Northwestern overcame a pair of 11-point deficits to record a 31-28 win over Nebraska in a Big Ten game Saturday in Dublin, Ireland.
The Wildcats (1-0) trailed 28-17 midway through the third quarter before taking over, doing so almost exclusively on the ground. They ran for 157 of their 214 rushing yards in the second half, with Evan Hull’s 4-yard touchdown run with 11:34 left in the fourth completing the comeback.
The score came after Cam Mitchell returned an interception 33 yards to the Nebraska 42, and a pick by Northwestern’s Xander Mueller with 1:45 left sealed the win.
Hull finished with 119 yards on 22 carries, while Cam Porter ran for 94 yards and a touchdown on 19 carries.
Despite a new year and being in a different country, it was the same old result for Nebraska (0-1), which fell to 5-21 in one-score games under coach Scott Frost. The Cornhuskers lost eight such games a year ago, more than any team in one season in FBS history.
Down 17-14 at the half, Nebraska went up by four early in the third on a 3-yard run by Anthony Grant, who had 101 yards and two scores. Grant made it 28-17 via a 46-yard touchdown less than one minute later, with the score coming two plays after Caleb Tannor recovered a Porter fumble near midfield.
Porter redeemed himself with a 3-yard touchdown run with 7:53 left in the third, cutting Nebraska’s lead to 28-24.
Nebraska came out firing early, with Texas transfer Casey Thompson completing 5 of 6 passes for 68 yards — including a 32-yard touchdown to New Mexico State transfer Isaiah Garcia-Castaneda less than three minutes into the game.
The Cornhuskers went up 14-3 early in the second on a 1-yard sneak by Thompson, who was 25 of 42 for 355 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
But after that it was all Wildcats in the first half. Ryan Hilinski connected on a 43-yard touchdown to Raymond Niri III and hit Illinois transfer Donny Navarro III from 6 yards out with 25 seconds left before halftime.
Hilinski completed 27 of 38 passes for 313 yards and two touchdowns.
Nebraska hosts North Dakota in its home opener on Sept. 3, while Northwestern is off until hosting Duke on Sept. 10. Neither team plays away from home again until October.
–Field Level Media
