Final Take: Huskers earn respect, but leave much to be desired

MADISON, Wis. - There were questions about just "how good" this Nebraska football team was going into Wisconsin on Saturday night.

The No. 7 ranked Huskers (7-1, 4-1) came up short in a 23-17 overtime loss to the Badgers (6-2, 3-2), but they definitely proved they belonged on the field with Wisconsin and showed they will be a factor in the Big Ten West race.

"We definitely held our own and we definitely belonged on that field," senior tight end Sam Cotton said. "Wisconsin is a great team, but I think we are too. I think we proved that today and we are going to get better and try to learn from our mistakes and try to prove ourselves next week."

The Huskers won't have much time to lick their wounds, as they must get ready for another night road game test at No. 6 Ohio State.

The Buckeyes escaped against Northwestern on Saturday 24-20, and have not been playing great football in conference play.

As the Huskers left the stadium in Madison on Saturday night, you sensed the belief from the players that they can play with anyone, and I think that's biggest thing they gained in their overtime loss.

"We bowed up and we did what we needed to do. We know where we need to go," senior linebacker Josh Banderas said. "No one is hanging their head. There's no reason to hang your head, we played hard, we fought, we showed what kind of heart we had and we are going to keep moving from there."

You still have to wonder where this team will be at physically going into Columbus next week.

Can they take the positives from Saturday and carry it over to Columbus?

"I think it should be encouragement for them knowing that they can come into an environment where it's a sea of red, but the wrong red," defensive coordinator Mark Banker said. "They know that they could've won that game. We are going to go into another great environment next week."

Now on to the breakdown...

***If senior Nate Gerry is not first-team All-Big Ten, I don't know what an All-Big Ten safety is. He's playing as well as any safety in the country right now and his grades on sites like Pro Football Focus prove that.

***I thought Jordan Westerkamp was interfered with by T.J. Watt on third down in overtime, but I also felt like the officials weren't going to just hand it to Nebraska that easily. None that less even Riley was upset with the no call when asked about it in the post game.

***There was a point in the game where Westerkamp was vividly upset for being taken off the field on a key third down play. He knows his time is limited here and I don't blame him one bit for being upset. He should be out there.

***You really have to question the offensive play calling after Gerry's first interception. The Huskers had excellent field position and did nothing with the football when they had a chance to seize the momentum. You got the sense after the game even Riley was disappointed with the play selection.

***Linebackers Josh Banderas and Michael Rose-Ivey played really well on Saturday. They played with a physical edge the Huskers needed to win this football game.

***Both defensive tackles Mick Stoltenberg and Carlos Davis also were big up front for the Huskers. It's scary to think how much better they are going to get under John Parrella over time.

***How many more blows can this offensive line suffer? Tanner Farmer's ankle injury did not look good on Saturday night.

Rushing offense: B

I thought Nebraska ran the ball well enough to win the game. Coming into Saturday the Badgers had only allowed 8 total touchdowns in 7 games. The Huskers rushed for two touchdowns and 152 yards. The only thing missing was that big explosive run that could've brought them over 200 yards on the ground. Mike Riley teams are undefeated when they rush for 200 or more at Nebraska.

Passing offense: D+

The Huskers were able to convert on several key third downs, but 12-of-31 for 153 yards and two interceptions is not going to get it done. Tommy Armstrong also had multiple passes tipped at the line of scrimmage that took away potential big play opportunities.

Rushing defense: C-

Nebraska did a solid job early against this Badger rushing attack, but Corey Clement and Dare Ogunbowale finished with 202 yards rushing on 40 carries. Credit the Badgers for the adjustments they made to find plays in the ground game.

Passing defense: A

Husker safety Nate Gerry played arguably the best game of his career on Saturday. His two interceptions kept Nebraska in this game when they were down 17-7 at one point. If only he wouldn't have run into Josh Banderas on his second pick, who knows how far he would've returned it. The Badgers had just 114 yards passing and they were 5-of-13 on third downs.

Special teams: B

Nebraska got 36 yards in the punt return game on four attempts from De'Mornay Pierson-El, but got nothing in the kick return game from Tre Bryant. Drew Brown made his only field goal attempt and Caleb Lightbourn had an excellent game punting. Nebraska did give up a 24 yard punt return to Clement that set up the Badgers first touchdown drive with a short field.

Sean Callahan can be reached at sean@huskeronline.com and he can be heard each day at 6:45 am and 5:05 pm on Big Red Radio 1110 KFAB in Omaha during the football season. He can also be seen on KETV Channel 7 in Omaha during the fall and each week he appears on NET's Big Red Wrap-Up Tuesday's at 7 pm.