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Nebraska Football: Freshman class provides positivity in loss to Indiana

By Leigh Oleszczak

LINCOLN, NE - OCTOBER 26: Quarterback Luke McCaffrey #7 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers takes the snap with wide receiver Wan'Dale Robinson #1 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers against the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images)
LINCOLN, NE - OCTOBER 26: Quarterback Luke McCaffrey #7 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers takes the snap with wide receiver Wan'Dale Robinson #1 of the Nebraska Cornhuskers against the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium on October 26, 2019 in Lincoln, Nebraska. (Photo by Steven Branscombe/Getty Images) /
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If there was one positive takeaway from Nebraska football’s 38-31 loss to Indiana, it was the play of a pair of freshmen; Wan’Dale Robinson and Luke McCaffrey.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers lost a disappointing game on Saturday to the Indiana Hoosiers, but it’s been an absolute blast watching Wan’Dale Robinson do his thing on a weekly basis. This offense desperately needs him.

Robinson did it all on Saturday, running the ball 22 times for 83 yards and one touchdown while also hauling in six receptions for 71 yards. He’s electrifying to watch and makes the Huskers offense a lot of fun to watch.

That’s when things are going well, however, and on Saturday, we watched it crumple before our very eyes. That was no fault of Robinson’s, who has proven he’s a game changer. He can carry this offense, but after awhile, it was clear that Indiana knew who was getting the ball.

Another positive from this game was the play of third string freshman quarterback Luke McCaffrey.

The Cornhuskers were forced to turn to McCaffrey in Saturday’s game versus Indiana due to Adrian Martinez not being available and Noah Vedral getting injured. Vedral had been playing pretty well before getting injured, going 14 of 16 for 201 yards while rushing for 21 yards and two touchdowns.

It’s never a good thing when a player gets injured, but it was cool to see McCaffrey get a chance to play. He played well, completing five of six passes for 71 yards and a beauty of a touchdown to Kanawai Noa. McCaffrey also rushed for 76 yards in the loss.

Watching these two freshmen in action on Saturday should give fans hope for the future. The 2019 season hasn’t gone according to plan, as the Huskers were grouped in with being a potential Big Ten West contender. That has not been the case at all, as Nebraska is now 4-4 and only has two true winnable games remaining on their schedule that they now HAVE to win in order to make a bowl game this year.

I’m not giving up on Scott Frost yet at all, as that’d be silly to throw the towel in so early on. These two freshmen in particular prove that Frost is recruiting good football players, but it takes a few years to build something special.

While Nebraska has disappointed this year, they’re still a better team than they were this time last year. One more win would give them a better record from a season ago and the Huskers should, in all likelihood, be able to beat Maryland and Purdue, though those games are on the road and that could be problematic.

Wan’Dale Robinson and Luke McCaffrey are proof that Nebraska football could be better in the coming years, but fans are most definitely going to have to be patient with this process.

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