Nebraska Football Melts in Second Half, Loses to Iowa on Last-Second Field Goal

Posted by Admin November 30, 2024 Football

Not all demons have been eradicated for Nebraska football.

Iowa kicked a 53-yard field goal as time expired Friday night to beat Nebraska 13-10. The Hawkeyes close the regular season 8-4 while the Huskers are 6-6 headed into bowl season.

Nebraska jumped out to a 3-0 lead on its first offensive possession. The teams combined for 10 punts in the first half, but NU tacked on a touchdown in the final minute to take a 10-0 lead into the half.

Then the Nebraska of the past decade re-emerged.

The opening drive of the third quarter finished with a missed field goal for the Big Red after a bad sna[. Iowa’s ensuing possession lasted just five plays, but the punt ended in a scramble in which Vincent Shavers thought the ball had touched a teammate. He attempted to grab the loose ball, which turned into a turnover and Iowa ball at the Nebraska four.

The Hawkeyes turned that special teams mistake into three points. After a Nebraska punt, Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson took a screen pass 72 yards to the house, tying the game 10-10 early in the fourth quarter.

The contest remained close into the final minutes. The Blackshirts forced an Iowa punt with 1:45 left, setting up the Nebraska offense with the ball at its own 20 with two timeouts.

Husker QB Dylan Raiola marched the Big Red to the Nebraska 43. On first and 10, Raiola was hit by Max Llewellyn. The ball came lose and Iowa recovered.

Iowa ran the ball up the middle with Johnson twice, burning the clock to just three seconds left. Drew Stevens then capped off the comeback with a 53-yard field goal.

Iowa gained just 164 yards on the day, including only 49 on the ground. Quarterback Jackson Stratton completed 8-of-15 passes for 115 yards and one score.

Nebraska tallied 334 yards of offense. Raiola completed 22-of-32 passes for 190 yards. Emmett Johnson ran for 71 of NU’s 144 yards on the ground.

The Huskers now await their bowl destination.