johnson get the ball more on Nebraska’s final two drives; he deserved to get above 200 meters. Dante Dowdell appears to have been relegated to short yardage back, which seems to suit his strength. Figure: A+

WR: The rise of the downfield passing game has brought Jahmal Banks and Isaiah Neyor back into the offense. And Jacory Barney is also becoming more productive. Thomas Fidone had a false start on Nebraska’s second drive of the game and never appeared to return to the game; that’s a situation worth keeping an eye on this week. It’s worth noting that the on-field blocking continues to improve. Figure: A

OLE: Solid play for the offensive line. No sacks and the Huskers ran for 180 yards. The only blemish was Micah Mazzzcua’s unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for spiking the ball after Dowdell’s first touchdown of the game. Figure: A-

DL: Ty Robinson had a big game with five tackles, while I thought Jimari Butler had a few good ones as well. Figure: b

L.B.: John Bullock had TWO huge fourth down stops that all but kept Wisconsin from getting back into the game. But there were also a lot of leaky runs that allowed Wisconsin to keep trying to make the game interesting. Figure: B-

Secondary: Considering how awful Wisconsin’s offense was, you hated seeing Nebraska unable to cover Wisconsin’s receivers…especially considering Wisconsin’s Will Pauling was out. A few notable highlights: DeShon Singleton with the interception and Blye Hill (uncredited in the stats) forcing the Wisconsin fumble just before halftime, resulting in three free points for the Big Red. Figure: D-

Special teams: I’ve been criticizing Nebraska’s refusal to return kickoffs fairly all season, so it’s time to honor Jacorey Barney’s return on the 45-yard kickoff. I still suspect Nebraska is still net negative on the season due to the kickoff returns, but this was a big play. Nebraska tried something different to set up a punt return, with Emmett Johnson running back Jacory Barney, resulting in a nine-yard return – the second longest of the season. John Hohl went three-for-three on a field goal, and Brian Buschini just keeps popping. The only downside was the coverage of the kick-off; Wisconsin had returns of 32 and 44 yards. Figure: b

Game management: This was strange on both sides of the field. Not sure why Nebraska wasted their challenge on Wisconsin’s first touchdown. You could see the replay people looked at the catch and determined it was a good touchdown; the replay monitor on the sideline made it clear that they were abandoning the play. And Nebraska’s end-of-game drive was… ODD. A knee on third down with more than a minute left meant Wisconsin would get the ball back. Just hand the ball off on third down and try to finish the game cleanly. Of course, Luke Fickell has to answer questions about why he didn’t take a knee with 16 seconds left before halftime. And…why not make it a two-point, two-point try game when it was 34-16? Then to go for two after Wisconsin’s deep bomb made it 37-23? What is the difference between being behind by 12 versus 13? Figure: D

Overall: B+ I can’t give an A if this Wisconsin team scored 25 points. But this was an excellent, cathartic victory for everyone involved in Nebraska football. There will be Husker football after Christmas, which means fifteen more practices for this program. Basically another spring exercise, which is huge for development.

“It’s not the X’s and the O’s; it’s the Jimmys and the Joes.’

That sentence is repeated as football truth… but it is complete nonsense. Nebraska’s offensive renaissance under Dana Holgorsen is just one example that X and O just matter more. And if you managed to get home sober enough to catch Oklahoma destroying Alabama last night, you saw exactly what the loss of Nick Saban has meant to three-loss Alabama. Alabama’s roster is still full of five-stars, but now they may be out of the College Football Playoff.

That’s not to say recruiting doesn’t matter; it does. Great chefs want the best ingredients to make the best dishes. In football it’s the same: great coaches who can also recruit the best players and build championship teams. That’s Saban. That’s Kirby Smart from Georgia. The opposite is true for every Southern Cal coach since Pete Carroll left…or for Texas coach between Mack Brown and Steve Sarkisian. And of course Jimbo Fisher.

I don’t know if Dana Holgorsen wants to become head coach again; the headache of NIL and boosters may be more than he wants to address. If he’s like Chip Kelly and just wants to coach ball, Nebraska needs to find a way to keep Holgorsen beyond this season. What we saw this week against Wisconsin should excite any Husker fan who has suffered through the clown show of Nebraska football after the Pelini era.