Nebraska’s undefeated start has sent the Huskers surging up the national boards again, with the biggest payoff showing up in the polls and in ESPN’s Football Power Index after the 31-13 road win at Michigan State.
Across the six polls and rankings the report tracks - now seven with the addition of Jeff Sagarin’s ratings - Nebraska climbed an average of 9.5 spots this week. The Huskers’ overall average ranking now sits at 27.7, a sharp rise from 39.1 last week, when Sagarin was not included.
The best number for Nebraska comes from ESPN’s FPI, where the Huskers jumped to 14 from 21. The worst mark is still The Athletic, which has Nebraska at 48, though that is an improvement from 58. Sagarin’s first rating used here placed Nebraska at 16.
The Huskers also took a notable step forward in ESPN’s playoff math. Their chance of making the College Football Playoff rose to 26.2 percent from 16.7 percent.
Nebraska’s chance of winning six games - the mark for bowl eligibility - is now 99.4 percent, and the Huskers are listed at 99.9 percent in another measure of reaching six wins. Nebraska is one of 22 undefeated teams in the country.
The FPI projection also shows Nebraska at 8.8 projected wins and 3.3 projected losses, up from 8.1 wins and 3.9 losses a week ago. The Huskers’ chances of winning the Big Ten moved to 4.6 percent from 2.6 percent. Their odds of reaching the national championship game are 2.2 percent, down from 4.6 percent, and their chance of winning it all is 0.8 percent, up from 0.5 percent.
Nebraska’s next chance to keep the climb going comes Saturday against Maryland at 3 p.m. CT on FS1.
Maryland is coming off a 54-3 home loss to UCLA. The Huskers then have Indiana in two weeks, and the report notes that if Nebraska gets past the Hoosiers, its playoff odds would likely spike to at least 70 percent.
The Big Ten picture around Nebraska remains crowded. Six league teams are in the AP Top 25, with Ohio State highest at No. 5 after moving up two spots. The rest of the conference’s ranked teams are Indiana at 6, Iowa at 14, Oregon at 15, USC at 18 and UCLA at 23.
Nebraska is still waiting to face the AP’s top four Big Ten teams. In the “others receiving votes” section, Wisconsin is 26, Penn State 28, Michigan 31, Minnesota 38 and Northwestern 40.
In the AP’s “others receiving votes” group, Nebraska moved up to 33 from 42, marking a second straight week with votes after being shut out in the first four rankings. In the USA Today Coaches Poll, the Huskers climbed to 31 from 40 and picked up 67 points.
Missouri holds the No. 25 spot with 152 points. The panel includes 72 coaches, among them Matt Rhule.
Nebraska also jumped in the CBS Sports ranking, moving to 30 from 41. In that set of rankings, the Huskers are ahead of 11 other Big Ten teams: Michigan, Penn State, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Minnesota, Washington, Illinois, Purdue, Maryland, Michigan State and Rutgers.
The Athletic has Nebraska at 48, up from 58, which is still the lowest spot among the rankings being tracked. The Huskers finished 52nd last season.
Massey Ratings, which compile 40 different college football rankings, pushed Nebraska up to 22 from 33. Texas is No. 1 in Massey, followed by Georgia, Notre Dame, Alabama and Indiana.
Jeff Sagarin’s ratings were added after a reader suggestion and a review of his work, with the article noting his football numbers seem sound except for not acknowledging Michigan’s disputed win over Western Michigan, so that result was added. In Sagarin’s first rating used here, Nebraska checks in at 16.
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Holgorsen also pointed to Elijah Pritchett turning in his best game, and the next step may be figuring out how to fit Babalade, Pritchett and Gunnar into the rotation together. There is still some sorting to do, and the same goes for quarterback Anthony Colandrea, whose quick decision-making and mobility could give Nebraska another layer if the staff finds the right way to use him. [Read more 🡒]