Hernandez’s teammates had mixed emotions. Not him. His jaw dropped.

“I was jumping up like a kid,” he said. “Ten, 15 years from now, I can talk to my kids and be like, look, man, I went to Nebraska. Nobody has done that.”

It wasn’t just the Huskers’ history. It was the chance to perform 1,700 miles from home — nobody in his family has traveled so far. He started Googling everything about Nebraska. Coaches. Players. Stadium capacity. When he saw 90,000, he shuddered.

“Ohhh,” Hernandez thought, “I gotta show out.”

Walking into the stadium Saturday morning, the kicker heard a chorus of strangers: Thanks for coming! Good luck! At Miami, the fans talked trash. Here, even the hecklers were funny.

“Four-foot-one! Four-foot-one!”

Darling won’t remember what the kicker did Saturday in a 45-9 loss. But Hernandez will: six punts, 213 yards. And a 28-yard field goal that (very briefly) quieted the biggest crowd he’d ever seen.

“In front of 90,000 people, what are you gonna do?” Hernandez said. “Are you going to fold under pressure or are you going to make an impression for yourself?

“It was a big deal. I made my mark.”