Aside from a 5-0 record, there’s not much proof that the 2026 edition of the Cornhuskers is ready to make a run at the College Football Playoff. But there’s plenty of evidence that the floor has been raised significantly. That basement that was flooded every few weeks from 2017 to 2022? It’s been waterproofed. The muck and slime of the Riley and Frost eras have been removed, and it smells a lot better down there. That sump pump hardly ever runs these days, including this week, after the all-time single-day precipitation record in Lincoln was shattered.

Even though the Huskers stunk up the joint with 10 first-half penalties, Jeremiah Charles blocked a punt and the Huskers turned it into a quick touchdown, and even though the Blackshirts looked confused, gave up leaky yardage on running plays and allowed 300 total yards in the first half due to a handful of explosive plays, they did get a momentum-turning pick-six by Dwayne McDougle. That started a run of 34 unanswered Nebraska points, allowing the Huskers to improve to 5-0 overall for the first time since 2016 and 2-0 in the conference for the first time since 2017.

Was that the bad Anthony Colandrea we saw in the first quarter? If so, his floor is higher than almost anyone could’ve predicted. Back in January when he signed with Matt Rhule, some feared there might be a good AC and a bad AC, because his penchant for turning over the ball was pretty evident. In three seasons, he’d thrown 49 touchdown passes and 29 interceptions.

The bad AC made a brief appearance against Maryland; there’s no denying he threw an ugly interception in the first quarter, and missed a bunch of wide-open receivers, too. It might be best not to mention that the Terrapins outgained Nebraska 207-38 in the first quarter. But man oh man, that was the good AC from the second quarter on.

I figured Colandrea would give Nebraska a shot in the arm and would make things happen, but that Husker fans might regret some of his turnovers, in the style of Tommy Armstrong Jr. After five games, the good news is that AC looks like a mix of Armstrong and Johnny Manziel — he can kill you with his legs or his arm — but he has 13 touchdown passes and just two interceptions, which will play quite nicely if he can keep up something close to that pace against better defenses coming up.

Against the Terps, the good Colandrea completed 22 of 31 passes for 218 yards and three touchdowns, and rushed for 119 yards, all from the second quarter on.

When Colandrea found Luke Lindenmeyer in the back corner of the end zone with five seconds remaining in the second quarter, he ended an eight-play, 80-yard drive that put Nebraska up by five points despite being outrushed 123-54 in the first half.

Were those the bad Nebraska Cornhuskers we saw in the first half, the outfit that had a devil of a time running the ball against a Maryland team with the 13th-ranked run defense in the Big Ten? I think it was, and if we see those guys against defending national champion Indiana for much of next week’s game, there may not be a Colandrea that’s good enough to pull them back into it. The absence of Jamal Rule was significant; no running back ever really got into a good rhythm for the Big Red.

The Homecoming corsages likely were wilted by the time halftime finally arrived after 2 hours, 2 minutes of desperately ugly football. There were a combined 18 accepted penalties.

That third quarter, though, featuring 11 minutes of possession for Nebraska, was a lot easier on the eyes than the one that transpired a week ago in East Lansing, and the Huskers shredded the Terps in the fourth.

The Blackshirts slammed the door on Maryland after halftime, holding them to 19 total yards in the third quarter and 76 in the fourth, and the Terps went 1-for-14 on third down through the entire game. Meanwhile, the Husker offense rumbled to life, running the ball for 55 yards in the third and 100 in the fourth quarter.

The Huskers will be a clear underdog against Indiana, as well they should be. The Hoosiers came into 2026 with seven of ESPN’s Top 100 football players on their roster; the Huskers have none. When Big Noon football comes to Lincoln this Saturday, NU will need its cleanest game in ages to stay close. If that happens, the good AC could be the difference.

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.