The Huskers took the field New Year’s Eve afternoon with fire and focus. At the end of the first quarter everyone knew it was going to be a shootout, except the Huskers. After taking a 14-7 lead at the end of the first quarter and dominating on the ground the Huskers offense seemingly took a sabbatical. While the Nebraska offense stopped scoring, the Utah offense did not. With 9 minutes left in the 3rd quarter Utah was up 31-14 with no slow down in sight.
The Huskers run game showed promise early, rushing for 75 yards on the first 2 drives, but the inability for the Huskers to attempt to stretch the field allowed Utah to focus on the run and shutdown the Huskers rush game. Leaving TJ Lateef to have to attack through the air to lead a comeback but the true freshman couldn’t make the plays after being thrust into the spotlight.
The defense for Nebraska started out playing well on the defensive front but once Utah QB Devin Dampier started utilizing his feet the defense struggled just as they have done all year starting with game one vs Cincinnati.
There were some bright spots for the Huskers with the young talent, but for the most part it was complete dominance by the Utes, with at one point the Huskers went 30 minutes of gametime (thats one full half) without a first down. The young running back room showed promise as well as the offensive showed much improvement under newly hired Geep Wade.
This game was very representative of the Huskers season. They lit a candle that burned very strong then hid it under a bowl. Just as the season started out very strong, they did the same in this game but with back to back to back blowouts. It’s not reassuring if the Huskers are heading in the right direction or not. The transfer portal needs to be heavy on the Cornhuskers mind when it opens in three days.