LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Dylan Raiola passed for 247 yards and two touchdowns, and No. 23 Nebraska continued its best start since 2016 with a 34-3 win over Northern Iowa on Saturday night.
The Cornhuskers (3-0) came away with points on five of their first six possessions against the Panthers (2-1) of the second-tier Football Championship Subdivision.
Raiola threw for 209 yards in the first half and completed 13 of his first 14 passes, including 11 in a row. He finished 17 of 23 and gave way to Heinrich Haarberg midway through the fourth quarter.
The Huskers led 21-3 at halftime after Raiola sidestepped a pass rusher and found a wide-open Jalen Lloyd for 59 yards and Jacory Barney III ran 10 yards on a reverse for a touchdown on the next play.
Freshman Carter Nelson, the four-star recruit who played eight-man high school football in Ainsworth, Nebraska, scored his first career touchdown on the game’s opening possession when he caught Raiola’s short pass over the middle and took it 24 yards to the end zone. Raiola’s second TD pass went 18 yards to Isaiah Neyor.
The Panthers, ranked No. 21 in the FCS, broke a few chunk plays and held a 16-minute advantage in time of possession, but they couldn’t move the ball consistently and mustered only Caden Palmer’s 31-yard field goal. Their final drive ended at the Nebraska 2.
Tye Edwards, the Panthers’ 6-foot-4, 230-pound running back who was averaging an FCS-best 157.5 yards per game, carried 10 times for 37 yards.
Raiola threw his first career interception in the fourth quarter when Fletcher Marshall Jr. ripped the ball from Lloyd as both went to the ground. The ruling on the field was confirmed on video review after Nebraska coach Matt Rhule challenged the call.
The takeaway
Northern Iowa: The Panthers didn’t appear fazed on the big stage after coming into the game off two wins over non-scholarship FCS opponents. They just didn’t have enough firepower to keep up with a Big Ten team.
Nebraska: Raiola was sharp in the first half but couldn’t get the Huskers across the goal line in the three series he played in the second. The Huskers have allowed a total of 20 points through three games. They’ve held their first three opponents to 10 points or fewer for the first time since 2005.
Poll implications
The Huskers could move up a notch or two with No. 20 Arizona losing by 24 points at No. 14 Kansas State and No. 21 Iowa State and No. 22 Clemson having open dates.
Up next
Northern Iowa: visits Hawaii on Saturday night.
Nebraska: hosts Illinois on Friday night.
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