People are curious about why the Nebraska captains chose not to shake hands before the coin toss at Kinnick Stadium on Friday night. Allow me to explain: they simply don’t like Iowa. The Nebraska players weren’t interested in showing good sportsmanship towards their rivals. In their eyes, this rivalry has seen plenty of disrespect coming from the Hawkeyes directed at Nebraska over the years.
The Huskers aren’t above making a statement, especially when they’re frustrated and fed up. It seems disingenuous for the Hawkeyes to feign ignorance about this protest or to act like it was unexpected.
Before each game, Nebraska selects their captains, and on Friday night, Elliott Brown, Emmett Johnson, MJ Sherman, and DeShon Singleton made their way to the center of the field. When the Iowa captains approached to shake hands, a traditional pre-game gesture—the Nebraska players stood their ground and didn’t reciprocate.
“That was a little weird,” Iowa linebacker Jay Higgins said after the 13-10 Iowa victory.
Was it, though?
In keeping with a painful tradition, Iowa once again crushed Nebraska’s hopes in dramatic fashion. On Friday, defensive lineman Max Llewellyn stripped Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola of the ball and recovered the fumble with just 20 seconds remaining. Moments later, kicker Drew Stevens drilled a 53-yard field goal as time expired, sealing a 13-10 victory for the Hawkeyes.
This marks the fourth time in seven years that Iowa has defeated Nebraska on a last-second field goal, a recurring heartbreak for the Huskers. “Imagine getting kicked in the gut over and over and watching the bully celebrate in your face,” aptly describes the feeling for Nebraska fans.
A similar scenario played out last year in Lincoln. With just 20 seconds left, Iowa defensive lineman Ethan Hurkett intercepted Nebraska quarterback Chubba Purdy, setting up a game-winning 38-yard field goal by Marshall Meeder to secure another 13-10 victory.
Iowa players added insult to injury this time by waving goodbye to Nebraska fans and taunting with a cheerful “Merry Christmas” as they celebrated reclaiming the Freedom Trophy. Nebraska, who earned their sole win against Iowa since 2014 two years ago, is now facing a seventh straight year without a bowl appearance.
“It was painful,” admitted second-year Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule last week, a sentiment that undoubtedly resonates deeply with the team and its supporters.
In 2019, Iowa kicker Keith Duncan delivered another gut punch to Nebraska, hitting a 48-yard walk-off field goal in Lincoln. Adding to the sting, Duncan turned to the Huskers’ bench, wagged his finger, and blew kisses, a gesture that became an indelible moment in the rivalry.
Fast forward to this past Friday, and the animosity was still palpable. When Nebraska players arrived at Kinnick Stadium and approached the center of the field for a team prayer, uniformed police officers stood guard over the iconic Hawkeye logo. The symbolism was clear: this rivalry is as much about pride and territorial defense as it is about the game itself.
Nebraska appeared to control much of the game on Friday, dominating defensively and shutting out Iowa until late in the third quarter. Even then, Iowa only managed a field goal after recovering a muffed punt at the Nebraska 4-yard line. The Huskers held the Hawkeyes to a mere 20 yards and just one first down in the first half and limited them to five first downs for the entire game.
But as the fourth quarter began, the tide shifted. Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson broke free for a 72-yard touchdown run—accounting for 44% of the Hawkeyes’ total offense—and tied the game, setting the stage for yet another Nebraska collapse.
“Very similar to last year and probably years previous,” Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule said. “We found a way to lose the game at the end.” He expressed anger and frustration at the finish. “Credit to them,” he added. “Those guys, they’ve won for a long time. They believe. They make the plays all the way to the very end. We’ve got to catch them.”
The loss, which dropped Nebraska to 6-6, was emblematic of a season marred by late-game mistakes. Five of their losses came by a combined 29 points, including turnovers late in games against Ohio State, UCLA, USC, and Iowa, and a missed opportunity in overtime against Illinois. Despite this, Nebraska is set to accept its first bowl invitation since 2016, a silver lining to a season defined by near-misses.
“One game doesn’t define us,” senior defensive lineman Ty Robinson insisted. No, but five games do.
After a 2022 season in which Nebraska lost four games by a field goal and another in overtime, the team embraced a mantra, “Chasing 3,” to focus on closing the gap by just three points. However, the irony was undeniable in the cold air at Kinnick Stadium on Friday. “We had to do what they did,” Rhule said. He dismissed the notion of bad luck: “We’ve just got to get better.”
Quarterback Dylan Raiola struck a note of optimism, saying he “couldn’t be more proud” of Nebraska’s progress since Week 1. “Losing this way doesn’t do justice to all the success and the strides that we’ve made as a team,” the freshman said.
Yet, progress in football is ultimately measured by wins, and Nebraska has only one victory over Iowa in the past decade. The Huskers’ pregame gesture—a symbolic gathering at midfield—felt hollow in retrospect. Once again, when it mattered most, Nebraska fell short.
“It should probably bother people for a little bit,” Rhule said. Rest assured, it does
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