Greg McElroy defines what would make a great year for Nebraska in 2025

Matt Rhule is entering his third season as Nebraska‘s head coach, and expectations are higher than ever. This past week, ESPN’s Greg McElroy revealed what he would consider a successful 2025 campaign for the Cornhuskers.

“The first thing that I want to see from Nebraska this season, to really elevate, is improvement offensively,” McElroy said. “Now, I’m very, very excited about what [Dylan Raiola] might be this upcoming season. I think Dylan’s got a chance to take a huge step. Oftentimes, with quarterbacks, we see a huge leap from their true freshman season to their sophomore season.

“We also have seen it go the other way. We’ve seen a sophomore slump in some cases. So here’s hoping for a big boost from the quarterback spot, with the upgraded talent that I think they’ve made and with the improvement that they now have from an offensive coordinator standpoint, with Dana Holgorsen officially taking over, I think that group has a chance to score a lot of points.”

A large part of Nebraska’s success next season will fall on Dylan Raiola’s shoulders. In his debut campaign last season, Raiola completed 67.1% of his pass attempts for 2,819 yards and 13 touchdowns compared to 11 interceptions.

Raiola will need to become more consistent this season. As McElroy mentioned, he’ll have the help to do so. Nebraska made several big additions this season, including Kentucky transfer wide receiver Dane Key. Moreover, this season will be Dana Holgorsen’s first as the team’s full-time offensive coordinator.

McElroy believes Nebraska will need to achieve significant growth on offense to compete for a 10-win season. After all, the Cornhuskers will be facing off against some of the top teams in the country, such as Penn State and Michigan this fall.

“Last year, guys, they were 103rd in the FBS in points per game. They scored under 24 points a game, offensively. That’s just not good enough,” McElroy said. “Against Big Ten competition, they averaged just over 20 points a game. While I think their defense will continue to be good and maybe even in some cases great, it’s going to be hard to envision double-digit wins unless we see significant growth on the offensive side of the football.

“Then number two — it’s pretty simple — you got to rise up and beat some of the best teams. It’s been well documented what things look like for Nebraska when they play against ranked competition. By my count, they have lost 34 straight games against ranked teams… If they want to start knocking on the door of the college football playoff conversation, you want to start, you know, going out there and showcasing yourself against the best teams in the sport.”