Nebraska football is right around the corner, with the Huskers being just 34 days away from opening their season against Cincinnati at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City.
There are a lot of expectations surrounding head coach Matt Rhule and his Huskers heading into his third season, a year in which has always been kind to Rhule and his staff during his time at Temple and Baylor.
Here are three bold takes for Nebraska heading into this upcoming season, each of which will get a little more bolder.
Dylan Raiola Surpasses 3,000 Passing Yards
For me at least, this take doesn’t seem as bold as it sounds, especially when you take a deep dive into the play of Raiola in 2024 and what he has set up for him in 2025.
Surrounded by questionable play calling and personnel issues, Raiola still managed to finish the 2024 season with 2,813 passing yards, which was the most by a true freshman quarterback in Nebraska history.
We all saw the potential that offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen brought to Nebraska when he took over play calling duties last November, a period in which Raiola completed around 70% of his passes.
Factor that in with the athletic weapons that Nebraska returns and brought in this offseason, such as Dane Key, Nyziah Hunter, Jacory Barney Jr. and Cortez Mills to name a few and Raiola will have lots of options in the passing game in 2025, not to mention an upgraded offensive line with National Championship experience.
Raiola would become the fifth Nebraska quarterback to surpass 3,000 passing yards in a single season.
Nebraska Starts the Season 8-0 (At least)
This take involves a little more koolaid to be consumed by Husker fans, actually it’s more like a lot of koolaid, but the Huskers schedule is set up for a big start.
Assuming the Huskers get past Cincinnati in week 1, their big test awaits them on September 21st, as Michigan comes into Memorial Stadium on a day where the Huskers will be recognizing the 1995 National Championship team.
If you can get past the stout Wolverines defense then you should be able to battle your way through Michigan State after a bye week, although the Huskers are notorious for losing games after their bye weeks in recent years.
The next big stretch comes in the form of back to back road games at Maryland and Minnesota, make it past them and Nebraska should have no issues with Northwestern at home.
Nebraska Makes the College Football Playoff
I promised these takes would get bolder and bolder, but this would be seen as a dream season for Husker fans in 2025, so why not?
In a season where you don’t have to play Oregon, Ohio State or Illinois, your toughest matchups on paper are Michigan and Penn State.
With the updated playoff format, we saw seven teams make their first College Football Playoff appearance last season, with the biggest shocker being Curt Cignetti’s Indiana squad.
There is no reason to believe the Huskers can’t shock the college football world and make their debut appearance in the playoff, history often has a way of repeating itself and the Huskers are a college football giant that has been asleep for a little over two decades.
Another thing to take note of, the Big Ten Conference holds a ton of weight when it comes to the selection committee, if they see a 10 or perhaps 11 win Nebraska team, it will be a hard conversation for the committee to have.