Nebraska Football: Huskers upset alert proves Riley should be on hot seat

Nebraska football was at least expected to contend in the Big 10 West this year, but that may not happen under Mike Riley’s direction.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers nearly came back to defeat the Oregon Ducks last week, on the road at Autzen Stadium. However, the Huskers comeback fell short by just seven points. This week, they hosted the Northern Illinois Huskies, a team that lost to the Boston College Eagles in their season opener.

As more than a 10.5 point favorite over the Huskies, Nebraska should have taken care of business in this one with no problem. However, the Northern Illinois defense completely shut down the Nebraska offense early on. Former Tulane transfer quarterback Tanner Lee threw two first half interceptions as the Huskers were held out of the end zone.

Nebraska head coach Mike Riley had a rough end to his tenure in Corvallis, OR, with the Oregon State Beavers. Riley did not see much success in his final years with Oregon State. Nebraska ended up bringing him to Lincoln after they fired former head coach Bo Pelini.

Last year, Nebraska started strong but did not even manage 10 wins as they tailed off down the stretch. It seems like Riley and the Huskers are continuing to head in the wrong direction. Nebraska took until the final seconds of their season opener to defeat the Arkansas State Red Wolves.

Next: Nebraska on upset alert against Northern Illinois

For most of their meeting with Oregon, Nebraska was far behind on the scoreboard. Now, the Huskers are struggling against another Group of Five program. Northern Illinois is a good team but one that Nebraska should dominate with the talent level on the roster.

A loss this week to the Huskies and if they lose to the Illinois Fighting Illini next week Riley’s seat could start to heat up.