Nebraska is heading into Saturday with no margin for error left.
The Huskers have dropped four straight, and now they’re back on the road for the second week in a row and the third time in four weeks. Even with the skid, Nebraska has outgained every opponent it has faced this season, yet the results have still gone sideways over the last month. What looked like a path to the playoff has shifted into a fight to get to a bowl, and that means this game matters in a very real way.
Six wins is the number Nebraska needs, and a winning regular season is still on the table. So are a few other goals, including beating a ranked team - maybe Ohio State - and Iowa. But the list of ways to call this season a success keeps shrinking, which is why Saturday looms so large.
Nebraska is a 13.5-point favorite, with the over/under set at 51.5. The moneyline sits at -610 for the Huskers and +450 for Rutgers.
For Matt Rhule, this feels like a must-win. After the Rob Aurich extension, it seems all but certain that Rhule will be back for a fifth season. Still, a win here would lock up a third straight bowl trip and give Nebraska some needed momentum before the Ohio State game, especially if the Huskers handle business in convincing fashion.
Rutgers, at least on paper, shouldn’t be the kind of opponent that gives Nebraska much trouble.
This is a November game before noon in New Jersey, and the weather might cooperate. Nebraska can’t make the playoff anymore, so motivation becomes part of the equation. Justin Evans and Luke Lindenmeyer spoke with the media and said the players need to play better.
That’s the reality. Dana Holgorsen took the blame, but the issues haven’t been limited to coaching.
Penalties and dropped passes have piled up, and those problems aren’t just on the sideline. Rutgers’ defense, meanwhile, has been a mess.
It ranks 15th or worse in the Big Ten in rush defense, pass defense, scoring defense and total defense.
The Scarlet Knights have a little more juice on offense, mostly through KJ Duff and Antwan Raymond. Duff has 774 receiving yards and nine touchdowns, while Raymond has 789 rushing yards and six scores.
Both were preseason All-Big Ten selections. But with AJ Surace now at quarterback, Rutgers sits 14th in the conference in scoring offense and 14th in total offense.
The Scarlet Knights are ninth in rushing offense and 12th in passing offense.
Nebraska’s edge is supposed to show up everywhere else. The Huskers have been as consistent down to down as almost anyone in the country, and they’re one of four teams - along with Georgia, Notre Dame and UCLA - to outgain every opponent this season. That trend should hold on Saturday, and this time it ought to start showing up on the scoreboard.
There’s also the setting. Rutgers hasn’t exactly protected its home field, especially on defense.
UMass scored 37 there. USC and Indiana both topped 40.
Even Michigan, which has the worst offense in college football, managed 28 points on the road in Piscataway.
Tommy Carr nearly had a perfect day against Michigan State, completing 22 of 27 passes for 266 yards. He added 54 rushing yards, finishing with 310 total yards and three touchdowns.
That’s the kind of defense Nebraska should be able to punish. Anthony Colandrea should tear this defense up. Jamal Rule should get right, and the Huskers should cruise through the game with a breakout performance from the offense … the key word being should.
In Other News...
Nebraska Faces A Costly Problem As Matt Rhule Eyes Key Decision
Nebraskas recent run has been slowed by a problem that keeps showing up in the same places, and it is not hard to see why the staff is pressing the issue. Tight end Luke Lindenmeyer said the penalties have been a pattern in practice as well as in games, which has pushed the Cornhuskers toward a heavier dose of accountability as they try to clean up the details that can swing close contests.
At the same time, Matt Rhule has another important call to make on the offensive side, with Jerry Neuheisel and Rob Aurich among the names being discussed for the coordinator opening. There is also some roster stability to note, as Cameron Lenhardt announced he will return for a fifth season under the new 5-for-5 rule, giving Nebraska a bit more continuity while the staff sorts through its next move. And across campus, Britt Princes 24-point outing helped the womens basketball team move to 3-0, a reminder that there is plenty going right even as the football program works through a few pressing issues. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraskas First Top 25 Night Brought Exactly What Fans Wanted
The first night as a Top 25 team came with the kind of performance Nebraska fans were hoping to see, as the Huskers rolled past Lindenwood 94-60 in a nonconference home game. It was a comfortable win from the start, and it gave Nebraska a chance to settle into its new ranking without much drama, while senior forward Damon Wilkinson provided a strong lift with 19 points and solid shooting from beyond the arc.
Pryce Sandfort led all scorers with 22 points, giving Nebraska another scoring option to lean on as the schedule turns a little more demanding. The next test comes against Boise State at a neutral site in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, a matchup that should offer a better gauge of where this group stands now that the early-season spotlight has found it. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraska Heads To Rutgers With A Defensive Problem It Must Solve
Nebraska heads to Rutgers with a defense that has to absorb two significant losses before the trip even kicks off. Linebacker Owen Chambliss and defensive back Andrew Marshall are both out because of injuries, leaving the Cornhuskers to reshuffle key spots on the back end and in the middle of the field as they prepare for a Big Ten road game that already had enough on the line.
Rutgers is dealing with its own personnel hit, with star wide receiver KJ Duff lost for the season, so both teams will be leaning on players who now have to do more than they were expected to do a week ago. For Nebraska, the bigger question is how quickly those replacements can settle in against an opponent that will be trying to test the spots where the Cornhuskers are thinnest. [Read more 🡒]