It’s time for a night game at Memorial Stadium, people. Can you feel it?
Nebraska continues its season-opening homestand Saturday night against Bowling Green and this one should feel a little different from last week’s 11 a.m. sauna. It’s a night game at Memorial Stadium and the Huskers get another chance to show what carried over from the second half against Ohio.
The opener was not perfect but Nebraska did score touchdowns on its final five possessions, found some pop in the running back room and watched Anthony Colandrea settle into his first start with the Huskers.
Now the question is pretty simple: can Nebraska look cleaner, earlier?
Nebraska vs. Bowling Green
When: Saturday, Sept. 12 | 6:05 p.m. CT
Where: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
TV: FS1
TV crew: Eric Collins, Spencer Tillman
Radio: Huskers Radio Network
Radio crew: Kyle Crooks, Jay Moore, Jessica Coody
Streaming audio: Huskers.com / Official Huskers App
Records: Nebraska 1-0; Bowling Green 0-1
Last week: Nebraska defeated Ohio, 49-21; Bowling Green lost to Tarleton State, 20-13
Series: First meeting
Weather: Much better than last week. Forecasts show temperatures in the mid-to-upper 70s around kickoff, with light-to-moderate wind and a small chance of showers. It should cool into the upper 60s or low 70s by late game.
Setting the scene
Nebraska got what it needed in Week 1, even if it took a little bit to look that way.
The Huskers led Ohio just 14-13 at halftime before taking control over the final two quarters. Nebraska finished with 523 total yards, including 248 rushing and 275 passing, and the offense scored touchdowns on each of its final five drives after an opening punt in the second half. That is the good.
The less-good? Penalties, some early defensive issues, quarterback contain and special teams details that did not hurt Nebraska but also did not exactly help.
Matt Rhule was pretty direct about that this week.
“Happy about the fact that our guys went out and outscored them 42-8, but with all that being said, you know, we have some areas that showed up in that game that weren’t good enough,” Rhule said.
Bowling Green arrives in Lincoln 0-1 after losing to Tarleton State, but the Falcons moved the ball well enough to get Nebraska’s attention. They had 366 total yards, including 262 through the air, and completed 24 of 30 passes.
The Falcons are led by Eddie George, the 1995 Heisman Trophy winner, who is in his second season at Bowling Green after coaching Tennessee State from 2021 to 2024.
Rhule on the week
On what Nebraska needs to clean up:
“Penalties and tackling show up. Penalties, tackling and the kicking game.”
On Colandrea’s debut:
“I thought Anthony (Colandrea) was excellent in the game, the backed up throw was his biggest throw you can make in a game. He ran the football, on some of the runs that is needed. Came out, called a couple deep plays, took the checkdown. One was to Jacory (Barney), he got a 12 to 13 yard gain, kept the chains moving. One was to Mekhi (Nelson), which he scored on. I thought he showed a lot of maturity, he’s my type of quarterback. I like the way he plays, I also like his ability to adjust in the game and will have to continue to do that.”
On the defense after Ohio:
“I thought it was good, it wasn’t great, it was good.”
On Bowling Green:
“A tough, physical team, played a battle last week. Quarterback was excellent, (Jay) Kastantin. Got a diverse run game, excellent run game. They’ll challenge you, great blocking tight ends, receiving tight ends.”
On night games at Memorial Stadium:
“Excited to have a night game. I think there’s nothing quite like Memorial Stadium at night.”
Storylines to remember
The second-half offense is the starting point
Nebraska’s offense can move the ball. It proved that against Ohio.
The Huskers topped 500 yards, went over 200 yards rushing and passing, and showed more explosiveness than they have at times in recent years. The final five drives were the real headline: five possessions, five touchdowns, 9.2 yards per play. Now the trick is getting there sooner.
A one-point halftime lead against Ohio isn’t the end of the world, but it did leave Nebraska with something to correct. Bowling Green should give the Huskers another chance to build rhythm, especially if the offensive line takes a step forward and the run game starts rolling before the fourth quarter.
The running back room got interesting fast
Jamal Rule was the breakout name of Week 1 and for good reason. The freshman had 122 rushing yards, 47 receiving yards and three total touchdowns in his college debut. That made him the first Husker freshman running back to top 100 yards in a season opener since 2004, and the first Big Ten freshman since 2021 to record two rushing touchdowns and one receiving touchdown in the same game.
Mekhi Nelson was plenty important too, finishing with 129 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns. Isaiah Mozee ripped off a 24-yard run on Nebraska’s first offensive play, even if the carries were harder to find after that.
The question this week is not whether Rule is good. We saw enough to know he has something special. It is how Nebraska distributes the work now that there are multiple backs with a case.
Rhule said Nebraska feels like it has three backs it can play. Saturday should give us a better idea of what that actually looks like.
Colandrea’s encore matters
Anthony Colandrea’s debut was not flawless but it was pretty encouraging. He threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns, ran for another score and, maybe most importantly, showed the kind of restraint offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen wanted to see. The checkdowns, the willingness to take the available play and the ability to adjust after the game settled down all mattered.
The arm talent is obvious, as is his confidence. The next step is stacking good decisions.
Bowling Green’s secondary is not the biggest group Nebraska will see, and the Falcons gave up some room through the air in Week 1. The Huskers should have opportunities with Jacory Barney, Kwazi Gilmer, Nyziah Hunter and the rest of the pass catchers.
The defense wants to feel faster
Rob Aurich’s first game as Nebraska’s defensive coordinator had some good, some fine and some things Nebraska clearly wants tightened. The Huskers were strong over the final stretch against Ohio, allowing just 132 yards and eight points on the Bobcats’ final eight drives. That is the version Nebraska wants to build from.
But the quarterback run game and scramble situations were an issue. Rhule pointed to tackling and angles. Nebraska also wants to see more from the pass rush without needing to rely heavily on pressure calls.
Bowling Green quarterback Jay Kastantin gives the Huskers another test there. He can move, and the Falcons use their tight ends well enough that Nebraska’s linebackers and defensive backs will need to communicate.
Rhule said he wants the defense to become suffocating. Week 2 is a chance to get closer to that.
Special teams need to join the party
Special teams did not lose Nebraska the Ohio game. That’s the good news. That said, they also didn’t give the Huskers much of an edge.
There were kickoff coverage penalties and a kick return decision that started Nebraska inside its own 10. There was also a punt that got a little too interesting. None of it turned into disaster, but all of it is the kind of thing that shows up on a Week 1 correction list.
Nebraska has made clear it wants special teams to become a strength. Saturday would be a good time to start showing it, especially against a Bowling Green program with a recent history of blocking punts.
The answer was so easy
For the first time since 2023, Bowling Green did not return the opening kickoff of its season for a touchdown. Yes, that happened in 2024 and 2025, an oddity that perhaps had a karmic cost, payable later.
What the numbers say
5 — Nebraska scored touchdowns on each of its final five possessions against Ohio.
8 — The Huskers had eight offensive plays of 20 yards or more in the opener.
329 — Jamal Rule, Mekhi Nelson and Isaiah Mozee combined for 329 yards from scrimmage against Ohio.
523 — Nebraska’s total offense in Week 1, its most in 11 games.
53-12 — Nebraska’s all-time record in home night games at Memorial Stadium.
258 — Bowling Green allowed 258 rushing yards in its opener against Tarleton State.
Odds and ends
>> Nebraska is 6-0 all-time against current MAC teams, including last week’s win over Ohio.
>> This is the first meeting between Nebraska and Bowling Green.
>> Bowling Green’s offense completed 24 of 30 passes last week, so the Huskers’ coverage and tackling in space will matter.
>> Nebraska had eight pass breakups against Ohio, its most since recording nine against Rutgers in 2024.
>> Dexter Foster had five tackles in the opener, pushing him to 100 for his career.
>> Nebraska will also host North Dakota under the lights on Sept. 19, making Saturday the first of two straight home night games.
So, here we are again on another football game day. It’s also the first night game of the season, and another chance for Nebraska to clean up the messy parts and build on the fun ones.
The opener gave the Huskers a win. This week should tell us a little more about how quickly they can grow from it. Should be an interesting one.