LINCOLN — Oh boy.
Michigan’s acting head coach, Biff Poggi, rested his cheek against his hand, an old storyteller leaning into a moment.
This was after the Wolverines’ 63-3 smashing of Central Michigan, a rebound from the week before, when UM lost at Oklahoma in a performance that could best be called sputtering. Poggi had a reason for that, and we’ll get there, because maybe it matters.
Maybe what Poggi had to say in his postgame press conference about Michigan coach Sherrone Moore matters more.
For his apparent role in and knowledge of the Connor Stalions spying scandal several years ago, Moore served the first of a 2025 self-imposed two-game suspension against CMU (Game 2 is at NU).
The Friday night before the game, Michigan players invited Moore to do the team “break,” as Poggi called it, with them. Moore was a “wreck” after that, Poggi said. Moore told the players not to play for him, but themselves.
Once Moore left, Poggi, a giant man who is only wearing shirt sleeves on the sidelines by request of Michigan’s A.D., told his players not to listen to that last bit. Saturday’s game, then, was for their suspended head coach.
“His players love him like you wouldn’t believe,” Poggi said. “And what I would say: Today, you saw a love letter from 120 young men to their football coach.”
Oh boy.
Nebraska’s getting the “Michigan vs. Everybody” version of the Wolverines — or, at least, that’s the version Michigan would like to pack on its plane.
A sense of persecution is overused in today’s sporting world — Michigan was not the victim of its own cheating — but it can be a powerful motivator, and few plied it better than Michigan did two years ago, when it won a national title and mowed down darn good teams — Penn State and Ohio State — without Jim Harbaugh on the sidelines.
So NU, at the very least, isn’t getting the complacent version of a Big Ten blue blood. It’s getting a team whose roster is nearly as young as Nebraska’s, whose offense is run by its own five-star quarterback, whose track record of physicality and toughness is unmatched over the last four seasons of league play.
Flawless execution? That’s come and gone, particularly on offense. The body blows remain.
Nebraska coach Matt Rhule goes into every game expecting a fistfight.
NU’s about to get one. It needs one. It’s ready, too.
Nebraska would be safer to draw Purdue and Michigan State out of the league chute, the way USC did this year, to generate some momentum and buzz, smooth out some of the key wrinkles.
But the Huskers had to believe they’d arrive to this week undefeated with a distinct score to settle with Wolverines, which likely had spies inside Memorial Stadium during the 2021 and 2022 seasons, since Stalions bought tickets to five games across two years.
Don’t expect Nebraska to talk much about it.
But it’s hard to escape in a week where UM’s head coach won’t be in the building because of the spying scandal.
There’s more to Michigan. It is a gatekeeper of the league, and in some ways the biggest brand, flying first class to, say, Rutgers’ coach seats or Nebraska’s business class.
UM doesn’t — and doesn’t have to — play Friday night games, even on the road. I wouldn’t put these Wolverines in the class of Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State or, for now, Illinois in 2025. But those winged helmets make an impression. A Nebraska win, Saturday, makes a mark.
The oddsmakers installed UM as a tiny favorite — 1 1/2 points. So it’s a toss up. Nebraska played its most dominant football — in years — over the last two weeks, to the point, late in Saturday’s 59-7 win over Houston Christian, of boredom.
Michigan, meanwhile, had that decided Sept. 6 loss at OU, where true freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood, plucked away from signing with LSU with a reportedly massive NIL/revenue-sharing deal, looked a little uncertain.
Saturday vs. CMU, he didn’t. UM unleased him as a runner on delayed scrambles and designed power plays. He ran nine times for 114 yards and two scores. He threw for 235 yards. Underwood has a rocket arm — that he trusts a little too much — but a sweet tooth for playmaking. He might go bust — or boom.
“I have a labrador retriever who could coach that guy,” Poggi said. “He’s unbelievable…you play two plays really well and you think you’re getting off the field and this kid extends the play with his legs. Those things are heartbreaking for defenses. It takes a lot of ya and it breaks your spirit a little bit. Boy, he’s gifted. Y’all saw that. But he is so gifted. I’m glad we’ve got him.”
Poggi then added that what Michigan tried to do vs. OU wouldn’t surface again.
“We thought at Oklahoma we’d take the air out of the ball because they’re an Air Raid offense,” Poggi said. “And we’re not taking the air out of the ball ever again. Not with this guy taking the snaps.”
Nebraska is likely to stay locked into its process during interviews. Rhule lit that path Saturday after the HCU blowout.
“I want to make it very clear: It’s not about any one opponent in the Big Ten,” Rhule said. We’re now in Big Ten play. We’ve played three nonconference games. We’re a proud member of the Big Ten, and it’s a challenging conference with a tough schedule, we’re going to play a lot of great teams. We have to show up every week and improve.”
The Huskers strayed the slightest bit for the 2024 Colorado game and weren’t burned by it. But NU also knew it could shove CU around physically, which it did.
It’ll have to prove that against Michigan. The theoreticals end this week. If Nebraska knocks back those winged helmets, batters UM on the ropes, it’ll mean a lot.
Nebraska was in the nascent stages of the Rhule era — with an option quarterback — the last time Michigan rolled in and plowed earth in 2023. Not now. When UM circus comes to town this weekend, it’ll know where to find the Huskers: In the center ring.
On with the Rewind.
I see you
The champ, Bud Crawford: In handily defeating Canelo Alvarez, Omaha’s own looked like the fitter, tougher, stronger fighter despite going up two weight classes. Already a legend, Crawford can retire with his name among the greats.
Defensive end Williams Nwaneri: No lineman should carry the football like a loaf of bread, of course. Not every lineman could, either.
Running back Kwinten Ives: Nebraska will need his size in Big Ten play. He’s shown off good hands and elusiveness, too — traits he came to Nebraska possessing out of high school.
Receiver Cortez Mills: He’s as smooth a route runner as Nebraska has enjoyed since Stanley Morgan, and Mills has better top-end speed. Some more revenue-share money is likely headed his way.
Defensive backs Andrew Marshall and Jamir Conn: Like these FCS transfers a lot. Marshall shows up in coverage and run support. Ditto for Conn, who’s a lot like Malcolm Hartzog — injured for Saturday’s game — and potentially in line to start in 2026.
Offensive linemen Henry Lutovsky and Gunnar Gottula: The best of the starting pummelers on the line. Gottula is off to a heck of a start at left tackle, moving so well on the edge of the field or as a puller, while Lutovsky shoves opponents around with the Big Ten’s best.
Safeties Rex Guthrie and Caleb Benning: Football players. Two redshirt freshmen who see the game beyond their years, diagnose, and make plays. Guthrie played the most snaps of any defender, Benning was tied for third.
Quarterback Dylan Raiola: He’s keeping pass plays alive so far. Against Michigan, we’ll see if he can navigate his way through Wolverine pass rushers.
Receiver Dane Key: He’s special after the catch, as seen by his 39-yard touchdown in which he caught the ball, kept his balance and pulled away from defenders. I still think there’s more for Nebraska to get out of Key on crossing and slant routes.
HCU running back Xai’Shaun Edwards: Just a freshman, he’ll be able to use the Nebraska game tape as transfer portal advertisement. He rarely went down after initial contact and scored a 45-yard touchdown.
HCU punter Brady Young: He averaged 42.3 yards per punt on Saturday, never making a crucial mistake.
Five stats
44-7: The average score of Nebraska’s wins over non-power conference teams since Matt Rhule took over. NU is 6-0 — without much of a sweat — and beating Group of Six/FCS squads was no cinch during the Mike Riley or Scott Frost eras. Overall, Rhule is 8-1 in nonconference games, with a lone loss at Colorado in 2023. NU’s defense has allowed 11.7 points per game in those nine contests.
85.4%: Nebraska’s completion rate in the second halves of games this season. The Huskers have thrown 48 passes and completed 41. Lateef has completed 11 of 12 passes for 254 yards and a touchdown. Nebraska’s efficiency reinforces offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen’s emphasis on routine plays — NU is putting the ball in play in getting good results.
5: Non-offensive touchdowns scored in the Rhule era. That’s a blocked field goal returned for a touchdown by Quinton Newsome in 2023, interception returns for scores by Tommi Hill, John Bullock and Ceyair Wright in 2024 and Nwaneri’s 29-yard scoop-and-score against Houston Christian.
4: Passes thrown by Michigan in the second half of its win over Central Michigan. The Wolverines didn’t attempt a pass in the fourth quarter. This is the UM offense we grew accustomed to watching in recent years — it was almost too primordial in 2024 — before new offensive coordinator Chip Lindsey, fresh from North Carolina, had UM operating more out of 11 personnel in games vs. New Mexico and Oklahoma.
41.75: Points per game scored by Michigan across the 2018, 2021, 2022 and 2023 games. The 2021 contest, as many recall, was a thriller. The other three were thorough buttkickings, 56-10 in 2018, 34-3 in 2022 and 45-7 in 2023. In the 2018 game, just a month into Scott Frost’s tenure, there was his boss, Bill Moos, by the buses, preaching patience.
“I told them I honestly believe this is going to be the bottom right here,” Frost said.
Opponent watch
»UCLA’s season derailed after a 35-10 loss to New Mexico Friday night. The Bruins’ starting defense, comprised almost entirely of transfers is allowing 244 rushing yards per game, including 298 to the Lobos. Coach Deshaun Foster got fired Sunday after a miserable 0-3 start.
“I can get these boys to play,” Foster said when asked why he was still the right coach for the job. He won’t get the chance to prove it. His brief tenure started poorly at Big Ten Media Days with an awkward opening speech, peaked with wins over Nebraska and Iowa, then dipped once he had to turn over the majority of his roster in the offseason.
The Bruins probably can win a few games this year, regardless of the head coach. But the Rose Bowl is going to empty out of fans. When Nebraska visits in November, it’ll be a bowl full of red.
»Maryland has not lost a nonconference game since 2019, and that factoid didn’t change in 2025, as the Terrapins finished off Towson 44-17 on Saturday. That follows a 20-9 win over Northern Illinois and a 39-7 win over Florida Atlantic. The Terrapins have eight takeaways on the season and have allowed opponents to convert just 28.3% of their third downs so far. Maryland heads to Wisconsin next week, has a bye, then hosts Washington. It’s possible (not likely) UM is 5-0 when NU comes to town.
Forecast
You’ll be able to feel the heat of the upcoming game, even if it rains quite a bit this week.
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Sam McKewon
Sports Editor
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