LINCOLN — Two sparse lines of glowing red looked down on a Memorial Stadium cloaked in black.
Neon lettering at the top of the stands reminded everyone in sight of Nebraska’s five national titles. The Cornhuskers are fighting to become nationally recognized again, and a long road still remains.
No. 23 USC football beat the Huskers 21-17 to extend Nebraska’s losing streak against ranked teams to 29 games.
Nebraska held Jayden Maiava to a season-low 135 passing yards, but the quarterback adapted to run for a season-high 62 rushing yards.
Cornhusker starting quarterback Dylan Raiola left the game in the third quarter due to an apparent right leg injury. True freshman and Orange Lutheran product TJ Lateef came in and finished the game with 71 yards on 5-of-7 passing in addition to 18 rushing yards.
USC gained its first lead of the game when a block by tight end Lake McRee allowed King Miller to bounce to the outside and score a 6-yard touchdown. Earlier in the drive, running back Bryan Jackson and Maiava had teamed up for a flea-flicker play that resulted in a 43-yard pass to Jayden Richardson.
The Trojans firmly grasped a 21-17 advantage with 10:06 left to play.
Nebraska’s best scoring opportunity fell out of reach when running back Emmett Johnson slipped on a fourth-and-1 with just over a minute left in the game.
The Huskers faithful donned black clothing for the blackout night game, and the typically red end zones and on-field logo were muted as well. Not a speck of red was on the team’s uniforms, which were topped with a white helmet bearing a sans-serif “N.”
It was a formidable environment for a USC team that has not played well on the road this season. This presented a great opportunity to the Trojans.
Although Maiava didn’t pass well, he did use his legs more than any other game this season. Maiava finished with 62 rushing yards and earned his first touchdown on the ground since Week 4 against Michigan State.
The redshirt junior took off for back-to-back 16-yard runs to reach the end zone, then handed the ball off to King Miller for a successful 2-point conversion.
The sequence of events tied the game at 14-all with 3:32 remaining in the third quarter. Nebraska pulled ahead by three points once again when Kyle Cunanan hit a 39-yard field goal at the start of the fourth quarter.
USC struggled to score red zone touchdowns in the first half, even though they had a 69% scoring rate when in the red zone going into the game.
Twice, the Trojans had to settle for field goals. Ryon Sayeri booted a 24-yard kick and a 49-yard kick — both in the second quarter
Maiava had evaded a sack and scrambled to run for five yards to get USC within two yards of the end zone, but offensive lineman Tobias Raymond’s second false start of the game moved the Trojans back.
Another penalty pulled USC out of striking distance of a touchdown when officials called intentional grounding on Maiava. The quarterback used his legs to make up for it and scrambled to the right sideline for a gain of 11 yards. It wasn’t enough, however, and the coaching staff once again signaled for Sayeri.
The Trojans went three-and-out on their opening drive. Conversely, Nebraska worked quickly and scored when the ball was put into the Huskers’ hands.
Johnson gained yardage in spurts, setting up Raiola for a 14-yard touchdown pass to Dane Key in what was his third fade route attempt of the night.