If you recorded the Nebraska-Maryland game, take my advice: Don’t watch the first half.It was one of the longest, ugliest halves of football played in the last decade by the Big Red, and that’s saying something. But it was the strangest thing: the score at halftime was Nebraska 28, Maryland 23.
Aside from a 5-0 record, there’s not much proof that the 2026 edition of the Cornhuskers is ready to make a run at the College Football Playoff. But there’s plenty of evidence that the floor has been raised significantly. That basement that was flooded every few weeks from 2017 to 2022? It’s been waterproofed. The muck and slime of the Riley and Frost eras have been removed, and it smells a lot better down there. That sump pump hardly ever runs these days, including this week, after the all-time single-day precipitation record in Lincoln was shattered.
Even though the Huskers stunk up the joint with 10 first-half penalties, Jeremiah Charles blocked a punt and the Huskers turned it into a quick touchdown, and even though the Blackshirts looked confused, gave up leaky yardage on running plays and allowed 300 total yards in the first half due to a handful of explosive plays, they did get a momentum-turning pick-six by Dwayne McDougle. That started a run of 34 unanswered Nebraska points, allowing the Huskers to improve to 5-0 overall for the first time since 2016 and 2-0 in the conference for the first time since 2017.
Was that the bad Anthony Colandrea we saw in the first quarter? If so, his floor is higher than almost anyone could’ve predicted. Back in January when he signed with Matt Rhule, some feared there might be a good AC and a bad AC, because his penchant for turning over the ball was pretty evident. In three seasons, he’d thrown 49 touchdown passes and 29 interceptions…