On a beautifully pleasant night in Memorial Stadium, the Nebraska Cornhuskers wasted an incredible Blackout fan experience by surrendering a lead with 90 seconds to play and lost 17-10 to the Washington Huskies. For the third game in a row, it was another inexplicable fourth quarter finish. The Huskers led Indiana 17-6 and lost 20-17, led Oregon 14-6 and lost 17-14, and led Washington 7-3 before gifting the Huskies a win.

The Huskers had a golden opportunity to end the 4th quarter drama when they began a drive at their own 16-yard line with :51 left in the third and in 11 plays moved to a first and goal at the Huskies 5-yard line. On the precipice of a 14-3 lead with just over 10 minutes to go, the Huskers were called for a delay of game, then Jacory Barney had a TD pass bounce off his hands, and then another miss at the 2, before Anthony Colandrea was sacked for an 8-yard loss. No problem, kick the field goal. But Kyle Cunanan’s chip shot 36-yard field goal was shanked wide right. A first-and-goal at the five opportunity and zero points. The doubts began to creep in as we’ve seen this story so many times.

But the Husker defense stepped up and ended the next Husky drive at the NU 42 forcing Washington to punt for the eighth time in nine possessions. Nebraska took over at their own 20-yard line with 6:03 to play. On the previous drive, the Huskers had run 6 times for 32 yards. Run out the clock and win the game. Jamal Rule gains 4 yards on first down and then the Huskers throw incomplete twice and go three and out burning just 1:34 of game clock. More doubt creeps into the cortex.

When Washington began the ensuing drive from their own 19-yard line with 4:29 to play, the Blackshirts had only surrendered 186 total yards to that point. The Huskies had converted just 3 of 12 on third downs and rushed for only 23 yards. Quarterback Demond Williams, who had come off the bench in the previous series, then scrambled for 17 yards on a 3rd and 15, before being sacked twice.  Facing 4th and 18 from the NU 49, the defense pressured Williams who threw up a prayer while falling backwards and Chris Lawson made a spectacular grab on the sideline getting a foot down for a 24-yard completion. Even though Victor Evans was draped over him, the impossible catch was made. An announcer said before the play that FBS teams were 3 for 38 on 4th down and 18+ to go plays this season. Nebraska found a way to defy the odds once again. Impossible, inexplicable, inexcusable, and intolerable…. Two plays later, Lawson evaded a defender and scored the winning 25-yard touchdown. You kind of knew it could happen, but no, not again. How could it?

Lawson also had a toe-tapping video review catch of 29 yards on the Huskies drive that led to a field goal just prior to intermission. He finished with 12 catches for 155 yards, both career highs. He was a difference maker in a game the Huskers were left wanting once again.

An obvious key prior to the game was to finish in the fourth. The Huskers were outscored 14-3 in this game and 39-10 in the fourth the last three games.  Head Coach Matt Rhule had no answers in his presser, except that you must score more than 7 points to win a Big Ten game. A great defensive performance was again wasted by the anemic offense.

As I reflect on the latest and greatest Husker meltdown, I was left to wonder why Anthony Colandrea was throwing deep so often early that led to interceptions on the first two Husker possessions. I was baffled by Luke Lindenmeyer aborting his route that led to the pick six at the end that sealed the Huskers fate. I was troubled by the repeated dropped balls by Husker receivers and why we went away from the running game when it was starting to gel late in the third. Both Colandrea and Jamal Rule were inches away from breaking long runs but were tripped at the last moment. I’m not sure what offensive coordinator Dana Holgerson’s game plan has been the last several games as there seems to be no flow or consistency. The wide receivers struggled throughout trying to separate from defenders, but the tight ends were open repeatedly across the middle. The injuries in the offensive line didn’t help but the elusive Colandrea was sacked just twice for -9 yards. How can you have a delay of game at the 5-yard line? How can Big Ten officials be so consistently poor that you can get homered as the home team? The officials weren’t the reason for the loss, but they were woefully inconsistent on how they called pass interference, holding and “hands to the face.”  Washington converted 5 of 15 on third down but gained four more first downs by penalties. Why did the coaches stick with placekicker Kyle Cunanan who has now missed field goals in each of the last three losses?

The offensive, defensive, and special team’s summaries will be very brief in this week’s droppings. Nebraska outyarded Washington 387-267 and held the Huskies to 32 rushing yards (an opponent season low). Nebraska opened the scoring with a 10-play, 95-yard scoring drive in the first quarter. The 95-yard drive was Nebraska’s longest of the season, bettering a 92-yard drive against Ohio.

Anthony Colandrea inked a new NIL deal and then played his worst game as a Husker going 24 for 44 for 255 yards with a TD and three picks. He netted just 20 yards rushing on 7 carries. At least he didn’t lead the team in rushing as Jamal Rule had 72 yards on 13 carries (a 5.5 yds per carry average). Tight end Carter Nelson caught a 24-yard TD pass in the first quarter, marking his first TD of the season and the second of his career (2024 vs. Northern Iowa). Receiver Nyziah Hunter had a season-high six receptions for 39 yards, increasing his career total to 105 receptions. Tight end Luke Lindenmeyer had five receptions for a career-high 61 yards, bettering his 60 yards against Michigan in 2025. It marked Lindenmeyer’s fifth straight game with at least three receptions. Jacory Barney caught just 6 passes on 11 targets for 65 yards including a 31-yarder to the 5-yard line.

Owen Chambliss led the defense with 7 tackles with Dwayne McDougle, Donovan Jones and Caleb Benning adding six a piece. Jahsear Whittington, Kate Pietrzak and Mason Goldman each had a sack with Riley Van Poppel and Vincent Shavers sharing the fourth sack. Whittington’s second quarter sack increased his team-leading sack total to 4.5. The team had 9 tackles for loss totaling -40 yards.

Kyle Cunanan’s missed field goal led to him being replaced by John Hohl who connected from 42 yards at the end of the game. I didn’t understand the reason behind Hohl’s second quarter squib kickoff that set up the Huskies at the 36-yard line.  Punter Archie Wilson had a 60-yard punt in the second quarter downed at the 3-yard line. It marked the third straight game Wilson has had a punt of at least 60 yards. Wilson averaged 49.8 yards on 5 punts with four downed inside the twenty. Jacory Barney had 46 yards on 4 returns with a long of 22 yards. The Washington punter, Hunter Green, was a weapon who kept the Huskers backed up on offense all night.

The fan base has a right to be frustrated. The crowd fully embraced the blackout and were loud throughout contributing to at least five Husky false starts. No matter how many times you get kicked in the groin, unless you are a masochist, you never learn to like it. The Husker faithful have suffered through decades of ineptitude yet keep coming back for more. How much more can they take? How many 5-1 season starts will be followed by 1-5 finishes? The Huskers missed their chance to get the elusive sixth win for bowl eligibility and stem the tide despite being more than a touchdown favorite. They now go on the road for three of their last four games. Husker fans were dreaming of three straight wins to get to 8-2 before playing Ohio State and Iowa. Some fantasies included 9 wins as a possibility. Reality can be a cruel taskmaster. It’s now a short turnaround next Friday against Illinois in Champaign and then the long trip to Piscataway against a Rutgers team that almost upset Michigan. Nothing will be easy, especially if the Huskers find themselves in another 7-3 rock fight with less than 5 minutes left in the game. Despite the dreary droppings, Go Big Red!!

Washington game page.