During the 36-28 victory over the Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles, the Huskers defense held Southern Miss. scoreless. Following a Tommy Armstrong interception, the Huskers defense let running back Ito Smith get loose for a 17 yard touchdown run.
Advertisement
“Everybody in the world says they want to start fast, but it’s really taking the edge in the game”, Riley said, “It’s just a matter of being ready, because it is a physical game so whoever takes that initial edge physically has the advantage early”. I think oddmakers are underating Illinois here, which is why I’m siding with the points and the home team.
During the second overtime, the Nittany Lions recorded three shot attempts, but were unable to break the 1-1 tie.
And, while the defense gave up only three touchdowns to a Big 10 team on the road, it also allowed 610 yards to the Cornhuskers, much of which came in large chunks. Mullens and Casey Martin teamed up for two touchdowns, and Jalen Richard’s 1-yard run pulled the Eagles to 36-28 with 6:55 left. “We’ve got to get smarter on the field”. “It was a resilient group of men trying to make plays and win the game, probably one of the funnest games I’ve ever played”. Nebraska settled for five field goals on drives that moved into Southern Miss territory. Transfer lineman Andrew Peterson was blown up at the right tackle spot, giving up the pressure to defensive end Freedom Akinmoladun for the sack.
“We played pretty well early but we didn’t’ capitalize in the red zone with touchdowns”, Riley said. Nebraska jumped to a 10-0 lead at the end of the first quarter thanks to Brown’s 29-yard field goal.
Even more, though, will be made about the defensive maladies plaguing the secondary, which allowed an opposing quarterback to slice through it for 300 yards for the fourth consecutive game of the 2015 season. “We have got to find a way to run the ball better”. “They go out there and dive in the trenches, so you’ve got to give credit where it’s due”. USM then recovered an onside kick to set up some late-game drama. They held Southern Miss to 11 yards on 23 rushing attempts. Akinmoladun said he planned to spend a good portion of Sunday breaking down the Southern Miss game with Collins.
Nick Mullens and his receivers were alone in their efforts in this game against the Nebraska Cornhuskers, in which the Golden Eagles ended up falling 38-26.
Brown’s 50-yard field goal to end the first half was a career long, bettering his 49-yard field goal at Miami last week.
Bonus Insight: Southern Miss Can Battle for the West Title: Whether they will be able to compete with Louisiana Tech later this season is a question, but Southern Miss has proven that they can compete with anyone on their schedule.
“I told the team we have to be pleased with winning the game”, said Nebraska head coach Mike Riley.
Advertisement
Nebraska has needed less than a month to prove how thin the line between a disappointing and a ideal start can be, having lost on the final play of the game twice in three weeks. Now we’re entering the conference, and we’ve been through a lot of situations. “You’ve got to show your fullbacks some love every once in a while”.
