Dylan Raiola’s Nebraska, coming off a 5-1 record, faced an upsetting defeat against Minnesota, 6-24. But the stats do not paint the complete picture of what happened in Minneapolis. “We were just kind of out of whack the whole day,” Matt Rhule accurately summed up his roster’s performance. His star QB never reached the end zone, with only two field goals, floating Nebraska’s boat. But more than the lack of TDs, it was another metric that led the fans to clutch their hair in frustration.

The 20-year-old was sacked nine times. Iowa Hawkeyes’ million-dollar QB Mark Gronowski had a reaction to that, “I thought that the quarterback they were playing against may have held the ball a little bit too long in some certain situations,” he said, per DM Register’s Chad Leistikow’s post. Firing shots or honest assessment?

“I’d rather die than let my quarterback get hit,” stated Rhule, evidently mad at his coaches and himself. Over the last two games, the offense has had 12 sacks and 39 total pressures. The QB completed 17 of 25 passes, third lowest for the season, for 177 yards and zero touchdowns.

This was the first time since 2016, when the Huskers were held without a TD in a loss. That was when Nebraska lost to Ohio State, 62-3. And the nine sacks? The most registered since 2005, which led to a loss of 63 yards. Still, the coach was optimistic.

Rhule said, “I saw a lot of good things… and I saw some other things that have to be improved.” Although sacks are often blamed on the O-line, the head coach was quick to point out that it’s always a team effort. “Some of the sacks are on them, some of the sacks are on other people.” On the O-line, two of their starting linemen were out. Guard Rocco Spindler was taken to the hospital for a broken finger, and Elijah Pritchett was ejected, owing to a targeting penalty in the second quarter.

Eventually, he had a stern message. “We’ve got to block better.” Meanwhile, Golden Gophers’ head coach P.J. Fleck, whose roster was without two of its cornerbacks, was impressed with his defensive unit. “Nine sacks, I love that,” he said.

Dylan Raiola makes an honest confession

“As part of my job, it just sucks,” said Dylan Raiola post-game. As the leader of the offense, Raiola stayed humble and took the blame. He expressed his heartbreak and disappointment of what happened over the weekend. “You put so much work in all offseason and all week to get ready for this type of game, and it’s unfortunate.”

On the other hand, Raiola’s limited mobility outside the pocket was also a factor in his performance, and he needs to work on it further down the stretch. Already, offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen has been working with him on his mobility. “We do a lot of scrambling with him, whether it’s boots or nakeds or just him getting out of the pocket extending plays,” he said in August.

Dylan continued. “I mean, we were sitting in the same spot last year and we get the same results. So I’m very frustrated right now, and it sucks.” Last season, after seven games, they were 5-2. And now? Still 5-2.