Huskers survive, pick up first win over Iowa since 2014

IOWA CITY -- If Friday was his last game at the helm of the Nebraska football program, Mickey Joseph went out in style, delivering the team its first win over Iowa since Bo Pelini's last game in 2014.

As the interim head coach, Joseph did something neither Mike Riley nor Scott Frost could do, defeating the Hawkeyes 24-17 at Kinnick Stadium.

The Huskers scored the game's first 24 points and held off a methodical but mistake-prone Iowa squad, avoiding a second straight season of watching a double-digit lead slip away.

It all happened on the same day that ESPN reported the Huskers are finalizing a deal with Matt Rhule to become the program's next head coach.

The win also put a significant dent in Iowa's Big Ten title hopes. If Purdue beats Indiana on Saturday, the Boilermakers will advance to the Big Ten Championship game instead of the Hawkeyes.

Nebraska started strong, forcing an Iowa three-and-out before driving into the red zone on offense. However, the Huskers were unable to come away with points after Timmy Bleekrode missed a 32-yard field goal.

The Huskers wouldn't stay off the scoreboard for long, though. After forcing another Iowa punt, Nebraska quarterback Casey Thompson connected with Trey Palmer on an 87-yard touchdown strike.

After forcing an Iowa fumble, Nebraska got into the red zone once again, this time converting a Bleekrode 21-yard field goal to give the Huskers a 10-0 edge with 3:24 left in the first quarter.

After an injury to quarterback Spencer Petras, Nebraska forced another turnover, this time a fumble by backup quarterback Spencer Petras. The Huskers again turned it into points, with Thompson finding Palmer from 18 yards out, helping Nebraska stake a claim to a 17-0 halftime lead.

The Huskers added to their lead after Arland Burce IV muffed a punt that was recovered by Nebraska at the Iowa 18-yard-line.

Nebraska turned the short field into a touchdown, with Thompson finding former Texas teammate Marcus Washington for a 14-yard touchdown to push the Husker advantage to 24-0.

Iowa finally got on the scoreboard later in the third quarter, with Kaleb Johnson running virtually untouched for a 44-yard touchdown.

Padilla pulled the Hawkeyes within 10 points when Padilla hit backup tight end Luke Lachey from 14 yards out.

After Rahmir Johnson fumbled at the Nebraska 27-yard-line, the Hawkeyes were unable reach the end zone, nearly turning the ball over on a wobbly Padilla pass that hit the hands of Husker defensive back Quinton Newsome. However, Iowa was able to pull within one possession on a 45-yard Drew Stevens field goal.

On Iowa's next drive, Newsome nearly picked off Padilla again on second down. On the ensuing play, Padilla initially connected with Bruce, but a replay overturned the completion. On fourth down, the Huskers forced an incompletion with 2:06 left to play.

Nebraska took over at the Iowa 34-yard-line, but the Huskers were unable to move the chains, giving Iowa another shot to tie the game.

The Hawkeyes took over at their own 20-yard-line with 65 seconds to play. After a short completion and two incompletions, Chris Kolarevic picked off Padilla to ice the game.

Palmer had a massive game in what could be his final contest with the Huskers, catching nine balls for 165 yards and two touchdowns. Thompson 20-of-30 passes for 278 yards and three scores.

Johnson had more yards on Friday than he had had all season, rushing for 52 yards on 12 carries. He entered the game with 33 yards on seven carries.

Playing for the injured Luke Reimer, senior Eteva Mauga-Clements led Nebraska with seven tackles, including six solo stops. He had two of Nebraska's six tackles for loss. Nebraska also sacked the Hawkeyes three times.

Nebraska closes the season 4-8, while the Hawkeyes finish the regular season 7-5.