{"id":2794,"date":"2025-09-19T13:49:03","date_gmt":"2025-09-19T13:49:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/2025\/09\/19\/what-to-watch-for-nebraska\/"},"modified":"2025-09-19T13:49:06","modified_gmt":"2025-09-19T13:49:06","slug":"what-to-watch-for-nebraska","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/2025\/09\/19\/what-to-watch-for-nebraska\/","title":{"rendered":"What to watch for: Nebraska"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Big Ten football is back, and with it comes a notable test for the No. 21 Michigan football team. Saturday, the Wolverines head out west to square off against Nebraska on the Huskers\u2019 home turf to officially open up conference play.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For Michigan, it\u2019s a chance to enter Big Ten competition with a 1-0 start while testing the caliber of the team against a familiar foe. For Nebraska, it\u2019s a chance to break an almost decade-long losing streak against a ranked opponent while establishing itself as a conference powerhouse.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>While the Wolverines have claimed the past four matchups, these aren\u2019t the teams of the past. The Huskers enter the weekend riding a 3-0 win streak with momentum in tow \u2014 the kind of momentum that only makes a home crowd even louder. Add to that the fact that Michigan is currently operating under interim coach Biff Poggi, and it\u2019s shaping up to be an interesting game.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>So grab your binoculars, keep your eyes peeled and I\u2019ll key you in on what to watch for Saturday.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-1    \">\n<style><![CDATA[@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 250px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-1{min-height: 90px;}}]]><\/style>\n<\/aside>\n<p><strong>Can Michigan pressure Dylan Raiola?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Is that Patrick Mahomes? Not quite \u2014 it\u2019s Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat they say, like a Pat Mahomes type of guy?\u201d junior defensive back Jyaire Hill said of Raiola Tuesday. \u201cHe\u2019s a good quarterback, though: arm strength, fast, good player.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>While Raiola has gained some internet attention for his likeness to Mahomes, that\u2019s the least important thing about him. What is important, however, is his performance thus far: 72 completions on 94 attempts, totaling 829 passing yards and eight passing touchdowns in three games.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If the Wolverines want to control Raiola, they\u2019ll first need to get to him. The Huskers\u2019 offensive line last season wasn\u2019t outstanding, but since then, it\u2019s evolved. Anchored by veteran experience and shored up with transfer portal additions, Nebraska\u2019s O-line poses a non-negligible challenge to Michigan\u2019s defense. The Wolverines won\u2019t be easy to topple. Though Michigan\u2019s pass rush fell flat against No. 11 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigandaily.com\/sports\/football\/no-15-michigan-folds-under-pressure-and-falls-to-no-18-oklahoma-24-13\/\">Oklahoma<\/a>, its defensive front has looked solid for the most part.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-2    \">\n<style><![CDATA[@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 250px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-2{min-height: 90px;}}]]><\/style>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Even if the Wolverines\u2019 defense punctures the Huskers\u2019 offensive line, that still leaves Raiola himself. Raiola\u2019s head is constantly on a swivel, searching for the quickest and most promising avenue to get the ball out. If Michigan hopes to pressure him, it\u2019ll need to successfully mask its coverage to avoid Raiola\u2019s watchful eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Whether the Wolverines can successfully rattle Raiola could decide how the game unfolds. If he gets comfortable, Nebraska\u2019s offense suddenly poses a far greater threat.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Can Michigan penetrate Nebraska\u2019s pass defense?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Huskers currently have the best pass defense in the country, allowing an average of just 66 passing yards per game. That doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that Nebraska will be able to easily shut down Michigan\u2019s offense. Under offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey, the Wolverines have debuted a rejuvenated and dynamic offense in comparison to last season. And with freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood\u2019s ability to place the ball all over the field, Michigan poses a defensive threat to the Huskers.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re going to attack them,\u201d sophomore running back Jordan Marshall said Tuesday. \u201cWe\u2019re confident in our players here \u2026 If they\u2019re the No. 1 run defense, No. 1 pass defense, doesn\u2019t really matter to us. We\u2019re just going to go in there and do what Michigan does. And I think we got a good view of that last Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-3    \">\n<style><![CDATA[@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 250px;}}@media ( min-width: 728px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-3{min-height: 90px;}}]]><\/style>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Last Saturday against <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigandaily.com\/sports\/football\/bryce-underwood-displays-all-dimensions-in-no-23-michigans-63-3-win-over-central-michigan\/\">Central Michigan<\/a>, the Wolverines had no trouble cracking through the defense with 235 passing yards. The key will be whether or not Michigan can replicate that success against a non-MAC opponent. Aside from the league change, one reason why the Wolverines might not be as successful as they were last week is that, against the Sooners, two of their starting offensive linemen \u2014 graduate Giovanni El-Hadi and junior Brady Norton \u2014 exited the game with injuries.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>With the O-line acting as Michigan\u2019s main counterattack to the pass defense, a strong presence is crucial. And without the pair of guards, the Wolverines are butting heads with the best in the country with an already weakened front.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>What will Underwood do with the green light?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>From Week 2 to Week 3, Underwood looked completely different. Why? He got the green light. What Underwood does with it, however, is the million-dollar question.<\/p>\n<p>\u00a0\u201cHe\u2019s got a green light to do whatever he wants because he\u2019s one of the great playmakers, I think, in the country,\u201d Poggi said Monday. \u201cYou can coach competitors to slide, and it\u2019s good that they do. This kid\u2019s a football player. If we could hit stop, and everything would stop, we\u2019d run out on the field and get him down. But we can\u2019t. So he\u2019s going to finish those runs.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-4    \">\n<style><![CDATA[@media ( min-width: 300px ){.newspack_global_ad.scaip-4{min-height: 250px;}}]]><\/style>\n<\/aside>\n<p>Most of Underwood\u2019s transformation has to do with his legs. From -1 rushing yard on three attempts and one sack against Oklahoma to 114 yards \u2014 the most on the team \u2014 on nine attempts against the Chippewas, Underwood added another dimension to his offensive game. Whether or not he will be adding slides to his game is yet to be determined.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>What\u2019s clear, though, is that the playbook is now wide open. While Underwood is still a young quarterback navigating the highs and lows of collegiate ball, Michigan\u2019s offensive performance hinges heavily upon his answer. Whether or not it\u2019s worth a million bucks \u2014 if not <a href=\"https:\/\/www.si.com\/college\/nil\/nil-news\/michigan-football-quarterback-bryce-underwood-nil-salary-revealed\">three<\/a> \u2014 will be answered in due time.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">***<\/p>\n<p>Saturday, all eyes are on the early-season tone-setter in Lincoln. While the Wolverines enter the matchup as the favorite, Nebraska isn\u2019t far behind. With records on the line and a decades-old streak waiting to be shattered, you\u2019d better make sure you have your binoculars.<\/p>\n<aside>\n<div class=\"newspack-popup-container newspack-popup hidden  newspack-inline-popup      \" role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" style=\"background-color:#FFFFFF;color:#000\" id=\"id_162162\" data-segments=\"\" data-frequency=\"0,0,0,month\">\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\">Please consider donating to The Michigan Daily<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<p><h3 class=\"jp-relatedposts-headline\"><em>Related articles<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Big Ten football is back, and with it comes a notable test for the No. 21 Michigan football team. Saturday, the Wolverines head out west to square off against Nebraska on the Huskers\u2019 home turf to officially open up conference play.\u00a0 For Michigan, it\u2019s a chance to enter Big Ten competition with a 1-0 start [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2795,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[1411,1825],"class_list":{"0":"post-2794","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports","8":"tag-nebraska","9":"tag-watch"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2794"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2794\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2796,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2794\/revisions\/2796"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}