FB vs OhioFB vs Ohio
Ben Ofe
Football

Huskers Welcome Bowling Green for Week Two

Nebraska continues its three-game season-opening homestand on Saturday when it takes on Bowling Green in a prime-time matchup at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., and the game will be televised by FS1. 

The Huskers come into the contest off a 49-21 victory over Ohio in the season opener on Saturday at sun-splashed Memorial Stadium. After leading 14-13 at halftime, Nebraska controlled the second half and pulled away for the 28-point victory. 

Offensively, Nebraska was impressive over the final three quarters and finished the game with 523 total yards, including 248 rushing yards and 283 passing yards. On the defensive side, Nebraska was strong for the final 2 1/2 quarters, allowing just 132 yards and eight points on the Bobcats' final eight drives of the game. 

Bowling Green dropped its season opener on Saturday, in a 20-13 loss to Tarleton State, the No. 5 team in the FCS rankings. The Falcons' offense moved the ball efficiently with 366 yards of total offense, including 262 passing yards, while completing 24-of-30 attempts. 

Bowling Green is coached by Eddie George, the 1995 Heisman Tropy winner. George is in his second season with the Falcons and his sixth season overall as a college head coach after leading Tennessee State from 2021 to 2024. 

Matt Rhule in Fourth Season Leading Huskers
Matt Rhule is in his fourth season at Nebraska in 2026. He owns a 67-62 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 59-34 record.

  • Rhule won 19 games in his first three seasons, matching Nebraska’s win total for 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.
Offense Shows Explosiveness in Week One Victory
The Husker offense showed balance and explosiveness in its week one victory over Ohio. In the 49-21 win, Nebraska had 523 yards of total offense, including 275 passing yards and 248 yards on the ground. The Huskers were particulary effective in the second half, as NU scored touchdowns on its final five possessions and averaged 9.2 yards per play on those drives.
  • Nebraska topped 200 yards in both rushing and passing for the first time since last September against Akron. It marked the third time in Matt Rhule's four seasons as head coach Nebraska has topped 200 yards in both rushing and passing.
  • Nebraska's 523 total yards were its most in 11 games and marked the fourth time in Rhule's tenure Nebraska has surpassed 500 total yards.
  • The Huskers totaled eight offensive plays of 20 yards or more against the Bobcats, tied for the 16th-most long plays nationally thru Sunday's games. 
Running Backs Shine Against Bobcats
Nebraska entered the 2026 season looking to replace All-America running back Emmett Johnson. In the season-opening victory over Ohio, the Huskers' top three running backs were up to the task, as freshman Jamal Rule, sophomore Isaiah Mozee and junior Mekhi Nelson all made their mark. 
  • As a group, the three running backs had 35 touches, including 31 rushing attempts and four receptions, and accounted for 329 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns.
  • Rule led the way with 122 rushing yards on 15 carries and a pair of rushing touchdowns. He added two catches for 47 yards, including a 24-yard touchdown reception.
  • Nelson carried 10 times for 64 yards and a 29-yard touchdown. He also caught two passes for a team-high 65 yards, with a 51-yard fourth-quarter touchdown that gave NU a comfortable margin.
  • Mozee added six carries for 31 yards, including a 24-yard gain on Nebraska's first play from scrimmage.
Colandrea Guides Husker Offensive Attack
Quarterback Anthony Colandrea had an impressive Husker debut in the 49-21 victory over Ohio. Colandrea completed 18-of-32 passes for 275 yards and three touchdowns and also rushed 10 times for 23 yards and a touchdown.
 
  • Colandrea's four-touchdown effort was the second of his career. He also had four touchdowns for UNLV at Colorado State in 2025 (2 rush, 2 pass).
  • His second-quarter touchdown pass to Jamal Rule marked the 50th touchdown pass of Colandrea's four-year collegiate career. He enters the Bowling Green game with 52 career TD passes, the 12th-most among active FBS players.
  • Colandrea accounted for 298 yards of total offense against the Bobcats, increasing his career total to 8,991 yards. He is seventh among active players in that category.
  • Colandrea has started 32 games in his career. A member of the Maxwell Award watch list, Colandrea was the 2025 Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year. Colandrea ranked fifth nationally in total offense (4,108 yards) last season and 16th in passing yards (3,459).
  • He entered the season as one of only three active FBS quarterbacks with 7,000 career passing yards and 1,000 career rushing yards, joining Byrum Brown (Auburn) and Jaylen Raynor (Iowa State). Colandrea and Brown are the only two returning FBS quarterbacks who had 4,000 total yards in 2025.

Transfers Add Experience & Production to Husker Roster
During the offseason, Nebraska added 30 newcomers to its roster. That number included a freshman class of 14 and 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 207 career starts, including 195 starts for FBS teams and 119 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 58 career starts.
  • On the defensive line, Anthony Jones Jr. has started 15 games in his career while Owen Stoudmire and Jahsear Whittington have combined for eight career starts. Each of the three started the season opener for the Huskers. Jones is the most experienced defensive lineman on the Husker roster and owns the most tackles (61) of any defensive lineman, while Stoudmire ranks third among Nebraska defensive linemen in career games played (36) 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 32 career games and accounted for more than 7,700 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 with the Bruins.
  • 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 combined for 31 career starts and 247 career tackles before coming to Nebraska. Chambliss was a first-team All-Mountain West selection last year at San Diego State. McDougle and Evans brought a combined 29 starts, 202 tackles, 16 pass breakups and seven interceptions to Lincoln.