Regular starting quarterback Casey Thompson was out for the game, giving way to Chubba Purdy.

Minnesota won the toss, deferred and Nebraska started with the ball.

Nebraska 7 - 0

Nebraska started on the 25 after a touchback, a rare occurrence as of late. Anthony Grant took the first play 36 yards to midfield, and then Huskers rolled down the field to score on their opening possession. Grant had 60 yards on the drive, which featured short screen passes, and misdirection, including the 2-yard scoring run by Chubba Purdy.

Our beloved Husker defense got a three-and-out on Minnesota’s first offensive possession. The Gophers ran Mo Ibrahim twice for four yards, then Tanner Morgan was sacked on third down.

Nebraska 10-0

Nebraska started at midfield after a 45-yard Gopher punt. The Huskers once again rolled down the field, but slowed up near the Minnesota goal line. Purdy showed great pocket presence with scrambles for first down, but the drive stalled when Nebraska could manage only 3 yards on two Grant runs, then Purdy’s pass to Travis Vokolek was dropped in the end zone.

Timmy Bleekrode hit the 24-yard field goal.

Minnesota had lost 32 straight games when being down 10 points or less.

The two teams traded possessions for the rest of the first half, neither scoring, but Nebraska with a slight edge. The Huskers started one possession on the Minnesota 47-yard line, but a false start pushed them back across the midfield line and the drive stalled.

The story of the first half was Nebraska’s defense. The Blackshirts were last in the Big Ten in rushing defense, and Minnesota 31 total yards compared to Nebraska’s 151. Morgan was sacked 3 times, and Ibrahim was limited to 18 yards on 8 carries.