How Every Nebraska Offensive Player Graded Out Against Illinois on PFF

Nebraska's offense is heading in a different direction after its latest loss.

Offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen was fired Saturday, Matt Rhule announced. The decision came after the Huskers averaged just 13.5 points per game over their last four contests.

Regardless, back to Illinois. On the road in Champaign, just 20 players recorded offensive snaps in the Huskers' 24-13 loss. Here are their final snap counts and grades, courtesy of Pro Football Focus. (Defensive grades coming shortly.)

Player	Class	Snaps	Pass	Run	Overall
Colandrea	4th	84	58	4	67.3

Quarterback

After attempting 44 passes against Washington, Anthony Colandrea threw 43 more on Friday night. However, unlike his subpar performance through the air on Halloween, the senior signal-caller had a more efficient outing against Illinois. Even so, it didn't make much of a difference.

Colandrea completed 32 of 43 passes for 284 yards and one score. Still, Nebraska's pass-catchers struggled to consistently make winning plays. Colandrea's lone score against the Fighting Illini seemed more like a prayer than an actual play. Outside of his 51-yard touchdown pass to Jacory Barney, the Huskers rarely threatened Illinois downfield.

Colandrea also had nine rushing attempts, two of which were sacks. Adjusting for those losses, he carried the ball seven times for 43 yards, two of which resulted in first downs.

Player	Class	Snaps	Run	Pass	Overall
Mozee	2nd	38	6	26	64.3
Rule	1st	34	15	17	70.2
Nelson	3rd	4	1	1	55.6

Running Back

It seemed as if Nebraska's running back room was more involved, at least early in the game. Once the Huskers fell behind on the scoreboard, however, the offense struggled to find much success on the ground.

NU's trio of Isaiah Mozee, Jamal Rule, and Mekhi Nelson combined for 22 carries and 115 yards (5.2 yards per carry). They also had nine receptions for 36 yards. It wasn't a bad performance by any means, but Holgorsen simply didn't seem to utilize them enough. To be fair, though, with as many false starts and holding penalties as Nebraska committed, consistently moving the ball on the ground was always going to be hard.

Nelson's lone carry resulted in a 15-yard touchdown. Rule's 69-yard performance pushed him past the 500-yard mark for the season. For the second consecutive week, Mozee played the most snaps among NU's running backs.

Player	Class	Snaps	Targets	Catches	Drops	Run Block	Overall
Gilmer	3rd	76	8	4	1	60.3	57.2
Barney	3rd	66	9	6	1	59.9	58.2
Hunter	4th	50	6	6	-	58.4	54.7
Clark	3rd	30	3	3	-	43.2	51.8
Bell	4th	11	-	-	-	59.3	53.6

Wide Receiver

Nebraska's wide receiver corps graded out poorly against Illinois. One of the most talented position groups on the team, the pass-catchers have looked increasingly pedestrian with each passing week. The offense as a whole has followed a similar trend, and I believe much of that has to do with its struggles to run block.

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Quinn Clark, a 6-foot-5, 215-pound wide receiver, received a 43.2 run-blocking grade against Illinois. He has the physical tools to become one of NU's best blocking receivers, yet his grades consistently rank near the bottom of the position group. Unfortunately, he's not alone.

Holgorsen pointed out the issue weeks ago, but it still hasn't been resolved. In 2025, the Huskers' wide receivers did a phenomenal job helping Emmett Johnson grind out additional yards. This season, with a less capable group, the problem has become very apparent. Receiving yards mean little if drives don't end in points. If the Big Red have any chance of salvaging their season, the conversation starts with getting better performances from their pass-catchers down the stretch.

Player	Class	Snaps	Targets	Catches	Drops	Run Block	Overall
Lindenmeyer	5th	71	7	5	-	72.0	57.3
Bonner	5th	18	-	-	-	64.4	55.6
Nelson	3rd	16	1	1	-	50.7	60.7
Hammerbeck	2nd	6	-	-	-	56.5	57.8

Tight End/Fullback

Luke Lindenmeyer has become the asset Nebraska and Colandrea needed him to be. To be clear, that's not a knock on him. He simply wasn't targeted much earlier in the season.

That's changed in a big way over the past month. The fifth-year tight end has been targeted 26 times over the last four games. He's caught 20 of those passes for 155 yards.

Lindenmeyer also earned the highest run-blocking grade among NU's tight ends in Week 10. Finding a player capable of replacing his production and leadership in 2027 is going to be tough.

Player	Class	Snaps	Pressures	Penalties	Run Block	Pass Block	Overall
Pritchett	5th	84	-	-	60.5	91.5	74.3
Evans	5th	84	-	1	59.6	86.5	64.5
Mubenga	4th	84	1 QB Hit, 1 Hurry	1	60.9	74.1	61.2
Pyle	2nd	82	1 Hurry	-	51.4	82.5	60.4
Gottula	4th	45	-	-	56.9	86.0	68.1
Babalade	4th	39	-	2	56.1	84.7	61.6
Black	4th	2	-	-	60.0	66.7	60.0

Offensive Line

Boy, did Colandrea have time to throw. However, Nebraska's offensive line was a tale of two extremes Friday night. The Huskers earned their best pass-blocking grade of the season (94.8) but recorded their second-worst team run-blocking grade (55.1).

Gibson Pyle stepped in for an injured Brendan Black and, by all accounts, played at a starter-level against Illinois. His 82 offensive snaps were a career high, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him earn more playing time down the stretch, even if Black is able to return.

Procedural penalties were also an issue against Illinois. The offensive line was responsible for four penalties alone. Against a team coached as well as Brett Bielema's Fighting Illini, that's simply not good enough to win on the road.

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