What Ohio coach John Hauser said ahead of the season opener

Ohio coach John Hauser met with the media on Monday in preparation for his team's season opener against Nebraska. This is the first meeting between these two schools.

Nebraska is coming off a 7-6 season in 2025. It was the second season in a row that the Huskers finished with a 7-6 record. It's also the first time that the program has posted consecutive winning seasons since the 2013-14 season.

Ohio is coming off a 2025 season that saw the Bobcats finish with a 9-4 record and a victory over UNLV in the Frisco Bowl. The 2026 MAC coaches preseason poll picked Ohio to finish fourth with zero votes to win the MAC Championship.

Hauser is entering his first full season as head coach. He served as the team's defensive coordinator last season but became the interim head coach after Brian Smith was put on leave following an 8-4 regular season.

Hauser was named the full-time head coach after defeating UNLV in the Frisco Bowl. The head coach discussed Nebraska's new defensive scheme under coordinator Rob Aurich.

"New defensive coordinator. So, we've been looking at what he's done, you know, in his career. So, that's definitely been a point of emphasis, you know, watching some of the San Diego State stuff. But then, you know, Nebraska's front seven is basically back. They're big. They're physical. They got a couple guys back in the back end. So, they got a lot of experience coming back on the defensive side of the ball. You know, defense is defense. It's still about tackling and getting off blocks. And then he brought a guy or two with him from San Diego State, too, who I'm sure know his system really well."

Ohio is also preparing for a Nebraska offense that has a new starting quarterback. Anthony Colandrea joins the Huskers after starter Dylan Raiola transferred to Oregon at the end of last season. Hauser talked about the Huskers' success in the transfer portal and how that added depth will impact Saturday's game.

"Offensively, they did a good job on the offensive line, plugging guys in from the portal. They got some guys coming back. The tight end's a really good player. Their receiver/returner is a really explosive uh player in the return game and at wide receiver. They got great tailbacks. The Mozee kid's a good player. They can stretch the field with the running game too. So they did a good job in the portal of of getting some I mostly it seemed like offensive linemen especially just some some guys that they could plug in as starters. So, you know, the test for us is that we got some experience back on defense, too. So just getting our guys to gel and play smart football. Yeah, coach. So, obviously you do have a handful of returners on your team, but a big thing of this offseason was pulling guys from the transfer portal and replacing some big names from last year's group."

Nebraska opens the 2026 season on Saturday, Sept. 5, when the Ohio Bobcats visit Memorial Stadium. Kickoff time is set for 11 a.m. CT and can be seen on FS1.

Contact/Follow us @CornhuskersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Nebraska news, notes and opinions.

This article originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire: What Ohio coach John Hauser said ahead of the season opener