CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2023 Nebraska

5–⁠7 (3–⁠6 Big Ten), coached by Matt Rhule.

Schedule and results

Nebraska in 2023, game by game: lost at Minnesota 10–13; lost at No. 22 Colorado 14–36; won vs. Northern Illinois 35–11; won vs. Louisiana Tech 28–14; lost vs. No. 2 Michigan 7–45; won at Illinois 20–7; won vs. Northwestern 17–9; won vs. Purdue 31–14; lost at Michigan State 17–20; lost vs. Maryland 10–13; lost at Wisconsin 17–24; lost vs. No. 20 Iowa 10–13+24−38Lost 10–13 at Minnesota-3MinnesotaLost 14–36 at No. 22 Colorado-22No. 22 ColoradoWon 35–11 vs. Northern Illinois+24Northern Illino…Won 28–14 vs. Louisiana Tech+14Louisiana TechLost 7–45 vs. No. 2 Michigan-38No. 2 MichiganWon 20–7 at Illinois+13IllinoisWon 17–9 vs. Northwestern+8NorthwesternWon 31–14 vs. Purdue+17PurdueLost 17–20 at Michigan State-3Michigan StateLost 10–13 vs. Maryland-3MarylandLost 17–24 at Wisconsin-7WisconsinLost 10–13 vs. No. 20 Iowa-3No. 20 Iowa
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31atMinnesotaL 10–⁠1327%
Sep 9at22ColoradoL 14–⁠3651%
Sep 16vsNorthern IllinoisW 35–⁠1164%
Sep 23vsLouisiana TechW 28–⁠1466%
Sep 30vs2MichiganL 7–⁠4523%
Oct 6atIllinoisW 20–⁠738%
Oct 21vsNorthwesternW 17–⁠970%
Oct 28vsPurdueW 31–⁠1461%
Nov 4atMichigan StateL 17–⁠2054%
Nov 11vsMarylandL 10–⁠1354%
Nov 18atWisconsinL 17–⁠2440%
Nov 24vs20IowaL 10–⁠1331%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Iowa 13–⁠10; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 8th in the Big Ten.

In program history: The 108th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 129 on file).

Record
5–⁠7
Conference
3–⁠6 tied for 8th in Big Ten
AP final
Unranked
Points
216–⁠219
Coach
Matt Rhule
Elo
1470 −1 this season
SP+ rating
0.3 No. 65 of 133; offense No. 123, defense No. 6, special teams No. 105
SRS
1.3 No. 58 of 133 in FBS
Returning
14% of last season’s EPA, No. 126 of 131
Recruiting class
No. 25 roster talent No. 21 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Marcus Satterfield
Defensive coordinator
Tony White
Offense
Spread
Defense
3–⁠3–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense109th of 133
  • Defense23rd of 133
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted107th of 133
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted33rd of 133
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0038%1.38109th of 133
Defense0.0238%1.1023rd of 133
Opponent-adjusted0.03 off
0.05 def		38% off
39% def		—107th off
33rd def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.3own 2922% allowed
Defense3.1own 3119% caused

CORE rating 3.3, 46th of 133 (offense -5.1, defense -8.4).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsHeinrich Haarberg TE967 yds
Passing touchdownsHeinrich Haarberg TE7 TD
Rushing yardsHeinrich Haarberg TE477 yds
Rushing touchdownsHeinrich Haarberg TE5 TD
Receiving yardsBilly Kemp WR310 yds
Receiving touchdownsThomas Fidone Jr. TE4 TD
TacklesIsaac Gifford DB86 tkl
SacksJimari Butler DE5.5 sacks
InterceptionsTommi Hill CB4 INT

Top recruits in the 2023 class

Malachi Coleman WR★★★★No. 67
Princewill Umanmielen DE★★★★No. 276
Cameron Lenhardt DE★★★★No. 308
Riley Van Poppel DL★★★★No. 386
Demitrius Bell ATH★★★No. 463

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2023 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Running backs13.00.865
Receivers53.00.865
Offensive line43.00.868
Defensive line93.30.873
Linebackers13.00.867
Defensive backs53.00.868
Athletes and specialists43.00.861
Whole class293.10.868

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 136

The 2023 roster

136 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2023 line; 68 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 12

The 2023 portal
Arik Gilbert TE★★★★from Georgia
Jeff Sims QB★★★★from Georgia Tech
M.J. Sherman DE★★★★from Georgia
Billy Kemp WR★★★from Virginia
Corey Collier Jr. CB★★★from Florida
Ben Scott OT★★★from Arizona State
Elijah Jeudy DL★★★from Texas A&M
Jacob Hood OT★★★from Georgia
Chief Borders LB★★★from Florida
Josh Fleeks WR★★★from Baylor
Tyler Knaak OT★★★from Utah
Marco Ortiz LSfrom Florida

Transfers out 27

Ernest Hausmann LB★★★★to Michigan
Jaeden Gould CB★★★★to Syracuse
Ajay Allen RB★★★to Miami
Alante Brown WR★★★to Michigan State
Casey Thompson QB★★★to Florida Atlantic
Decoldest Crawford WR★★★to Louisiana Tech
Stephon Wynn Jr. DL★★★to Ole Miss
Tyreke Johnson CB★★★★★no new school on file
Logan Smothers QB★★★★no new school on file
Noa Pola-Gates S★★★★to New Mexico
Brant Banks OT★★★to Rice
Braxton Clark CB★★★no new school on file

And 15 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2023 Big Ten standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Michigan9–⁠015–⁠01
Ohio State8–⁠111–⁠210
Penn State7–⁠210–⁠313
Iowa7–⁠210–⁠424
Northwestern5–⁠48–⁠5
Wisconsin5–⁠47–⁠6
Maryland4–⁠58–⁠5
Rutgers3–⁠67–⁠6
Minnesota3–⁠66–⁠7
Illinois3–⁠65–⁠7
Nebraska3–⁠65–⁠7
Purdue3–⁠64–⁠8
Michigan State2–⁠74–⁠8
Indiana1–⁠83–⁠9

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.