Huskers Host Ohio to Open Season

Nebraska kicks off its 2026 season Saturday against Ohio at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m., and the game will be televised by FS1. 

The Cornhuskers are coming off a second straight 7-6 campaign in 2025. Four of Nebraska's six losses last season came to ranked opponents, including a three-point loss to Michigan and a four-point loss to USC.

Between returning players and first-year transfers, Nebraska boasts an experienced roster. The 115 players on the roster have combined for nearly 1,500 games played and almost 500 starts at the FBS or FCS level. Nebraska returns six starters on offense and six starters on defense, plus 10 others players who made at least one start in 2025. Nebraska also brings back its starting punter and place-kicker from last season.

Adding to the experience is the addition of 16 transfers, including 15 FBS transfers. Nebraska's transfer class has combined for 200 career starts, including 188 starts for FBS programs and 112 starts for teams in a Power Four conference.

Offensively, Nebraska returns its top two receivers, its starting tight end and three starting linemen from 2025. The Huskers have two quarterbacks - Anthony Colandrea and TJ Lateef - who have started multiple games with Colandrea earning 2025 Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year honors at UNLV. The line is bolstered by three Power Four transfers with a combined 56 starts between them.

Defensively, NU returns four of its top six tacklers from 2025. The Huskers also added eight talented transfers with a combined 92 collegiate starts between them.

Matt Rhule Set for Fourth Season
Matt Rhule is in his fourth season at Nebraska in 2026. He owns a 66-62 record in his 10 seasons as a college head coach. He took on a rebuilding project in each of his three college stops and excluding his first year at each school, Rhule boasts a 58-34 record.

• Rhule has won 19 games in his first three seasons, matching Nebraska’s win total from the five seasons prior to Rhule’s arrival.
• Rhule has led Nebraska to back-to-back winning seasons for the first time in more than a decade.
• Rhule has matched or improved his previous season's win total every year of his college coaching career. Temple went from two wins in his first season to six wins in his second season and 10 wins in both his third and fourth seasons. Baylor went from one win in Rhule's first season to seven wins in year two and 11 wins in year three. Rhule led Nebraska to a five-win season in 2023 and a seven-win campaign in 2024 and 2025.

Transfers Add Experience & Production to Husker Roster
During the offseason, Nebraska added 30 newcomers to its roster. That number includes a freshman class of 14, but adding experience to the roster are 16 first-year transfers.

• Fifteen transfers came from FBS programs while one came from an FCS school. Of the 15 FBS transfers, 10 came from Power Four programs: Boston College, Iowa State (two), LSU, Michigan State, Pittsburgh, South Carolina, UCLA (two) and Virginia.
• The transfers have combined for 200 career starts, including 188 starts for FBS teams and 112 starts for a Power Four program.
• Nebraska particularly added experienced talent on both sides of the line of scrimmage. The Huskers added three offensive linemen - Brendan Black (Iowa State), Tree Babalade (South Carolina) and Paul Mubenga (LSU) - who were multi-year starters for Power Four programs and have combined for 56 career starts.
• On the defensive line, Anthony Jones Jr. has started 14 games in his career while Owen Stoudmire and Jahsear Whittington have combined for six career starts. Jones is the most experienced defensive lineman on the Husker roster and owns the most tackles (58) of any defensive lineman, while Stoudmire ranks third among Nebraska defensive linemen in career games played (35) and career tackles (53).
• Nebraska also added talented offensive skill position players in quarterback Anthony Colandrea and wide receiver Kwazi Gilmer. Colandrea, the 2025 Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year at UNLV, has started 31 career games and accounted for more than 7,500 career passing yards and more than 1,000 rushing yards. Gilmer made 19 starts for UCLA the past two seasons and caught 81 passes for 880 yards and six touchdowns.
• On defense, linebacker Owen Chambliss and Dexter Foster bring starting experience to the linebacking corps, while Dwayne McDougle III and Victor Evans III add a veteran presence to the Husker secondary. Chambliss and Foster have combined for 31 career starts and 247 career tackles, and Chambliss was a first-team All-Mountain West selection last year at San Diego State. McDougle and Evans have combined for 29 starts, 202 tackles, 16 pass breakups and seven interceptions in their careers.

Huskers Possess Veteran Roster
Nebraska has a veteran and experienced roster in 2026. The Huskers have 115 players on the roster and 83 of those players (72 percent) are at least in their third season playing college football.

• Nebraska's roster enters the season with a combined 1,467 career games played with 494 starts. The Huskers return six starters on offense, six starters on defense and their starting punter and place-kicker. NU also added five offensive transfers and five defensive transfers who were starters for their previous school.
• According to the Big Ten Network, Nebraska ranks third in the FBS by returning 69 percent of its production from the 2025 season.
• According to a CBS analysis of career snap counts, Nebraska has the 14th most experienced roster in college football, including the No. 5 most experienced offensive line room, the eighth-most experienced quarterback group, the No. 12 most experienced collection of edge rushers and the 23rd-most experienced wide receiving corps.