Losing to Michigan Hurt the Huskers, but About That Hail Mary …

On a different day with a different result, Nebraska’s successful and amazing Hail Mary pass would be talked about in a different context.

Jacory Barney Jr’s 52-yard reception at the end of the first half — on a beautiful pass from Dylan Raiola — tied the score at 17. That 21st-ranked Michigan went on to win, 30-27, and the Hail Mary was a bit lost in the aftermath. The Huskers suffered their first loss in four games this season and fell short of defeating a ranked team for the first time since 2016.

Still, what a highlight play.

“We run it every week in practice,” Barney said. “It was called. I was like, I just gotta do my assignment and do what I need to do."

“Dylan made a good throw. I made a good catch. I’m proud of it. It wasn’t enough.

“We got to make another play, just build off of it and go into next week. Continue to make plays like that and develop that trust with Dylan knowing that he’s got guys that he can depend on. And knowing that we got a quarterback that can make the throw. He put it right there.”

Four Nebraska players and five Michigan players were either in the busy end zone or just outside of it as Raiola’s pass arrived. There was a gathering, a leaping scrum, and Barney jumped in front of Michigan defenders and grabbed the ball.

Many football experts say the best way to defend a Hail Mary is to put as much pressure as possible on the quarterback. Don’t give him all day to pass. Don’t give him time, and don’t give him a clear vision of his target.

The CBS broadcast said Michigan came with a “four-man rush.” Raiola had plenty of time. He rolled right, under no pressure, and let it fly.

The play is pure desperation, but it does work. An ESPN report in 2019 said the play was successful once in every 12 attempts over the previous 10 years.

You might remember one of the top plays on the 2024 NFL season was when Washington’s Jayden Daniels defeated the Chicago Bears with a last-second Hail Mary to Noah Brown.

Timeout for Michigan?

Nebraska never should have been in a position for the Hail Mary. It happened, with one second to play in the half, because Michigan didn’t call what seemed to be an obvious timeout.

Nebraska called a timeout with 23 seconds left. On third-and-16, Huskers running back Emmett Johnson gained five yards. That’s when Michigan should have called a timeout and forced Nebraska to punt.

The Wolverines sat back. So did Nebraska, until it called its final timeout with one second left.

“Well, it was second-and-long, and the last thing I want to do is give them the ball back,” Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said.

“I let the clock run down … and called timeout so we could run a third-down play. The third-down play didn’t work out quite what we wanted, so I anticipated them calling timeout and trying to make us punt.

“Luckily for us our punter is pretty good about getting out of the pocket so I wasn’t worried about a block. I anticipated them calling a timeout with 12 or 13 seconds and trying to block the punt.

“When they didn’t do that I let the clock run down to 1 [second], called a timeout and said, ‘Throw the Hail Mary.’

“I didn’t want to … have any regrets that we didn’t try, that we didn’t try to play. I didn’t wanna go out there and play close.”

No momentum swing

The Huskers didn’t get any juice from the remarkable touchdown. Michigan outscored the Huskers, 13-10, in the second half.

In the third quarter, when momentum most likely would have swung to Nebraska, the Wolverines outscored the Huskers, 10-0, for a 27-17 lead. Michigan outgained Nebraska on the ground, 70 yards to five in the third quarter.

Nebraska wide receiver Jacory Barney Jr. (2) and wide receiver Nyziah Hunter celebrate after a touchdown against Michigan. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Michigan interim coach Biff Poggi was feeling pretty content, leading 17-10 on the road and with time dwindling in the half. It sure looked like the Wolverines would take the lead into halftime and then receive the second half kickoff.

Then, boom. And ecstasy in Memorial Stadium.

:01 LEFT
52 YARDS
TD pic.twitter.com/eDzuvUNbrv
— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFootball) September 20, 2025

“Sometimes those things happen,” Poggi said of the Hail Mary. “What’s most important is how do you respond from them?

“At halftime … before we went on the field … I said, ‘I know it’s 17-17, but physically, we’re beating the snot out of them. And we’re turning this into a heavyweight fight, and that’s going to be to our big advantage in the second half.’ And I think it was.”

Barney, who had two touchdowns receptions in the second quarter, finished with six catches on seven targets for 120 yards. He said it’s time for the Huskers put the loss behind them and move forward.

“Get in, watch the tape, see what we can get better at, finish drives,” Barney said. “And really just make one more play. They just made one more play than us.

“We just got to continue to build off this loss, get it out of the way and come together as a team and be ready for next week and be ready for everything else in the season.”

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