WATCH: Casey Thompson showcases playmaking ability, completes impressive pass vs Northwestern
Casey Thompson has high expectations as he takes over as the starting quarterback at Nebraska. He showed why the bar is so high in the third quarter on Saturday.
Thompson looked like he was going to get sacked by Northwestern’s Taishan Holmes, but he eluded the defender and kept scrambling to extend the play. Then, he completed the 57-yard pass to Isaiah Garcia-Castaneda to put Nebraska deep in Northwestern territory.
Just like Mark Whipple drew it up, right?
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The play proved to be big as Nebraska re-took the lead over Northwestern, 21-17, thanks to a three-yard touchdown run from Anthony Grant. On the ensuing drive, the Cornhuskers forced a fumble before scoring once again to make it a 28-17 lead.
Thompson made big plays a few times against Northwestern in his first game as the Cornhuskers starter. The former Texas star led the Huskers on an impressive opening drive, which culminated in a touchdown pass to Garcia-Castaneda. Then, he ran in a touchdown on Nebraska’s second drive to extend Nebraska’s lead at the time.
Casey Thompson leads Nebraska to touchdown on first drive of the season
It didn’t take long for the Nebraska offense to showcase its new look. The Cornhuskers got the ball first after Northwestern deferred — and Casey Thompson went to work.
Thompson, on his first drive as Nebraska starting quarterback, led the 75-yard scoring drive, capped off by a perfectly placed 32-yard touchdown pass to Isaiah Garcia-Castaneda to get the Cornhuskers on the board first and take a 7-0 lead over Northwestern.
It was the first time Mark Whipple showcased his offense at Nebraska, and he picked up right where he left off at Pitt. Thompson went 5-for-6 for 68 yards on the opening drive, which is a similar style Pitt ran last year with Kenny Pickett under center.