Justice Haynes rushed for 149 yards and broke one of No. 21 Michigan’s three long touchdown runs in a 30-27 win over Nebraska on Saturday, extending the Cornhuskers’ losing streak against Top 25 opponents to 28 games.
Freshman Bryce Underwood, who struggled in a road loss at Oklahoma two weeks ago, was just 12-of-22 passing for 105 yards in his first Big Ten road game but scored the Wolverines’ first touchdown on a 37-yard run and extended his team’s last scoring drive with a key third-down pass and a scramble.
“He did everything he had to do to win, which is the maturity he might not have had at Oklahoma,” said Biff Poggi, acting head coach in place of the suspended Sherrone Moore.
Dylan Raiola’s 52-yard Hail Mary to Jacory Barney Jr. for a touchdown to end the first half tied it 17-all and gave the Cornhuskers (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) momentum heading into the third quarter. They managed just a field goal after that until Raiola led them on a 75-yard drive to make it a three-point game with 1:34 left.
Michigan (3-1, 1-0) recovered the onside kick, picked up a first down and ran out the clock.
The Wolverines rushed for 286 yards, the most against Nebraska since Oklahoma ran for 312 in 2022.
“Just too many big plays to win a football game like that,” Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said. “We battled, and I appreciate that from the guys. It wasn’t enough.”
The Wolverines went into the fourth quarter with a 27-17 lead after Dominic Zvada kicked a 56-yard field goal and Jordan Marshall busted through the line to go 54 yards for a touchdown. Zvada’s 21-yard field goal gave the Wolverines a 10-point lead again with under 4 minutes to play.
Michigan had two one-play touchdown drives, with Underwood breaking his 37-yard run after a Nebraska turnover and Haynes going 75 yards untouched to the end zone.
Raiola was 30 of 41 for 308 yards and three touchdowns, the first quarterback to throw for 300 yards against Michigan since Purdue’s Aidan O’Connell in 2022. Raiola threw his first interception of the season and was sacked seven times as Michigan defensive coordinator Wink Martindale sent blitzes from a variety of angles.
“Wink Martindale, we’re going to put him in bubble wrap on the plane on the way back so nothing happens to him,” Poggi said. “Our defensive kids played so hard. They never gave up. The whole team never gave up.”
Barney caught six balls for 120 yards and two TDs, but the Huskers netted only 43 yards on the ground because of the sacks and converted only 2 of 12 third downs.
“I feel like someone hit me with a hammer right now,” Rhule said. “I wanted to win the football game and I thought we would win the football game.”
The takeaway
Michigan: Underwood fared better than he did in his first road start, a 24-13 loss at Oklahoma on Sept. 6, but his passing continues to be a work in progress.
Nebraska: The Huskers lost their sixth straight Big Ten opener. Their losing streak against Top 25 opponents is second-longest among power-conference teams. Rutgers has lost 41 in a row.
Up next
Both teams have open dates next week. Michigan hosts Wisconsin on Oct. 4 and Nebraska hosts Michigan State the same day.
