Here are the grades from the Huskers’ overtime loss to Illinois.

Nebraska had trouble running the ball early on – 7 yards on the first seven attempts – because Illinois pushed extra defenders into the box and forced the Huskers to throw the ball in the air.

But when quarterback Dylan Raiola got going, the Illini let up a bit.

NU’s best runs were all on the edge. Dante Dowdell had a few bounce to the sideline when Illinois was pressuring the line of scrimmage, especially just before halftime, and another endaround to speedy wideout Jacory Barney Jr. took advantage of Illinois’ advantage in the middle of the field.

Raiola has been extremely accurate in most of his Big Ten debuts.

Illinois wanted to stop the run and the freshman took advantage, charging the Illini down the middle of the field and throwing balls perfectly where only his target could reach them, leading to three third-down conversions in one drive.

The youngster also demonstrated his highly praised playmaking skills.

Raiola, starting from the 6 for the first attempt and goal, rolled and searched the field before finding receiver Isaiah Neyor for a six. Then Raiola improvised and threw another ball to Neyor, who grabbed it and tipped it into the end zone for another score. And at the end of the third inning, there was the floater to Thomas Fidone.

Raiola threw his second career interception in the second quarter, but Illinois’ Torrie Cox Jr. deserves credit for ripping the ball out of Neyor’s hands as the two fell to the ground. The 50-50 play was initially ruled a touchdown before the decision was overturned after a minute-long review.

NU’s impressive front seven put the Illini under pressure from the start and never let up.

The Huskers forced Illinois to rely on its quarterback, just as Illinois did with Raiola.

A large part of the Illini’s running offense was Luke Altmyer, who averaged 4.3 yards per run.

The Illini running game improved in the second half and Illinois finished the game with 166 yards rushing.

The Huskers were also determined to stop the run. Illinois had no problem relying on Altmyer, who trusted his receivers in tight coverage and used his legs to evade NU’s dominant pass rush. Nebraska was never overrun, but Altmyer kept the Illini in check all night.

Altmyer completed his first seven passes to five different receivers, including 29 and 27 yards on Illinois’ opening drive with Tommi Hill, who missed the second half with an injury, and Marques Buford Jr. right alongside. Altmyer rarely put the ball in danger.

Kudos to the Husker secondary for Malcolm Hartzog Jr.’s game-winning fumble that was recovered by DeShon Singleton, and for covering the receivers on a key fourth down to the point where Almyer was hauled to the ground just before first down after having to tuck the ball in and run.

Lincoln Southwest graduate John Hohl held up well filling in for kicker Tristan Alvano until he missed a field goal for the lead late in the fourth quarter. Hohl made a 21-yard throw to put NU on the scoreboard in the first quarter.

Alvano’s participation was questionable before the game and he missed his first game since the start of last season.

Aside from the kickoff at the beginning of the second half, the Huskers had problems tackling.

Punter Brian Buschini outran his coverage and made the tackle on a punt that Illinois returned 37 yards near the halfway line despite Nebraska’s defense forcing a punt.

Nebraska was successful in a two-minute drill for the third time in four games. The Huskers scored before halftime against UTEP and again last week against Northern Iowa.

They took the lead three minutes before halftime, running the ball to run down the clock and scoring when it mattered. Raiola found Jahmal Banks for a big gain, then the quarterback threw the “jackpot” ball that Neyor intercepted in the end zone.

Offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield continued to let his creativity run wild, circling the heart of Illinois’ defense and running situational attacks that had both Raiola and former starting quarterback Heinrich Haarberg on the field at the same time.

The Huskers — who were penalized four times in the first half for 44 yards, including two that gave Illinois first downs — cleaned up after halftime, playing flawlessly when they absolutely had to.

Nebraska had been saying all week that there would be a brawl on Friday, and that’s exactly what it was.

In the end, it was the Illini who had the upper hand in overtime.