How Every Nebraska Defender Graded Out Against Indiana on PFF

A few broken plays took away from an otherwise stellar performance by the Big Red.

Although Nebraska allowed just 328 yards and 20 points in Saturday's loss to Indiana, 199 yards and 17 points came on four plays. Coordinator Rob Aurich, linebacker Owen Chambliss, and the rest of the Blackshirts know it, but there's no time to dwell on what could've been. The Huskers must prepare for their second straight matchup against a ranked opponent next Saturday night.

Nineteen Husker defenders saw action in NU's 20-17 loss. Here are their final snap counts and grades, courtesy of Pro Football Focus. (Go here for the offensive grades.)

Player	Class	Snaps	Run Grade	Tackling	Pass Rush	Coverage	Overall
Stoudmire	6th	39	68.2	72.2	60.3	60.1	66.5
A. Jones	5th	37	47.3	75.7	57.8	62.6	52.5
Whittington	3rd	36	61.2	69.7	59.8	59.9	60.7
Nwaneri	3rd	34	64.5	-	58.5	60.8	63.1
Pietrzak	2nd	12	60.4	23.8	61.2	-	61.9
Lenhardt	4th	10	60.4	-	56.8	60.0	59.6
Berymon	1st	6	66.1	69.7	58.8	-	67.5
Terry	2nd	6	-	-	57.0	-	57.0
Goldman	4th	6	65.0	69.7	57.3	-	65.7
Duda	3rd	1	-	-	-	-	-

Defensive Line

Riley Van Poppel missed Saturday's contest, but Nebraska still held Indiana's elite rushing offense to 65 yards. Hoosiers running backs Lee Beebe Jr. and Turbo Richard combined for just 41 yards on 17 attempts after totaling more than 1,100 rushing yards in Indiana's first five games.

That's a big reason Nebraska held the lead for as long as it did, yet it still wasn't enough. NU's defensive line struggled to affect the opposing quarterback, though UCLA transfer Anthony Jones tied for the team lead with two quarterback hurries and was credited with two quarterback hits.

The Big Red entered the game as the Big Ten's leader in sacks but managed to bring Indiana's quarterback Josh Hoover down only twice. One of those sacks was credited to Boston College transfer Owen Stoudmire, who played a season-high 39 snaps. Hoover also finished with the most rushing yards he had totaled since September 2025, when he was still at TCU.

Player	Class	Snaps	Run Grade	Tackling	Pass Rush	Coverage	Overall
Chambliss	4th	46	83.0	81.8	55.1	70.5	78.0
Shavers	3rd	28	64.6	51.1	60.6	62.2	64.7
Foster	3rd	21	70.5	77.5	56.5	56.4	61.7

Linebacker

For the third straight week, San Diego State transfer linebacker Owen Chambliss was Nebraska's best defensive player on the field. He led all Husker linebackers with an 81.8 tackling grade and ranked second on the team in overall grade at 78.0.

Chambliss has now either tied for the team lead or finished second in tackles in all three of the Big Red's conference games. He's one of the most experienced players on NU's defense, and he's played like it through the first half of the season. It's hard to imagine the Blackshirts looking as formidable as they have without him on the field.

Vincent Shavers added a sack and three solo tackles against the Hoosiers, while Dexter Foster was the only other linebacker to see the field. When the going gets tough, it seems that trio of upperclassmen is who Aurich trusts most. That's worth noting considering how much production sophomore linebacker Dawson Merritt has totaled this season.

Player	Class	Snaps	Run Grade	Tackling	Pass Rush	Coverage	Overall
Marshall	4th	46	74.0	79.8	60.0	70.3	72.9
Evans	4th	45	70.7	24.8	57.7	42.3	45.9
McDougle	5th	45	77.3	70.1	76.8	58.3	69.6
Jones	3rd	43	54.8	34.0	65.3	58.3	58.4
Benning	3rd	28	64.5	82.4	-	89.4	89.9
Conn	4th	17	65.8	78.9	-	66.6	69.9

Defensive Backs

The defensive back rotation was as compact as it has been all year, and it may have even been more so had it not been for an injury suffered by senior defensive back Jamir Conn on the first play of the second half.

Andrew Marshall, like Chambliss, played every defensive snap. After a 43-yard pass in the first quarter, Marshall didn't allow another reception in coverage. He also recorded a pass breakup while earning a 70.3 coverage grade.

Florida International transfer Victor Evans was targeted six times. The Hoosiers completed four of those passes for 106 yards and a touchdown, while another pass drew a defensive pass interference call. This was essentially the first time he's looked overwhelmed while wearing the scarlet and cream.

Caleb Benning scored a team high in coverage, tackling, and overall grade, despite arguably being at least partly responsible for the 75-yard touchdown pass from Hoover to Marsh. Benning played 28 snaps, a season high for the third-year player from Omaha.

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