The slide continues for Nebraska football.

After starting 5-0, the Huskers have now lost four straight. The latest came at the hands of Illinois, 24-13, on Friday in Champaign. That makes four straight wins for the Illini.

Nebraska is now 2-11 in the month of November since Matt Rhule took over.

The Game

Penalties derailed Nebraska's first two drives of the game.

On the opening drive, an illegal motion wiped out a first-down play. The Huskers then failed to convert and had to punt. On the next drive, a run to the Illinois 10-yard line was canceled out by a holding call. After picking up 14 yards over the next three plays, Rhule elected to have John Hohl attempt a 45-yard field goal.

It missed.

But the third drive was everything that Nebraska's offense has shown it can be. Starting back near their own goal line, the Huskers mixed passes with runs by Jamal Rule, Isaiah Mozee, and, finally, Mekhi Nelson. Nelson capped off the 98-yard drive with a 15-yard run.

But the Illinois offense had figured something out after punting on its first three drives.

The Illini only had one play that did not result in positive yards, marching 75 yards for the game-tying touchdown. It would be the start of four straight drives, taking out the one going into halftime, that ended with points for Illinois.

Nebraska's answer to the game being tied? A beautiful, penalty-free two-minute offense to get into Illini territory. However, again, a penalty shot the Husker offense in the foot. Instead of a first down, at the Illinois 16, Nebraska had third and 16 at the 36. After an incomplete pass, Hohl trotted out for the 54-yard field goal attempt.

It missed.

In the second half, with the Blackshirts having no answers for the Illinois offense, the Husker O continued to put up yards and struggled to find points.

A fourth and one saw Dana Holgorsen put his offense in an empty set. Anthony Colandrea threw an incomplete pass.

But the Big Red weren't without some luck. With a rush in his face, Colandrea threw a ball up for grabs deep downfield. Jacory Barney Jr. came up with among multiple defenders and took it into the end zone. Rhule elected to go for two, which failed.

Down by 11, Nebraska needed to work quickly, and be mistake free. Neither of those objectives were met.

The Huskers worked into Illinois territory, where Colandrea scrambled for a short run. But a personal foul on a block pushed the drive back. Nebraska failed to pick up the first down, with the Colandrea-to-Kwazi Gilmer pass falling to the turf to end the 5:29 drive.

Nebraska got the ball back one more time, but could not cross midfield and threaten to score again.

The Stats

Nebraska outgained Illinois 426 yards to 376. The Blackshirts held the Illini rush to under 100 yards (84), while the Huskers rushed for 142.

For the second straight game, Colandrea put the ball in the air more than 40 times. He completed 32-of-43 passes for 284 yards and a touchdown. He did not throw an interception.

On the other side, Katin Houser went 22-for-36 for 292 yards and three touchdowns though the air.

On the ground, Rule led all rushers with 69 yards on 15 carries. Barney led all Husker pass-catchers with six receptions for 93 yards and a touchdown.

The Illini were led by Collin Dixon's eight receptions for 129 yards a pair of touchdowns. Aidan Laughery paced the ground attack, with 11 carries for 55 yards.

What's Next

Nebraska stays on the road next Saturday to take on Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights are 2-6 and play at Wisconsin on Saturday.

Kickoff next week is set for 11:30 a.m. CST on the Big Ten Network.

Nebraska Athletics Postgame Notes

• With the Illinois victory, Nebraska now leads the all-time series 14-8-1, including 5-4-1 in Champaign. Tonight’s result ended a streak of three straight victories by the road team in the series.

• Nebraska scored on a 10-play, 98-yard drive in the second quarter. It marked NU’s longest drive of the season in terms of yards. It also marked the second straight week the Huskers have had a TD drive of 95+ yards after having a 95-yard scoring drive vs. Washington.
• Nebraska limited Illinois to 84 rushing yards, including only 11 yards in the first half. It marked the sixth time this season NU has held its opponent to less than 100 yards rushing.
• Mekhi Nelson scored on a 15-yard TD run in the second quarter, marking his fifth rushing touchdown of the season and his sixth overall touchdown in 2026.

• Defensive end Jordan Ochoa had a 10-yard sack in the second quarter, marking the first full sack of his career. He had previously split a sack against Akron in 2025.
• Quarterback Anthony Colandrea passed for 284 yards and had 27 rushing yards to account for 311 yards of total offense. He surpassed 11,000 career total offense yards in tonight’s game and is now at 11,183 career yards. He entered the game seventh in the FBS in career total offense.
• Receiver Jacory Barney Jr. had six catches for 93 yards. He caught a 51-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter, which tied for the longest reception by a Husker this season.

• Receiver Quinn Clark had a career-high three receptions totaling 20 yards.
• Receiver Nyziah Hunter tied his career high with six receptions for the second straight game. Hunter finished with 32 receiving yards.
• Center Justin Evans made his 40th career start. He is the fifth offensive lineman in school history to make 40 or more career starts (Bryce Benhart – 54; Jeremiah Sirles – 41; Brenden Jaimes – 40; Turner Corcoran – 40).

• Tight end Luke Lindenmeyer had five receptions in the game, increasing his career total to 66, moving him into third place on the NU career tight ends receptions list.
• Andrew Marshall had one pass breakup, giving him a pass breakup in four straight games. He is the first Husker with a pass breakup in four consecutive games since Malcolm Hartzog Jr. in 2023.