2025: A Space Modesty – The Year in Review

As the next season begins seemingly before it ends, let’s take a look back at what was an average 'meh' year – Emmett Johnson aside

The funny thing about college football is that, just when you’re about to bang out your “Year-in-Review” column, simultaneously, the next season has already begun. That's because Nebraska football – as anyone who lives in the Cornhusker state knows – is a year-round sport. Where does it end, and when does it begin?

Within the span of the two weeks since Iowa left a chalk outline of our own body next to the “N” at Memorial Stadium’s midfield, three coaches have been fired and three more have been hired. Meanwhile, head coach Matt Rhule has taken the podium twice to pontificate – once again – about the “direction of the program moving forward.”

That all adds up to only one thing: we were mostly crappy again.

To wit, you saw it this past weekend with several coaching changes, which meant the inclusion of new offensive line coach Geep Wade, who is two letters removed from a Jeep Wave (hi guys!) — but it was an addition that meant the subtraction of former offensive line coach Donovan Raiola and possibly his 5-star nephew, too (bye guys?). 

On that waiting-with-bated-breath note, the Dylan Raiola tension casts the biggest shadow over everything leading up to Nebraska’s NYE date in Las Vegas with Utah. Backup T.J. Lateef was good … until he was only kinda good … until the Nebraska brethren surrounding him (excluding certifiable Husker hero Emmett Johnson, of course) were so bad against Iowa that it was impossible to to tell if he was good or not. Let’s be honest. The note has been passed; the text message has been sent … check yes or no so we can get on with our lives already. Dylan — we’re into you, but let’s also be honest: you didn’t give us enough that we're soooo into you that we don’t consider other options. 

The cycle never ends. It’s always some form of getting back to the future. Nebraska football, 2025? Numbers-wise, it was better. Judging by my gut, it was worse. There was hope. There was a good vibe, albeit briefly. There was hope in Los Angeles. Then there was a realization that YES one defensive tackle can be that important to a team’s success. Can I say it one more time until the next time I can’t help myself from saying it: football is a game won from the inside out. Ndamukong Suh made the 2009 Nebraska team capable of competing with anyone. Ty Robinson was a notch below, but

But let’s keep our eyes on the prize, and in this case our big prize is a trip to Las Vegas (which sounds like a lot of fun) to play against a run-heavy (not our strength) Utah team that might be carrying the torch for highly respected coach Kyle Whittingham in his last game (sounds like not so much fun). As we trudge forward into 

Nebraska did win more games in 2025 than it did in 2024. And to be fair, winning any game against any Big Ten team is hard. But the sorry fact is that Nebraska only beat the shitty teams; and the good teams they beat weren’t really that good and one of them was involved in all kinds of disarray — few things about Nebraska football from 2002-2025 comfort you at night but at least we aren’t gross like Michigan. Hate to say I was starting to point some things out earlier this year, but you bet your ass I was starting to point some things out. Ew.

OK, OK. Eyes on the prizes. Here are some year-in-review awards and thoughts as we see what other offseason transaction inevitably transpires while this gets sent into the internet either. Ready, down, huthuthuthut (ooooohhh is that Matt signaling for another timeout?). Time out. Eight TV commercials and somehow a replay, too.

Hut. Hut-hut. Time out. Commercial. Replay. Hut.

Player of the Year: The biggest no-brainer since Suh in 2009. Emmett Johnson was the epitome of everything Nebraska football fans wont for — an undersized and slow-ish-for-his-position player who stuck to it, put in the work, did not transfer for greener pastures, maximized his strengths and, most importantly, did it on the field against high-level competition. Thankfully AP and Coaches voters recognized him with First Team All-American nods; the thinking here is that, unfortunately, that is not always a guarantee — many worthy players are overlooked because they play for “meh” teams. But Emmett’s grit, talent and production superseded playing for a mediocre team, even on the darkest of days — many times on the darkest of days. We’ll be rooting for you #21, always.

Season high: Probably when we beat Maryland (who went 1-8 in Big Ten play) nin come-from-behind fashion, 34-31, on Saturday, Oct. 11, which put the Huskers at 5-1 heading into the back half of the season and had even the best of the media (the Omaha World-Herald’s Sam McKewon) talking about Nebraska breaking in to the college football playoff. The next day, Sunday, Penn State fired its coach, which led to…

(and I hope you’re in to timelines…)

Season low: Rhule taking the podium that Monday to address rumors he might be interested in (or perhaps be a target for) said Penn State job. It was a bizarre and rambling acknowledgement of the situation that provided little clarity. Rhule simultaneously said that he loves it in Nebraska but also said he needs more money to compete. “More money” being the operative words – for him, anyway. Four days after the press conference Nebraska shat the bed against Minnesota on a Friday night on national TV, a disturbing loss that was followed … wait for it … only in Nebraska … by a 2-year contract extension. 

WTF moment: The fallout from the press conference seemed to signify that Rhule created a bad atmosphere in the locker room going into the Minnesota game. Then again, watch the tape. We gave up nine – NINE – sacks. If anything, this “dramatic” (nothing is that dramatic when you’re a 7-5 team) eight days – starting with the comeback against Maryland leading up to the press conference and coalescing in the Minnesota debacle – just kind of made you think: Uh oh. Actually, emotion and contract negotiations have nothing to do with it. They just gave up nine sacks??? We just suck at football.

(On with the awards and moments … stay with me – it’s not all bad!)

Play of the Year: Comfort. Big ass sweats. Comfort food. Chicken wings, MF! A good episode of “Seinfeld.” Hallmark movies for – yeah, I’ll say it – the ladies. Some of the ladies. And 10,000 (or more) Nebraska fans showing up for that Maryland game to watch Dane Key haul in a one-handed catch to beat the Terps 34-31. If you haven’t noticed yet – yeah, I give Matt Rhule a hard time but having the players go back out from the locker room to celebrate with the travelin’ fans was a cool moment. Husker fans showing up in abundance for at least one memorable moment per year sometimes seems like the one comfort food we have left. Nice catch, Dane. Runner-up: the Hail Mary pre-halftime catch by Jacory Barney, which rates a 10 out of 10 on the improbability scale but we also that game, soooo…)

(And on that note, as long as Huskers fans keep spending money and keep traveling to games and keep spending money and keep showing up at random campuses and keep spending money and you keep reading articles and keep spending money and I keep writing and will you please send me money, there will always be hope, sooooo…)

Biggest offseason task: Find another Ty Robinson. We like to talk about how we have enough money to compete with the major college football powers. This is no easy task. Game-changing defensive tackles are not easy to find. You hate the transfer portal and I hate it too — Matt Rhule’s 180 on whether or not Nebraska has the money to compete is WTF, Part 2 – but if his latest sales pitch is true, you’re gonna have to pony up, pony boy.

Biggest offseason task, part 2: Settle the quarterback situation. No shit, right? That goes without saying … but I only include this as a “part 2” to point out that getting a “big-ass, he’s just too big to not be good” defensive tackle is more important than grasping at straws at a ”50-50 quarterback who may or may not be good.” The NFL Draft has proven that shiny new-toy quarterbacks are more or less a 50-50 proposition. Dylan has proven himself to be … like a 65-35 proposition but rare are the 97-3 Patrick Mahomes of the world. But a big-ass body is a big-ass body. 

FIIIIIIVE GOLDEN RIIIIINGS!!! Lest they get too cocky over there, ‘tis the season to remind Iowa that – although yes, you kicked our ass this year, and have kicked our ass many, many times – we got FIVE national championships and you have never – nor will ever, will have one. 1970, 1971, 1994, 1995 and 1997. FIIIIIVE GOLDEN RIIIINGS!!! I’m living in the past? Ooooh, yeah, well, it’s a great past to live in, isn’t it? Petty? Yes. Accurate? ALSO!!!

Most Husker of Them All: Let’s end the column with another ‘ode to former times when I would write my column for the City Weekly. My best friend went to the Nebraska-USC game in 2006 (not a great one, but still) and relayed to me his observation of a starstruck Trojan Maaaaan (!!!) looking at either the jersey or a statue of Charles White, the USC running back from 1977-1979, who he proclaimed was “The Most Trojan of Them All.” White won the Heisman Trophy in ’79. Trojan Maaaaan told my buddy that “The Most Trojan of Them All” had to be a senior who also grew up in the state of California.

*This is all probably based on this effing’ guy, Morley Drury, aka the “Most Noblest Trojan of Them All…” (click if you literally have nothing else to click on…)

Thems the rules, so … (I know you’re also waiting for this one with bated breath).

The Most Husker of Them All is Heinrich Haarberg. Ohhh, how the game has changed. Seniors who were Nebraska natives and were here from Day 1? The pool is small. But HH deserves some love for putting his body on the line as an undermanned quarterback in 2023, not bitching when Dylan arrived on campus in 2024, and unselfishly moving to the alien position of tight end in 2025. His eight catches for 52 yards aren’t eye-popping, but one of them – an incredible sideline snag against Maryland – led to the aforementioned play of the year.

It's the little things.  

Seasons end as they also begin. Statues and jerseys and someone like Emmett comes from out of nowhere. There are reasons to throw in the towel and reasons to renew your season tickets. The past gets blurred and also becomes more clear. And we hope that on Dec. 31 against Utah one more will inexplicably be the Most Husker of Them All. (We’ll miss you, Emmett.) Back with a Vegas Bowl preview next week. Vegas, baby.