Dave Feit: How Does Nebraska Get Past the ‘Nightmare on Vine Street’?

I've never been a fan of formulaic, slasher style horror movies. A bad guy with a complicated origin story terrorizes a town, killing everyone in sight - usually in the most ridiculously gory ways imaginable. The various movie franchises in this genre (Friday the 13th, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Scream, Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, and others) have combined for dozens of films over the years.

As far as I'm concerned, if you've seen one, you've seen them all. I remember watching one of the sequels (Friday the 13th Part VI? Nightmare on Elm Street 4?) at a friend's house thinking "I've seen this movie before."

On Saturday night, Memorial Stadium was transformed into a house of horrors. In theory, it should have a frightfully delightful celebration. Halloween night, a blackout game, an incredibly raucous crowd that stood and screamed for nearly 60 minutes. The elements were all there for a feel-good script that Nebraska fans have not seen in years (if not decades).

But early in the fourth quarter, I had that familiar thought once again: "I've seen this movie before."
First-and-goal at the five, with the chance to go up 14-3. The way the defense was playing, a touchdown would have been a knockout blow.

Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule walks off the bus before the game. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

What happened next was straight out of a GEICO Insurance parody commercial. In that ad, four teens are running from an unseen killer. One wants to hide in the attic of a creepy looking house. Another suggests the basement. A girl - in a voice that is equal parts fear and exasperation - asks "why can't we just get in the running car?" The fourth friend responds, "Are you crazy? Let's hide behind the chainsaws!"

A delay of game pushed NU back to the 10. At this point, any hope of running the ball was abandoned like the running car in the commercial. Instead, Nebraska chose to hide behind the chainsaws. Anthony Colandrea threw two incompletions before taking a silly sack on third down. The icing on the cake was Kyle Cunanan's missed field goal from 36 yards.

The only thing missing from the stereotypical horror movie experience was a lady in the third row yelling "DON'T GO IN THERE! HE'S BEHIND THE DOOR!

But Nebraska - stupidly, and painfully unaware of the consequences - went in there. Again.

The defense that was so incredible all night long gave up conversions on third-and-14 and fourth-and-18. An ill-advised corner blitz became a 25-yard touchdown that gave Washington their first lead of the night. With a chance to drive down the field for a tying field goal (or winning touchdown), Nebraska gave up a pick-six.

Welcome to "Nightmare on Vine Street, Part 47."

Be on the lookout for Part 48, coming soon to a stadium near you.

Things I believe

Husker fans deserve better.

Saturday - much like the Indiana game - should have been one of the games that fans talk about for decades.

Let's start with the atmosphere. Regardless of what has happened on the field, it is clear that the blackout game needs to be an annual tradition. The environment was incredible. The athletic department did a great job with the big (the Blackshirts logo at midfield), the small (Herbie Husker was dressed in all black), and everything in between (the Huskers came out to "Back in Black" while the Tunnel Walk video was played in black and white).

Unfortunately, the extreme attention to detail seemed to stop at the Husker sideline.

The 86,097 fans in attendance understood the assignment: wear black, be loud, and don't quit until the end. I wish somebody tracked peak decibel readings for each game, because this game would be high on the list. Fans stood and yelled for the entire game. If you told me Husker Nation tried to scream this team to a victory, I'd believe you (as would my raspy voice).

But sometimes it feels like the fan base wants it more than the players and coaches do.

Guy picking up plastic bottle — A staffer picks up trash thrown on the field by fans after Washington's comeback. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Depending on your perspective, the crowd was not perfect. Boos rained down - some of which seemed to be directed at individual Husker players and/or the team. There was an elementary school aged girl in our section who likely learned a lot of new words. And after Washington took the lead, NU's public address announcer had to (repeatedly) tell fans not to throw things onto the field.*

*The majority of the items came from the student sections in the southeast corner, but a few water bottles came flying from the north as well. In my mind, there's no justification for throwing things on the field… even if it happened at the end of one of the most painfully frustrating meltdowns in the history of the stadium.

Between the renovations, reseat, and on-field regression, there are a ton of frustrated fans out there. I am one of them.

I wish I had answers on when - or if - our passion and loyalty will be rewarded. The best I have is to appreciate the joyful dominance of the volleyball team, and hope the basketball team can maintain some of last year's magic.

Because Matt Rhule's history (and NU's schedule) says November could be rough.

I have bad news for those of you who want Rhule fired.

Let's be blunt for a minute. Barring an incredibly extreme set of circumstances, Matt Rhule is going to be Nebraska's head coach in 2027.

I am not here to defend Rhule's honor or tell you why he should or should not be retained. Instead, we're going to talk about some indisputable facts.

Rhule's buyout is first. If he is fired at the end of the season, Nebraska would owe him 90% of his base salary for the remainder of his contract. The good news is Rhule's 2026 base is "only" $4,781,250. But thanks to the contract extension Rhule signed last year, his deal now runs through 2032, when his base salary will be $9,375,000. The current grand total for his buyout is a little over $52.2 million.

Speaking of that contract extension… As I wrote at the time, when Troy Dannen signed Rhule to that new deal, he effectively handcuffed his Nebraska career to Rhule. They will succeed - or fail - as one. I don't see how Dannen could fire Rhule and still keep his job. Therefore, much like Shawn Eichorst and Mike Riley in 2017, the AD would likely precede the coach out the door. Dannen's current buyout is around $7 million.

That's close to $60 million before buying out assistants and coordinators, hiring a new staff, and - oh, by the way - the Memorial Stadium renovation project that will cost around $600 million.

As for the "incredibly extreme set of circumstances" I mentioned that could result in a firing this year… More than likely, that means a) losing out and/or b) somebody willing to cover a large portion of the buyout(s). I'm upset about the three-game skid, but I'm not $60 million mad.

Nebraska can't stop committing costly penalties.

Nebraska was penalized eight times for 74 yards on Saturday. That is right at their season averages. But once again, some of those penalties were absolute killers.

Early in the second quarter, Caleb Benning got his first career intercept… nope. Dwayne McDougle III was offsides. On the same drive, an illegal hand to the face call helped the Huskies convert a third down.

Before halftime, Andrew Marshall was called for pass interference. From my seat in the opposite end zone, it looked like the receiver fell down on an uncatchable ball. Regardless, that drive ended with a Washington field goal.

In the fourth, Nebraska was driving the ball. Jacory Barney Jr. made a catch and was running laterally across the field. Kwazi Gilmer made a very avoidable blindside block that cost NU 15 yards. After Barney got the ball to the five, NU had a delay of game penalty* that set up a disastrous first-and-goal sequence.

*A quick pause to appreciate the bitter irony of Rhule NOT using one of his timeouts in a situation that likely called for it.

Two scoring drives negatively impacted by penalties. Again.

Things I don't know

What can be done to fix Nebraska's stagnant offense?

Let's start with some numbers. In NU's three losses, the Blackshirts have allowed 20, 17, and 17 points. Coming into this season, Rhule was 17-4 at NU when the Huskers have given up 17 points or less. I'll take my chances with that, and you should too.

The problem is that the Huskers have scored, 17, 14, and 10 points in those three games. Prior to this three-game skid, Rhule was 2-14 when Nebraska failed to score more than 17 points. The number is now 2-17.

I don't think it is realistic to ask the defense to do too much more. The offense needs to score some more dadgum points.

But how?

As much as fans may want it, Nebraska is not going to fire Dana Holgorsen now*. Yes, Marcus Satterfield was demoted from the OC job nearly two years ago to the day, but that happened during an idle week, not a few days before travelling to Illinois for a Friday night game.

*Holgorsen being let go after the season - or even after the Illinois game - is a completely different story. But let's stick with the short term.

Jamal Rule is tackled after breaking into the Washington secondary during the third quarter. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

When Holgorsen first took over, he did two key things: 1) he simplified what Nebraska was trying to do, and 2) he figured out who Nebraska's best weapon was and put the ball in his hands.

Today, Nebraska seems to have a lot of plays that get run once or twice and then disappear. Figure out what works, perfect that, and shelve the rest. NU can't install a new offense in November, but there is plenty of room to improve the execution and attention to detail.

As for the best weapon… I don't see an Emmett Johnson on this team. Jamal Rule is the first name that comes to mind, but his nagging injuries suggest that a 25-touch workload might not be feasible. Otherwise, who do you pick?

All I know is If Nebraska wants to get back into the win column, they must score more points.

Why didn't Anthony Colandrea run more?

Against Washington, Colandrea was credited with seven carries. Adjusting for his two sacks, he ran five times for 29 yards. For perspective, Colandrea has had eight or more carries in 29 of the 41 college football games he has played.

As you may recall, Colandrea only had four carries in the Bowling Green and North Dakota games earlier this year, but NU won those games by 49 and 27 points, respectively. Coming into the Washington game, he was averaging 12.5 carries against Big Ten teams.

Yes, I am aware that I am tiptoeing right up to the threshold of hypocrisy, considering that after the Oregon game I asked if Nebraska was having him run too much. While overuse (and injury) is still very much a concern, on Saturday I kept waiting for Colandrea to take matters into his own… legs and try to make a play - either on a designed run or a scramble. I wouldn't be surprised if several players in black jerseys were waiting for the same thing.

There were a few designed runs in the first half, one of which was a shoelace tackle away from a big gain or touchdown.

But after halftime, Colandrea had two carries: a one-yard gain in the third quarter and a sack on third-and-goal in the fourth quarter.

I don't know if that was due to Dana Holgorsen's play calling or if Colandrea wasn't playing at 100%. After the game, Colandrea declined to speak with the media, so we're left to speculate.

Does Nebraska win if Colandrea gets two or three more carries in the second half? Probably not. But what if those runs resulted in first downs that kept Nebraska from punting, or burned another 90 seconds of clock?

Why did the pass game struggle?

Let's start by acknowledging the obvious: Nebraska threw the ball way too much on Saturday. Last year at Minnesota, it was considered offensive malpractice when the Huskers attempted 25 passes (not including their nine sacks). Against Washington, Nebraska threw the ball 44 times, 36 of which came before Washington took the lead. We all agree that NU relied on the pass too much.

But the question is why didn't those passes work? Clearly, Holgorsen thought NU would have success through the air (either that, or he REALLY doesn't trust the ground game). So, why did NU end up 24-44 (54.5%) passing with three interceptions?

Pass breakup — Washington cornerback Emmanuel Karnley breaks up a pass to Nebraska wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer during the third quarter. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

For the most part, Colandrea had a decent amount of time to throw. He was sacked twice and hurried three times. (For comparison, the Blackshirts sacked Husky quarterbacks four times and had eight hurries.) There were a few dropped passes, but I don't think was an excessive amount.

I'm torn between pointing the finger at Colandrea's accuracy or the receivers getting open. Without reviewing an all-22 tape, it didn't feel like Nebraska had guys running wide open through the U-Dub secondary. At the same time, Colandrea had some bad throws. A deep shot in the first half was underthrown. A back shoulder route was thrown to the wrong side. A goal line slant pass to Barney was thrown at his ankles before Barney knew it was coming.

Three interceptions (including a fourth offset by penalty) suggest accuracy issues… except that I can't prove the receivers ran the correct route (or didn't quit before the ball arrived).

Look: I know it is easy to look at 22-44-3 passing line and shout "run the dadgum ball!" And for the most part, I'm with you. But Nebraska cannot completely abandon the forward pass. They just have to correct their issues.

Huskerigami Update

A “Huskerigami” is a final score combination (win or lose) that has never happened in the 130+ year history of Nebraska football.

Final score: 17-10

Is that a Huskerigami? YES! Believe it or not (and I have quadruple checked) Nebraska has never played a game that finished with a score of 17-10. This is the 584th unique score combination in Nebraska history, and the first Huskerigami of the season.

5 Things I loved

Husker fans. Six of Washington's eight penalties were false starts. I said it before and I'll say it again: We were 90 seconds away from the 2026 blackout game being talked about with the same reverence as the 1992 Colorado game.
Blackshirts. My feelings on the defense are the same as after the Oregon game. They did more than enough to win. Technically, the late go-ahead score happened on their watch, but the offense is hanging them out to dry by not being able to score points, or sustain drives, or even burn clock.
Mason Goldman. In a perfect world, Goldman's sack on third down (setting up fourth-and-18) would have been the play of the game. In the bizarro hellscape that is Nebraska football, he now joins Andy Janovich as Gretna alums whose memorable moment was overshadowed by a late game collapse.
Jamal Rule. I don't know if it a week off to rest or Holgorsen's not-so-subtle comments about playing through pain, but the freshman looked like the explosive, yet powerful back we saw in September. Rule gained 72 yards on 13 carries, but had a total of two touches in the second and third quarters.
Archie Wilson. Washington's punter (Hunter Green) was fantastic. Before the fourth quarter, Green was likely to be U-Dub's MVP. Archie Wilson out-performed him. Arch averaged 49.8 yards on five kicks (better than Green's 48.9 on eight punts), put a higher percentage inside the 20, had no touchbacks, and bested Washington's net punting by nine yards per kick.

Honorable mention: Donovan Jones, Owen Chambliss, Caleb Benning, Kade Pietrzak, Victor Evans III, Jahsear Whittington, Whittington's sack dance, Vincent Shavers Jr., Carter Nelson, Riley Van Poppel throwing the bones, Jacory Barney Jr., John Hohl, the students in the inflatable dinosaur costumes, Husker volleyball, and the guy in the Kenny Bell Afro wig.

5 Areas for improvement

Dana Holgorsen. Holgorsen's weekly press conferences are known for his blunt honesty, so I'll take the same approach. When two of your quarterback's first five throws end in interceptions, you'd be a damn fool to make downfield passing a cornerstone of your offensive game plan. And yet, that's what happened.
Anthony Colandrea. I'm thrilled he has re-signed for 2027, and I have zero reason to believe that impacted his play Saturday. But this was a horrible time his worst game as a Cornhusker. You may care about the local media getting quotes for their stories, but declining to answer questions after the game is a tough look for accountability and culture.
Kyle Cunanan. Any kick inside 40 yards has to be automatic. The kicker gets the blame (and hears the boos), but that goes for the snap and holder too.
Turnovers. It is nearly impossible to win when you are minus three in turnovers. This is the one thing I'll criticize the defense for.
Litterbugs. I completely understand the anger, frustration, disappointment, and more felt by Husker fans during that ugly collapse. I do not understand the purpose of throwing water bottles (and other items) onto the field. Next time, do what I did: yell a profanity, walk back to the car in stunned silence, and then eat lukewarm pizza like you're Urban Meyer.

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