The most significant bright spot of Nebraska football this season has been the play of freshman phenom Dylan Raiola. He's set to make a significant impact, likely jumping into the top 30 for career passing yards and career passing TDs for Husker players since 1950 by just his fifth game played. Raiola is just the tip of the spear for a Huskers offensive youth movement.
The offense has made a remarkable leap from 123rd in 2023 to 60th in 2024. Further improvement may prove critical if the defense struggles against the better opponents of the Big Ten. However, the potential of the youthful offensive players is a reason for hope and optimism, as they should continue to improve in 2024, paving the way for a promising future this season and beyond.
I don’t have true “age” data for this analysis, like the Nebraska football player’s birthday. “Age” in this article will refer to the player’s year of eligibility, where Freshman = 1, Sophomore = 2, Junior = 3, and Senior = 4. This also ignores any redshirt information or extra COVID years, so sixth-year senior Rahmir Johnson is still counted as 4. A team’s weighted age of pass attempts is calculated as follows:
Sum(Player’s Attempts * Player “Age”) / Team’s Attempts
Nebraska football among youngest, most impressive offenses
It’s no surprise that Nebraska is one of the nation's youngest teams, with Raiola leading the team in passing. By the age-weighted average pass attempts, Nebraska is the 7th youngest team in the country and only trails Arizona State and Pittsburgh in Power Four conference teams. Raiola is already playing at an elite level. More improvement from him might be needed if the Huskers cannot get defensive stops in future games.
Regarding the weighted average age of rushing attempts, Nebraska ranks 27th. In 2024, Dante Dowdell ranks 7th in carries and 12th in yards by freshman and sophomores. He is emerging as a bell-cow back and could become the first Husker freshman or sophomore running back to lead the team in rushing since Ameer Abdullah in 2012 (although sophomore QB Heinrich Haarberg was the Husker’s leading rusher in 2023).
The youth of the Huskers pass catchers was the most surprising thing to me. Nebraska wisely brought in two veteran targets to help a young quarterback, and they are the two leading receivers for the Huskers this season. Despite this, the Huskers still have the 34th youngest team by weighted average reception age.
True freshmen Jacorey Barney Jr and Carter Nelson have already found roles in the offense. Both freshmen could end up on a future version of Bruce Feldman’s Freak’s List for their respective speed or size at the position. I expect one of these two to have a breakout game where they lead the Huskers in receiving in 2024.
Offensive improvements were nearly guaranteed after a difficult 2023. However, if the defense continues to struggle, the offense may need to step up and become the team's strength for more wins. This potential shift in focus should excite and give hope to future recruits. Fortunately, the offense is young and should still grow more this season. More importantly, they are laying the foundation for an explosive offense in 2025 for a Matt Rhule year 3.
Week 1 Arbitrary Stat of the Week Update: Nebraska football is tied in first with 14 players with a rush
Week 2 Arbitrary Stat of the Week Update: Nebraska football falls out of the AP Top 25. A win vs Purdue wouldn't guarantee a return, and another streak outside the top 25 might begin
Week 3 Arbitrary Stat of the Week Update: Dylan Raiola is one of seven QBs with a completion percentage of at least 70% and 8+ YPA (minimum 100 attempts)