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The Morning After: South Alabama

What are the folks saying about the Huskers victory last night? Let's take a look.

By Brian Towle
David McGee

Tom Shatel, Omaha World-Herald: This is a Mike Riley tradition Nebraska fans could get used to.

Tom Osborne always talked about the journey, how it was what mattered most, more than the trophies and all the national titles he chased forever. He said the journey is what you’ll remember, what you’ll miss, and he said it mostly to a media corps and fan base that nodded in agreement but wondered when they could order the next set of championship rings.

It’s 2015 now, and there have been four coaches since Osborne, and Nebraskans haven’t lost their appetite for the destination.

The aftermath of the BYU loss brought no shortage of fans who wanted to compare Riley and his staff to Bill Callahan and his staff that lasted four years here.

No shortage of fans wanting to know how Riley’s offense was going to translate to a Big Ten or national championship. No shortage saying they had serious doubts about the Nice Guy.

This, after one game. Now, is nice back en vogue? Until next week.

Steve Sipple, Lincoln Journal-Star: Huskers improve, but much tougher test awaits.

Mike Riley deserves a healthy congratulations for his first triumph at Nebraska, a relatively weak opponent notwithstanding.

The head coach earned it. His Nebraska football team earned it. The Huskers apparently practiced well last week and cleaned up their act in a few key areas Saturday night after a kick-in-the-gut opening loss.

Now they have to channel their inner Joe Frazier.

Time for a brawl.

Or put it this way: It's time for something exponentially tougher than what South Alabama had to offer. Nebraska prevailed 48-9 and now eyes next week's game at Miami, which as you might recall, engaged NU in what amounted to a fistfight last September in Lincoln.

The Huskers won that game by 10 points. The rematch looks like a toss-up, with the Hurricanes getting an edge because they'll be at home.

Mike Herndon, AL.com: 2 minute drill, Nebraska 48 South Alabama 9.

It's a shame the Jags couldn't have put together a better showing on such a big stage. But one positive to take away from the night was Cody Clements' 271-yard passing night and the speed flashed by Magee, who got deep several ti

mes on the Cornhuskers to finish with six catches for 147 yards and a beautiful 36-yard scoring catch in the fourth quarter from Dallas Davis. While disappointing to go home with such a lopsided loss, the experience of playing a Big Ten team before a sellout crowd of 89,822 should help the Jags when they head into their Sun Belt schedule.

Brian Rosenthal, Lincoln Journal-Star: Rose-Ivey shines when needed most

An amped-up Michael Rose-Ivey, playing his first game since 2013, had a team-leading 10 tackles, including one for loss, in Nebraska’s 48-9 victory against South Alabama on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.

"It was just fun to be out there, back with those guys," said Rose-Ivey, who missed last season with an ACL tear, then sat out the Huskers’ season-opening loss to BYU because of a suspension. "Last week was tough for me."

Sam McKewon, Omaha World-Herald: Terrell Newby, Huskers power way to old-fashioned win

Outside zone. Inside zone. Power. Wideout jet sweeps. Even a few quarterback runs. But most of the damage was done by running back Terrell Newby, a quiet, almost reticent junior who came to Nebraska with a lot of recruiting hype and had not, thus far, made good on it.

But coaches told him late in the week: You're going to be the guy. And quarterback Tommy Armstrong told him just before the game: Be the guy who wants the ball in tough situations.

Consider his 28-carry, 198-yard performance a down payment, his first workhorse moment. Newby even admitted he was sore and a little beat up from the night. The praises of his teammates and coaches should ease that pain.

"He ran like he was being chased by everybody," Armstrong said. "I'm proud of him."

"Strong runner," offensive coordinator Danny Langsdorf said. "Tough kid."

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