Nebraska at Illinois Postgame: 426 Yards, Two Missed Kicks and a 24 to 13 Loss

More yards. More first downs. Fewer points.

Nebraska football outgained Illinois 426 to 376 Friday night in Champaign and still lost 24 to 13. Two missed field goals and three failed fourth downs left points on the field, while Illinois went 4 for 4 in the red zone. The Huskers fall to 5 and 4 overall and 2 and 4 in the Big Ten. That’s four straight losses.

The drives that came up empty

Nebraska moved the ball all night. 25 first downs to 19. Nearly 32 minutes of possession. No turnovers.

It just didn’t finish. John Hohl missed from 45 yards at the end of an 11 play drive in the first quarter, then from 54 just before half. In the third, down 14 to 7, the Huskers drove to the Illinois 25 and threw incomplete on 4th and 1. Late in the fourth, down 11, a 4th and 3 shot from the Illinois 34 was broken up.

Nebraska went 1 for 4 on fourth down and was flagged 11 times for 82 yards.

The run that flipped it

It was 7 to 7 at the half, and the Blackshirts had held Illinois to 11 rushing yards in the first 30 minutes.

Then Illinois faced 4th and 12 at the Nebraska 32 on its opening drive of the third. Punter Lars Rau kept it and ran 29 yards to the 3. Katin Houser found Jordan Anderson for the touchdown three plays later, and Illinois led the rest of the way.

Houser finished 22 of 36 for 292 yards and three scores. Collin Dixon was the problem all night with 8 catches for 129 yards and two touchdowns, including a 58 yarder that set up the field goal that made it 24 to 13.

Colandrea kept swinging

Anthony Colandrea went 32 of 43 for 284 yards, a touchdown and no interceptions, and added 27 on the ground. That’s 311 yards of total offense, and it pushed him past 11,000 for his career (11,183!).

His best throw came early in the fourth. Down 21 to 7, Nebraska went 91 yards in seven plays, and Colandrea hit Jacory Barney Jr. deep down the middle for a 51 yard touchdown. That ties the longest Husker catch of the season. The two point try failed.

Barney finished with 6 catches for 93 yards plus 89 more in returns. Jamal Rule ran for 69 yards and caught 5 passes.

The Huskers’ only other score was a beauty. Pinned at their own 2 in the second quarter, they went 98 yards in 10 plays, the longest scoring drive of the season, and Mekhi Nelson finished it with a 15 yard run.

The defense did its part

Illinois ran for 84 yards on 29 carries. That’s the sixth time this season Nebraska has held an opponent under 100.

Vincent Shavers Jr. led the team with 7 tackles. Jordan Ochoa picked up a 10 yard sack, the first full sack of his career, and Cameron Lenhardt added another. Andrew Marshall broke up a pass for the fourth straight game, the first Husker to do that since Malcolm Hartzog Jr. in 2023.

Up front, center Justin Evans made his 40th career start, joining Bryce Benhart, Jeremiah Sirles, Brenden Jaimes and Turner Corcoran as the only Nebraska offensive linemen to get there.

What it leaves behind

A week ago the question after Nebraska vs Washington Postgame: 15 Seconds, Two Touchdowns and a 17 to 10 Loss was whether this team could close a fourth quarter. Friday it never got the chance to protect a lead. Indiana by three. Oregon by three. Washington by seven. Illinois by 11.

Husker Nation, next Saturday at Rutgers tells us whether this offense can turn yards into points before the skid hits five.