Nebraska football is back in the AP Poll — a place where the powerhouse Cornhuskers were once a given.

But after a long 5 years, Nebraska returned to the rankings on Sunday at No. 23 after a 2-0 start that included Saturday night’s 28-10 handling of Colorado on national TV. The Cornhuskers took care of Coach Prime in prime time, and they were rewarded the next day with a number next to their name.

Quarterback Dylan Raiola has turned Lincoln on its ear in just 2 games. The freshman from Buford, Ga., has thrown for 423 yards in the season’s 1st 2 games, with 3 touchdown passes and 0 interceptions. He outplayed Colorado’s much-hyped Shedeur Sanders in Saturday night’s win over Colorado, and it’s no coincidence his arrival at Nebraska has coincided with the Cornhuskers’ 1st AP ranking since 2019.

Nebraska made 2 appearances in the AP poll in 2019, sneaking in both times at No. 24 and No. 25.

For decades though, being ranked was taken for granted in Lincoln. Nebraska has been the top-ranked team in the country in exactly 70 past AP polls, it’s been ranked 2nd 68 times and it’s been in the top 5 of the AP poll an astounding 296 times, according to College Poll Archive.

The Cornhuskers have been ranked in the AP Top 10 518 times, and they had been ranked in the Top 25 730 times. That number was frozen for 5 years — until Sunday, when it became 731.

Nebraska will try to keep that ranking for more than a week on Saturday night when it hosts Northern Iowa.