This collision between two blue-blood programs with a lot to prove under the Saturday lights is as big as it gets in late September. Freshman quarterback Bryce Underwood of Michigan is already aware of the pain of losing after losing his first road start at Oklahoma. But he recovered superbly against Central Michigan, piling up 235 passing yards, a touchdown through the air, 114 rushing yards, and two touchdowns on the ground. Everyone is now waiting to see if the young gun can handle another difficult defense away from home as they prepare to travel to Lincoln.
Dylan Raiola is Nebraska’s own freshman sensation on the field, and his stats speak for themselves. In just three games, he has piled up 829 yards, eight touchdowns, zero picks, and an insane 76.6% completion rate. For the first time since 2017, the Huskers have held back-to-back opponents under 200 yards of offense as they got off to a 3-0 start, scoring 68 points against Akron and 59 against Houston Christian. However, Raiola’s first true test will be Michigan’s defense.
The matchup on Saturday brings together not only Michigan and Nebraska but also one of the top television teams. The call will be on CBS, with Gary Danielson providing color commentary and Brad Nessler handling play-by-play.
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At this point, Nessler’s voice is essentially a part of college football’s soundtrack. Before establishing himself as one of the nation’s leading college voices, the Georgia native worked on everything from Monday Night Football and the NBA Finals to Falcons radio and the Vikings in the early 1980s. He has led CBS since 2017, and you can tell it’s a big game when you hear him speak.
After a successful NFL career with the Lions and Browns, Danielson has been analyzing plays in the booth for almost 30 years. Though it occasionally divides fan opinion, he has never shied away from offering direct, in-depth analysis. You can’t deny that he has a quarterback’s perspective on the game. After almost twenty years with CBS, 2025 will be his last season before Charles Davis takes over, so this Nebraska-Michigan game is one of the last opportunities for fans to see the Nessler-Danielson team on such a large stage.
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Gary Danielson returns to where it all began
It’s a bit of a full-circle moment in the broadcast booth, and Saturday’s game in Lincoln is about more than just Michigan trying to avoid a second loss or Nebraska chasing that elusive top-25 win. After this season, Gary Danielson, who is retiring, will return to Memorial Stadium, the site of his 1990 TV debut, where Nebraska defeated Baylor 13-0. Danielson once recalled, “My very first game when I got the job at ESPN was a Nebraska game…I didn’t even know what I was doing there… when you went to the game, you felt the bigness of the stadium and how important it was to the community.”
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Now, 35 years later, Danielson is calling one of his final games at the place where it all began. Although he has had the opportunity to watch some of the biggest college football rivalries, including Alabama vs. Auburn, Michigan vs. Ohio State, and Army vs. Navy, Nebraska still has a special place in his heart. This summer, he stated, “It’s been a long time… going back to Nebraska to finish up the career is going to be really fun.” It’s a fitting farewell for a man who has been the SEC football soundtrack for almost so many years.
Of course, the tough game itself only adds to the gravity of the situation. And CBS is sending its best team, Brad Nessler and Danielson, to what should be the Huskers’ 406th straight sellout as Nebraska enters 3-0 and Michigan 2-1. Saturday will feel like a celebration of Danielson’s career, with a voice that has been a part of the sport for 36 years getting another chance to call in front of the crowd that helped start it all.