Maryland vs. Nebraska: players to know ahead of week seven

Joseph Luber
2 days ago
4 min read

After a very disappointing loss last week to Washington at home, Maryland looks to rebound against a strong Nebraska Cornhusker team led by head coach Matt Rhule. Maryland opened as a 5.5-point underdog at home, the same spread that Maryland opened up with for Washington last week, with the Huskers currently a 6.5-point favorite as of Wednesday morning. Nebraska has lots of big impact players, some from high school recruiting, and some key players from the transfer portal. Let's take a closer look at those here.

HC Matt Rhule: Death, taxes, and Matt Rhule in year three. Rhule has excelled in his 3rd year at both Baylor and Temple, bringing them each to ten or more wins. Can he replicate that at Nebraska in 2025? Rhule took over a Nebraska program that was down in the dumps and starving for the success they once had in the 1990s. There are not many better guys they could have hired than Matt Rhule. So far, he owns a 63-57 record in his ten seasons as a college head coach, including 16-14 at Nebraska. But in year three of his rebuilds, Rhule has gone 21-7, and now, after having Nebraska off to a 4-1 start, it looks like he could be doing in Lincoln, Nebraska, what he did at Baylor and Temple.

OC Dana Holgorson: Holgorson arrived at Nebraska in 2024 and took over as the Huskers’ player caller for the final four games, and now, the former West Virginia and Houston head coach is now Nebraska’s full-time OC. Quarterbacks have thrived in Holgorsen-coached offenses. Holgorsen coached the all-time FBS leader in touchdown passes and total offense (Houston's Case Keenum), along with the FBS season record holder in completions (Texas Tech's Graham Harrell). Now being paired with the 5-star Dylan Raiola, there is a lot of excitement about what could happen amongst the Nebraska fan base. Ever since Holgorson arrived, Raiola has had a 73.1 completion percentage. Maryland defensive coordinator Ted Monachino has done well so far this season, but he and Dana will have quite the dual on Saturday in College Park.

QB Dylan Raiola: Dylan Raiola is not a quarterback to gameplan against lightly. Raiola was a five-star recruit initially committed to Georgia before he flipped to Nebraska. Raiola has big family ties to the University of Nebraska. Now in his true sophomore season, Raiola sits sixth in the country in completion percentage (74.2%) in 2025 with ten of his 18 career appearances including a 70% or better completion rate. So far, Raiola has helped the Huskers' offense be top 30 nationally in scoring offense. A big reason for that is Raiola's ability to take care of the football. Nebraska's offense has only had three turnovers so far this season. Despite this, Nebraska has had some close games against Michigan and Cincinnati. Now facing a Maryland defense that has excelled at creating turnovers this season, a key for success for Maryland on Saturday could be causing turnovers, and that will require Raiola to make mistakes that have been rare for him so far this season.

RB: Emmett Johnson: Another way Matt Rhule's Husker offense has been good this year is because of their ability to run the ball. One week after the defense did well limiting RB Jonah Coleman, Maryland will have its hands full on Saturday as junior Emmett Johnson has been one of the most efficient running backs in the Big Ten in the last nine games since offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen became Nebraska's play-caller. Johnson had a career-high 140 rushing yards against Akron on Sept. 6, his second consecutive 100-yard game to open the season. He also reached the end zone a career-best three times against the Zips, including two rushing scores and a touchdown catch. Johnson enters Saturday ranked third in the conference and 15^th nationally in rushing yards per game (94.8) while also sliding into the top-20 nationally in yards from scrimmage (116.8). Nebraska’s passing attack will be a test for Maryland’s defense, but Johnson has shown the ability to make defenses pay with his big play ability on the ground.

WR: Dane Key: While sophomore Jacory Barney Jr. leads the team in catches (23), yard (348) and is tied in receiving touchdowns (3) with two 100-yard games this season, Dane Key is a key transfer (no pun intended) from Kentucky that Matt Rhule scooped from the transfer portal last offseason. Nebraska has lacked receiver talent in the previous seasons under Matt Rhule, so Dane Key was a big get for the Huskers this season. In his first year at Nebraska, the senior transfer has 16 catches for 226 yards and 3 touchdowns. He had a touchdown in each of his first three games and led the Huskers in receiving against Houston Christian. Dontay Joyner and Jamare Glasker will have a tough task on their hands containing Dane Key.

DB Malcolm Hartzog Jr: The Huskers' defense has been very good this year, and that has largely been because of the leadership from senior Malcom Hartzog despite missing a pair of games. Nebraska leads the nation in pass yards allowed per game at 91.8. This defense will be the toughest that Malik Washington has faced this season. Hartzog, who is a Campbell Trophy Finalist, only stands at 5-foot-9 but he is effective. Now in his senior season, he is a four-year starter who is a playmaker for this Blackshirts’ defense.

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