McKewon: At long last, Nebraska has the receiving weapons, depth fit for a top-shelf quarterback (2024)

LINCOLN — In the span of a few minutes, two of the three biggest reasons why Nebraska’s offense looks so much better strode into the media room.

Jahmal Banks and Isaiah Neyor combined on Saturday for 10 catches, 182 yards and two touchdowns. They’re each listed at 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, and provide quarterback Dylan Raiola — another key catalyst in the Huskers’ 40-7 win over UTEP — the kind of seasoned senior receivers a freshman can use.

Banks and Neyor’s stories differ from there. Banks transferred in from Wake Forest when he could’ve gone a lot of places. Neyor, who had one catch in the last two years at Texas, got a key endorsem*nt from NU’s coordinator of football sports science, Mitch Cholewinski, to land a spot on coach Matt Rhule’s roster.

Neyor battled injuries at UT. A loaded room of receivers, too. Perhaps Texas coach Steve Sarkisian couldn’t see in Neyor what was obvious on Saturday — that he’s big, fast, physical and hard to cover — but Neyor played just eight snaps for UT’s College Football Playoff team in 2023.

It’s not what Neyor signed up for when he transferred to Texas from Wyoming.

“It just like I was kind of in prison,” Neyor said. “Locked away from something that I loved so much. For two years.”

Cholewinski, who worked at Texas prior to Nebraska, knew Neyor’s physical abilities. He vouched for Neyor’s approach to the game, too. One catch in two years, sure. But a high upside, too.

So Saturday’s performance — a career-high six receptions for 121 yards — felt to Neyor like a release and a reward for multiple years of self-belief during adverse times.

“I’m kind of proud of myself for how far I’ve come,” Neyor said. “Because it was really tough. I was at a deficit.”

So was Nebraska.

The Huskers have struggled for five years to recruit and develop receivers out of high school. The days of Stanley Morgan, JD Spielman and De’Mornay Pierson-El leading the team in 2017 are long gone. Wan’Dale Robinson, the most promising high school receiver signee since then, left for home-state Kentucky after two seasons spent more at running back than he preferred. Ultra-talented Zavier Betts flashed in 2020 and 2021 before quitting the sport two different times. Alante Brown left. Others never developed.

In 2021, 2022 and 2023, transfers led the team in catches and receiving yards. That’s likely to happen again. Based on what on Nebraska had coming back off last year’s team — Malachi Coleman, Jaylen Lloyd and Alex Bullock — the Huskers had to add depth in the offseason.

So NU signed Banks and Neyor in January 2024. Raiola, having already signed with NU in December, was definitely a draw, and the Huskers’ NIL operation, 1890, helped, too.

“We wanted big receivers who had played college football who are unbelievable men, on and off the field, who can set a standard for that room,” receivers coach Garret McGuire said an interview this summer. “Isaiah and Jahmal do that at an extremely high level.”

In that same interview, McGuire said he’d be comfortable playing nine or 10 at his position.

On Saturday, he technically played 12, if you include Carter Nelson, a converted tight end.

Coleman did not log a snap Saturday, although he’d been battling back from offseason injuries. Lloyd had 17 snaps. Bullock had 14.

In last year’s Iowa game, that trio combined for 110 snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.

As the Rewind wrote last week: Nebraska made the kinds of offseason decisions that suggested urgency in year two. Banks and Neyor have already paid off in that regard.

Colorado’s Travis Hunter — the nation’s best two-way player and a terrific cornerback — can only cover one of them at a time. Last year, CU was able to take away NU’s top deep threat, Marcus Washington, who played 56 snaps and caught just one ball.

The Buffaloes won’t be able to do that again. Nebraska has more weapons, and it makes a freshman quarterback’s life a lot easier.

“At the end of the day, my receivers made plays,” Raiola said. “And their defense didn’t.”

I See You

Quarterback Dylan Raiola: He doesn’t have experience with personal football failure — and that’s a strength. Raiola is willing to conceive of making risky throws, then make them. He had a nice rhythm on the more basic throws, too. He was throwing, not aiming. It works.

Defensive coordinator Tony White: Nebraska’s scheme remains hard to figure out, and White has his guys running so hard to the ball that one broken tackle doesn’t mean much. And while it was hard to run outside the hash marks against Nebraska for several years, it’s even moreso now.

Defensive tackle Ty Robinson: If buddy and teammate Nash Hutmacher is the “Polar Bear,” what is the taller, bigger Robinson? A Kodiak bear? He finished with two tackles, both of which were for loss.

Tight end Luke Lindenmeyer: Michigan-level blocking performance at tight end. (That’s a compliment.) Thomas Fidone and Janiran Bonner — a moving 220-pound blocker at slot receiver — knocked guys around, too. NU has to get Fidone open downfield, where his frame and hands are a better weapon than behind the line of scrimmage.

Cornerback Marques Buford: Bigger tests loom, but at corner he arguably outplayed teammate Tommi Hill. Buford can run, he’s got smarts to recognize routes, and he’ll hit people. Ceyair Wright and Jeremiah Charles are coming at corner — which may allow Buford to move back to safety with Malcolm Hartzog. Colorado will tell a better story here.

Running backs Dante Dowdell and Emmett Johnson: That duo probably ran with the best combination of quickness and power, although Dowdell (eight carries, 55 yards) lost a costly fumble and Johnson (eight for 71), given a chance for the long touchdown run, couldn’t outrun a UTEP defender. Rahmir Johnson (11 for 50) is fearless, but missed a cutback hole for a big gain, too.

Linebacker Mikai Gbayor: Thrived in his first start at middle linebacker. He’ll get sucked into a play-action fake or two, but his downhill, helmet-splitting style fits the league he’s in.

Tight end Carter Nelson: He’s got sports car ankles that can turn on a dime and still keep balance. For a 6-foot-5, 230-pounder, that’s pretty good, and the Ainsworth graduate appears to just be getting started.

Receiver Jacory Barney: Terrific acceleration and change of direction. He might be one of Rhule’s best overall recruiting wins, given he could have stayed home to play at Miami (Fla.) and said no to getting in on the ground floor of NU’s rise.

Right guard Gibson Pyle: The most dominant — at least on Saturday — of the young offensive linemen, although redshirt freshman Grant Seagren held his own at tackle, too. Pyle (No. 72) bruised a couple Miners and stayed sound as a pass blocker.

Five Stats

64.71%: Nebraska’s third-down conversion rate on Saturday, its best mark since the 2022 Georgia Southern game, when NU scored 42 points and still lost. Saturday’s mark is the ninth-best of the Huskers’ time in the Big Ten. The tops was 80% in 2012 against Southern Mississippi.

69.14%: NU’s completion rate, the highest since the 2021 Iowa game, when backup Logan Smothers played a near-flawless opening three quarters. On Saturday, Husker quarterbacks completed 25 of 36 passes. A couple sack-avoiding throwaways were part of the attempts.

Nine: Tackles for loss, only one of which was a sack. Nebraska defensive tackle Ty Robinson said defenders were coached to attack UTEP’s “long mesh” between Miner quarterbacks and running backs and, in doing so, generated eight TFLs, including a safety. White declined to bring too many pressure packages on Saturday when the Miners threw the ball.

34: Yards per net punt, thanks to a 29-yard punt return from UTEP late in the game when Husker punter Brian Buschini may have outkicked his coverage. Something to watch going forward. NU finished -1 in net punting average.

+16.61: Yards per point differential in game one. Nebraska averaged 12.675 yards per point — that’s much better than Oregon (20.3) — and UTEP needed roughly 29.3 yards to score a point. Again, NU hasn’t had a positive YPP differential since 2021.

Facebook Feedback

After each game, I ask fans on my Facebook for their takes on the previous game. Selected and edited responses follow:

Dan Smith: “The offensive line provided a clean pocket and opened some holes. QB played with poise and made some great throws. Defense was solid. Colorado will provide a great opportunity to show what we can do!”

Pat Ford: “I’ll just say it was great to sweat out a game only because of the weather, not because of the action on the field!”

Phil Spear: “Plus one in turnovers is wonderful. Line looks so much better. The bad things are fixable and felt like ‘first game’ things, not systemic like last year.”

Gary Carrillo: “Did you notice (Dante) Dowdell didn't go back in the game after that fumble? Rhule said if you turn the ball over, you’re going to sit.”

Opponent Watch

>>Colorado beat North Dakota State 31-26, using clutch and canny play from its two stars, quarterback Shedeur Sanders and receiver Travis Hunter, to hold off a physical, motivated Bison team. CU’s offensive line looked improved from last season, while the defense struggled to identify basic assignments against NDSU’s playaction passing game. The Buffaloes still look like a bowl squad in the so-so Big 12, which won’t be as tough as the 2023 Pac-12.

>>Wisconsin’s offense struggled to break an egg against Western Michigan and trailed 14-13 in the second half before a punt glanced off the shoulder pad of a WMU player and kickstarted a comeback and 28-14 Badger win. You could watch UW’s offense and NU’s offense and see some similarities with one key difference: The Huskers have Banks and Neyor.

Forecast

Is this true? Unseasonably cool weather for Saturday night? A chill and a thrill in the air when Deion Sanders runs into the stadium?