Nebraska football was roughly 3.5 days away from its regular-season finale when quarterback Dylan Raiola, defensive lineman Jimari Butler and JACK linebacker MJ Sherman took the press conference podiums on Tuesday afternoon.

We can now, of course, label it "regular-season finale," instead of a "potential season finale," because the Huskers finally got the job done against the Wisconsin Badgers last weekend. They broke two long-standing, long-suffering droughts with that 44-25 win over Barry Alvarez's favorite program.

Ending a 10-game losing streak to the Badgers? CHECK.

Ending a 7-year postseason drought? CHECK.

Now, it's all about Iowa.

Here are the three main takeaways from Raiola, Butler and Sherman as they went in front of the cameras and microphones to preview the latest Nebraska-Iowa rivalry matchup (6:30 p.m. CT on NBC and Peacock) on Black Friday.

Feeling excitement after the win over Wisconsin:

RAIOLA: “It’s even better when you watch the tape and there’s things you wish you could do better. We’re excited. We’re kind of just back at square one, getting ready for the next team and putting that behind us. We’ll be excited and ready to go for this game on Friday.”

Another week working with Dana Holgorsen:

RAIOLA: “It’s really helpful, just building that relationship and understanding what he wants to call and when he wants to call it. Just being around him, for everyone on the offense, got more comfortable. You can see that as we kept progressing throughout the game.”

What stands out about Iowa’s defense:

“Their head coach (Kirk Ferentz) and coordinator (Phil Parker) have been together since I was even born. There’s obviously a lot of experience. They play very sound, they play very well together. With it being the last game, you can see them get better and continue to progress each week. We’ll have to be ready for anything that they have ready for us. It’ll be a fun game and we’ll handle our business.”

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An important quote from Holgorsen regarding the offense, when asked if he's added any concepts to what was already in place when he arrived at Nebraska:

HOLGORSEN: “A little bit here and a little bit there. They have everything in the playbook. It’s a very large playbook. I think it just goes back to Coach (Matt) Rhule having been an NFL guy, and the offense has kind of stayed the same for him. He’s added to it and added to it. Satt (Marcus Satterfield) has added to it. You’ve got Coach (Donovan) Raiola, who’s an NFL guy, adding to it. Glenn (Thomas), who’s an NFL guy, that’s adding to it.

"There’s just all kinds of ideas, so that playbook got pretty big. I was just like, ‘There’s only one sheet, and whatever is on the sheet is gonna get called.’ That’s my job. They all give me ideas. They ask me if this is too much to let them know. I said ‘I promise you, I’ll let you know. Give me all of your ideas, and I’m gonna organize it to where I know where things are and I know we’ve repped them and I know we’re good at it.’

"If that’s not the case, I take them off the sheet and they’re not gonna get called. We probably shouldn’t focus on those calls in practice. We’ve done a good job of coming together and coming up with the plan of what makes sense for our players. If it doesn’t make sense to me, it’s not gonna make sense to them. I think that part has been good.”

Why he's returning to Nebraska for one more year in 2025:

BUTLER: “There was a lot that went into it. I talked to my mom and stuff. I'm gonna come back and try to get my master's and also the football side of it – I'm kind of seeing where I land with the league and everything.”

Why players want to stay at Nebraska:

BUTLER: “It’s a different vibe. It’s more family-oriented. You eat what you kill in the program. If you produce, you’re gonna play.”

Playing Iowa after beating Wisconsin win + his thoughts on Iowa's offense:

BUTLER: “We always had the confidence, it’s just going out and playing our game, doing what we do during practice. They're very physical up front and they probably have one of the best backs in the Big Ten. So, just bringing that physicality that we know they're gonna bring. Just playing our game.”

Building off of Saturday's win over Wisconsin:

SHERMAN: “I said to my family not too long ago that it’s kind of funny. It’s the same situation we were in last year, but we did that part earlier than last year. I feel like the goal this week is to play free of mind and approach this week like another work week. It’s the same way we approached Wisconsin, the same way we have to approach this week. Honestly, I thought amongst the team last week, it wasn’t ‘we have to make bowl eligibility.’ It was like ‘we have to beat the man in front of us.’ If we approach this week like we did last week, I think we’ll be just fine.”

Reflecting on his journey at Nebraska:

SHERMAN: “What’s more satisfying than winning with your teammates? That’s really what it is. Just winning with your brothers. All the work and preparation that you had throughout the week. Saturday, you get to reap the rewards. That’s the satisfaction of it. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Playing with this group of seniors for at least one more game:

SHERMAN: “I’ve kind of touched on it earlier in the season. Guys like Giff (Isaac Gifford), Nash (Hutmacher), Ty (Robinson), Marques (Buford Jr.), DeShon (Singleton), those guys, I’m gonna miss playing with them boys. This last week of preparation and going to a bowl game is gonna be one of those things we have to cherish. We never know if we’re gonna play on the same team again. I love them boys to death, and I know they feel the same way about me. There’s a lot of words that I can say. I won’t right now, but I’m gonna miss them, and I love them with all my heart.”