Field Level Media
Sep 22, 2018
Ben Mason rushed for three first-half touchdowns, Karan Higdon gained 136 yards and added a touchdown, and No. 19 Michigan clobbered Nebraska 56-10 in the Big Ten opener for both teams Saturday.
Higdon, who missed Michigan's previous game with an undisclosed injury, did all of his damage on 12 first-half carries. Shea Patterson completed 15 of 22 passes for 120 yards and a touchdown for the Wolverines (3-1, 1-0).
The two storied programs hadn't met since 2013.
Wyatt Mazour scored the lone touchdown for the Cornhuskers (0-3. 0-1).
Michigan outgained Nebraska 305-17 in the first half and roared to a 39-0 halftime lead.
Josh Metellus, who returned an interception for a touchdown against SMU a week earlier, sparked the Wolverines by picking off an Adrian Martinez pass on Nebraska's first possession.
Higdon's 46-yard run highlighted Michigan's first scoring drive, which ended with Mason's 1-yard plunge.
The Wolverines got the ball back on the Nebraska 44 and scored immediately on a 44-yard scamper by Higdon.
Tru Wilson's 26-yard run later in the quarter set up Mason's second score, a 4-yard run. Quinn Nordin missed the extra point, leaving the score at 20-0.
Nordin atoned for that errant boot with a 50-yard field goal early in the second quarter. Those points were set up by a muffed Nebraska punt reception.
Patterson hit a wide-open Zach Gentry in the end zone on a 5-yard hookup after his defender fell down for a 30-0 lead.
Mason powered his way into the end zone on another 1-yard score with 5:25 remaining in the half.
The Wolverines added a safety when Martinez made an illegal forward pass in the end zone after his initial attempt was tipped.
Michigan's Donovan Peoples-Jones cut across the field on a 60-yard punt return for a touchdown in the third.
Barret Pickering's 35-yard field goal put Nebraska on the board.
Wolverines backup quarterback Dylan McCaffrey threw a 56-yard scoring pass to Ronnie Bell in the fourth.
--Field Level Media