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09/05 15:47 CDT Anthony Colandrea accounts for 4 TDs as Nebraska pulls away in
4th quarter to beat Ohio 49-21
Anthony Colandrea accounts for 4 TDs as Nebraska pulls away in 4th quarter to
beat Ohio 49-21
By ERIC OLSON
AP College Football Writer
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) --- Anthony Colandrea passed for 275 yards with three
touchdowns and ran for a fourth, Jamal Rule ran for 122 yards and scored three
times, and Nebraska pulled away from Ohio in the fourth quarter in a 49-21
victory on Saturday.
Colandrea, the UNLV transfer making his first start for the Cornhuskers, led
five straight touchdown drives to turn a close game into a blowout. Rule became
the first Nebraska freshman running back to rush for 100 yards in an opener
since 2004, ending his day with an 11-yard touchdown run.
"I expected to have a pretty good game but I didn't expect to find the end zone
three times," Rule said. "Surprised myself; not going to lie."
Nebraska got all it could handle for three quarters from a Bobcats team looking
to get the Mid-American Conference another Big Ten pelt two days after UMass
knocked off Rutgers. Ohio, which came away with points on its first three
possessions, was within a missed field goal of taking the lead in the third
quarter and within seven points early in the fourth after Nick Poulos' 1-yard
run and 2-point conversion.
Colandrea, who fumbled and threw an interception in a 17-10 Frisco Bowl loss to
Ohio when he played for UNLV last season, was turnover-free. He led two long
touchdown drives to put Nebraska up 14-13 at halftime. Colandrea scored from 13
yards and Mekhi Nelson from 29 to make it 28-13, and after the Bobcats got
within a touchdown, Nelson caught a short pass and split four defenders on his
way to a 51-yard TD.
Nebraska's run game overpowered the Bobcats in the second half. The Huskers'
final 21 carries netted 204 yards, and they finished with 523 total yards.
"I was really proud of the way we played the first about 35, 36 minutes," Ohio
coach John Hauser said. "We fought, we battled, we were down one at half. I
thought we were in it, and then it got out of hand there at the end. Credit to
Nebraska, they wore us down there some in the third and fourth quarter."
The takeaway
Ohio: The Bobcats should feel good about their quarterback situation. Poulos, who appeared in four games as a backup last year, came out sharp in his second career start and first since 2024. He connected with Riley Neer on a slant that went for 68 yards on the game's first play from scrimmage and completed 6 of his first 8 passes. He finished 14 of 31 for 164 yards with a TD and ran for 70 yards and a score. Nebraska: A muddled running back situation gained some clarity with the emergence of Rule, a January enrollee who has built on an impressive spring. He was the third running back to enter, behind Isaiah Mozee and Nelson, and averaged 8.1 yards per carry on his team-high 15 attempts.
Solich Day
Frank Solich was guest of honor at the game matching teams he coached to a combined 173 wins over 22 seasons. Solich, wearing a white polo as a show of neutrality, received the Legends Award from the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame and participated in the coin toss. Solich was a longtime assistant to Tom Osborne and had a six-year record of 58-19 when he was fired in 2003. Ohio hired him in 2005 and he was the MAC's all-time wins leader with a 115-82 record when he retired in 2020.
Feeling the heat Temperature at kickoff was 90 degrees and was 95 by the end. The heat index crept into the 100s in the second half. "I would be remiss for not thanking the fans who came out," Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said. "They're probably tougher than me. If I could have coached that game from my couch, I would have."
Up next
Ohio hosts Jacksonville State on Saturday. Nebraska hosts Bowling Green on Saturday. ___ Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here, visit the Top 25 here and see AP's full college football coverage here
The takeaway
Ohio: The Bobcats should feel good about their quarterback situation. Poulos, who appeared in four games as a backup last year, came out sharp in his second career start and first since 2024. He connected with Riley Neer on a slant that went for 68 yards on the game's first play from scrimmage and completed 6 of his first 8 passes. He finished 14 of 31 for 164 yards with a TD and ran for 70 yards and a score. Nebraska: A muddled running back situation gained some clarity with the emergence of Rule, a January enrollee who has built on an impressive spring. He was the third running back to enter, behind Isaiah Mozee and Nelson, and averaged 8.1 yards per carry on his team-high 15 attempts.
Solich Day
Frank Solich was guest of honor at the game matching teams he coached to a combined 173 wins over 22 seasons. Solich, wearing a white polo as a show of neutrality, received the Legends Award from the Nebraska Football Hall of Fame and participated in the coin toss. Solich was a longtime assistant to Tom Osborne and had a six-year record of 58-19 when he was fired in 2003. Ohio hired him in 2005 and he was the MAC's all-time wins leader with a 115-82 record when he retired in 2020.
Feeling the heat Temperature at kickoff was 90 degrees and was 95 by the end. The heat index crept into the 100s in the second half. "I would be remiss for not thanking the fans who came out," Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said. "They're probably tougher than me. If I could have coached that game from my couch, I would have."
Up next
Ohio hosts Jacksonville State on Saturday. Nebraska hosts Bowling Green on Saturday. ___ Sign up for Top 25 poll alerts here, visit the Top 25 here and see AP's full college football coverage here
