David Braun: 'Tip Your Hat' to Emmett Johnson, Nebraska Football's Return Game

Northwestern football could not contain the explosive plays from Nebraska's rushing attack and special teams as the Wildcats suffered a Big Ten setback on Saturday afternoon in Lincoln, Neb.

"You got to tip your hat to Nebraska as well. Emmett (Johnson) is a really good really good player, tough to tackle," Northwestern coach David Braun said in his postgame press conference following the Wildcats' 28-21 road loss at Nebraska on Saturday.

Emmett Johnson runs the ball against Northwestern. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Johnson finished with 27 carries for 124 rushing yards and two touchdowns, including the opening score and the game-winning touchdown, for Nebraska. The running back added two receptions for 15 yards in the home win for the Huskers, forcing Braun to concede that the Wildcats' defenders still had technique issues to improve.

"We can do a better job running our feet, you know. I think some of those early missed tackles, you can see our guys at the end, their feet are dying," Braun said. "We got to activate our feet through contact. Even the pile getting pushed a little bit early in the game, that's not who we are as a defense. (Defensive coordinator) Coach McGarigle addressed that with our guys."

Northwestern entered as a top 20 defense in total yards allowed per game, as well as allowing less than 150 yards per contest entering the Nebraska matchup. The Huskers finished with 155 yards on the ground while adding 141 passing yards. Braun noted the difference-maker in the contest came on special teams to start the second half.

"We knew special teams would play a critical role in the outcome of this game. Pretty neutral for most of the day other than Nebraska's kickoff return for a touchdown at the beginning of the half," Braun said.

Kenneth Williams peeks back during his 95-yard kickoff return . | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

"Huge momentum swing. Something that we're going to have to evaluate everything that we're doing there," said Braun. "We knew that Nebraska's return game was dangerous and that showed up. (I'm) proud of the way that our guys battled."

Nebraska's Kenneth Williams made the biggest impact on the game, beginning the second half with a 95-yard kick return for a touchdown. Braun added that two players on Northwestern's kickoff unit were "pinned inside" and "struggled to get off blocks," resulting in the score for the Huskers.

“That’s one that’s going to eat at me for a while,” said Braun of Williams' return touchdown.

Williams' kickoff return was not the last swing of the game, as Javin Wright's interception of Preston Stone prevented a score off a Northwestern interception from Dylan Raiola.

“What a swing of momentum and emotions there in the fourth quarter,” Braun said. “We’re in a position to, worst-case scenario, go kick a field goal. But you go from going up a touchdown to all of a sudden you're 10 yards back, you're out of field-goal range and it ends up resulting in an interception. Then our defense has a chance to get off the field. They had multiple third-and-longs and we weren’t able to get off the field.”

Donovan Jones celebrates his interception against Northwestern. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

Despite the loss, Northwestern was still productive offensively - especially in the rushing game. Caleb Komolafe ended his day in Lincoln with 17 carries for 125 rushing yards and two scores, including a 56-yard touchdown run in the second half. Komolafe's performance was his career-high and the first time the Wildcat runner eclipsed 100 rushing yards.

“We showed who we are as a team,” said Braun.

Nebraska clinched bowl eligibility for the second consecutive season on Saturday with a win, while Northwestern aims to find postseason eligibility in its next stop at USC. Braun added that the long wait will test the Wildcats' resolve for their next test.

"As a program we're going to have to respond. This one's going to sting for for a while or has the potential to sting for a while going into a bye week and we can't allow that to happen," Braun said. "Focus on the things that we can control daily improvement and position ourselves to be at our best for a road matchup with USC."

The Northwestern coach did not put the loss on his quarterback's shoulders, however, despite Preston Stone finishing 15-of-29 for 159 passing yards and two interceptions. Braun added that "Preston put our guys in a great situation" on the final drive that ultimately finished as a turnover on downs for the Wildcats on an incompletion. He added that his signal-caller is a "competitor, a winner" and that Northwestern would not have five wins through eight games without Stone.

The Wildcats move on to their bye week before beginning their next stretch of Big Ten play on the road at USC on Friday, Nov. 7.

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