Nebraska football enters its final three-game stretch in rough shape. After starting 5-1, they've lost three straight games. They now sit at 5-4. This week, they are 8.5-point underdogs to the USC Trojans, who are 4-4 overall and 2-5 in the Big Ten.
Don't let USC's record fool you. They are talented and dynamic. According to 247's talent composite, USC is the 15th most talented team in the country (Nebraska comes in at 21 on that list).
More than just having talent, USC's head coach, Lincoln Riley, can flip a switch with the best of them to deliver a knockout offensive performance. Riley will try to deliver that this week with a new wrinkle: he benched starter Miller Moss in favor of redshirt sophomore and UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava.
What does that mean for Nebraska? It means another team coming off a bye who will be ready to throw things at Nebraska that the Huskers may not be ready for. Sigh.
Typically, I write a "keys to victory" article every week. This week, I'll pose them as three big questions about this team that will, I hope, be answered by Saturday around 4 PM Pacific Time.
Will adding two big-name consultants change anything for Nebraska football?
Matt Rhule announced he's bringing in two former coordinators as consultants--Dana Holgorsen for offense and Phil Snow for defense. I wonder how Marcus Satterfield and Tony White feel about this. Will they embrace working with them? Are they offended? What do the players think? Do they even care?
Here's the thing. When you lose three games in a row, everything is on the table. Feelings don't matter. You second-guess everything. Why? Because if the process is not producing, then it's a bad process. Plain and simple.
Can two consultants do more harm than good? Perhaps. Unlikely, however, in my opinion. A fresh set of eyes is always a net positive. Can Holgorsen and Snow mask some of Nebraska's deficiencies on both sides of the ball? Probably not on such a short timeline. But--and this is a big but--can they make just a couple of tweaks to turn a one-score loss into a win?
That is the key question because three of their four losses have still been by just one score. Players have to make plays in tight games, yes. But coaches need to get them in the right mindset and spot to succeed in that moment. Coaching matters.
Can Dylan Raiola break out of his freshman slump?
Speaking of players making plays, make no bones about it: Dylan Raiola is not playing well. Who knows if it's an injury, something with the play calling, the opposing defense giving looks he hasn't seen on film, or something else. It doesn't matter. When you sign up to play quarterback in major college football, you either get the blame or the glory. Raiola knows this.
Here's what I do know: Nebraska will not win one more game unless Raiola plays at or above the level he was at in the first four games of the year. He simply has to be better. Will this be his breakout game? The one we tell our grandkids about?
There are two things I want to see from young Dylan this Saturday. First, I want to see him trust himself and his receivers. Make. The. Throw. Trust that you'll throw your receivers open. Trust that they will make the play. Second, I want to see Dylan's body language stay positive. I've noticed over the last three losses that Raiola has gotten frustrated quickly when things don't go Nebraska's way. I get in--when you're hit often, it sucks. He's also 19 years old. But he's the QB, the leader on offense. Keep your chin up and bounce back.
Can Nebraska's defense figure out how to stop a mobile QB?
It was the best possible thing for Nebraska that USC announced this weekend that Maiava would start at quarterback. They didn't have to do that. They could have kept Tony White and the Blackshirts in the dark all week. Surprise, mobile QB!
That would have been devasting for Nebraska's defense. The only thing worse than playing a mobile QB is preparing for a pocket passer and then playing a mobile QB. At least Nebraska will have a full week of preparation.
Still, Nebraska has lost four games to four teams with four mobile quarterbacks. Read that again.
Now please don't hear what I'm not saying. Nebraska's defense is not to blame for every loss (Indiana is the outlier). Yet, with a struggling offense, the Husker defense needs to figure out how to get off the field, get turnovers, and give their offense a short field. They have to deliver their best game of the season.
I don't have faith in Nebraska football right now, but I hope I'm wrong
I wish I could say Nebraska is going to stroll into the LA Coliseum and come away with a victory. I wish I could say Nebraska Football is going to surprise all of us. But I can't. Nebraska football hasn't done anything in more than a month to make me believe, and I don't think that changes on Saturday.
I have never wished I was more wrong.
Nebraska 24 USC 37