Nebraska heads to Rutgers on Saturday with the same goal it has chased for weeks: get to six wins and lock up bowl eligibility. The Huskers are 5-4 overall and 2-4 in the Big Ten, while Rutgers sits at 2-7 and 1-5.
FanDuel has Nebraska as a 13.5-point favorite for the 11:30 a.m. CT kickoff at SHI Stadium in Piscataway, N.J.
The numbers say Nebraska should be better than its record. In the Big Ten team stats, the Huskers are third on offense and fifth on defense, yet they’re tied for 11th in the 18-team league.
That disconnect has defined the season. Nebraska has lost four straight, and in three of those games it led in the fourth quarter before letting it slip away.
The late-game issues have come in different forms - missed stops, missed turnovers, missed chances - but the result has been the same.
Penalties have been another drag. Interim offensive coordinator Glenn Thomas pointed to them this week, and the Huskers have piled up 75 flags for 637 yards, making them the 120th most-penalized team in the country. During the four-game losing streak, Nebraska has averaged just 13.5 points per game.
Now the Huskers get a Rutgers team dealing with its own problems. The Scarlet Knights have lost three in a row, and they’ll be without wide receiver KJ Duff after ankle surgery. Duff, a 6-foot-6, 225-pound target, had 45 catches for 774 yards and nine touchdowns in eight games and was a major part of the Rutgers passing game, especially on third downs.
Rutgers also has injury trouble at quarterback. AJ Surace is expected to start for the third straight game after Dylan Lonergan was ruled out, though Surace is listed as questionable. That gives Nebraska a chance to attack an offense that ranks 14th in the Big Ten at 363.1 yards per game.
The Scarlet Knights’ defense has been even more vulnerable. They are last in the conference in overall defense at 415.4 yards allowed per game and last in rushing defense at 186.3 yards allowed per game.
That opens the door for Nebraska to lean on what has worked best. The Huskers rank fourth in the Big Ten in rushing at 181.7 yards per game and third in total offense at 425 yards per game.
Thomas said the run game has given Nebraska something to build on.
“I think the run game has been super productive,” Thomas said at a news conference this week. “Coach [Matt] Rhule talked about it yesterday. We were almost five yards a carry [against Illinois].
“So, I think there’s a lot of good things happening in the run game. I think we continued to build on that.”
Nebraska’s offense also has a chance to look different with Thomas taking over after Dana Holgorsen was fired last week. A new voice and a new approach could matter, especially if the Huskers keep things simpler and protect the football.
That part is non-negotiable. Nebraska needs a turnover-free game, and it can’t afford to keep throwing the ball up and hoping for the best.
There’s also the question of how much Nebraska can absorb on defense. Three key players are out with injuries: linebacker Owen Chambliss, defensive back Andrew Marshall and lineman Anthony Jones Jr. Chambliss and Marshall were described as All-Big Ten, All-America quality players, and their absence could be a major factor against a Rutgers team that figures to test the Huskers on the ground.
Antwan Raymond is tied for the Big Ten lead in rushing with 789 yards, and Rutgers is likely to run right at Nebraska. Even with the Scarlet Knights’ offensive struggles, the matchup gives them a clear path: stay physical, keep pounding away and try to exploit a weakened Husker defense.
There’s also a little extra energy around Rutgers this week. Head coach Greg Schiano had his contract extended into 2027, and according to NJ.com, players responded strongly to the news. Defensive lineman DJ Allen, who had offers from Nebraska, Michigan, Iowa and Michigan State, said he was “elated” Schiano was coming back.
“I’ve been here for five years, and the reason why I’m here is because of Coach Schiano, so hearing that news, I was elated,” Allen said Wednesday, as reported by NJ.com. “I’m excited to see what we’re capable of doing.”
That kind of reaction matters for a Rutgers team that has been close in spots this season. The Scarlet Knights lost one-score games at home to USC and Michigan, and both were still up for grabs in the fourth quarter. They haven’t beaten Nebraska in seven tries, and Saturday gives them a chance to land an overdue win.
Nebraska, meanwhile, is trying to stop the slide and finally finish the job. The Huskers have the better numbers, the better record and the better ranking - Nebraska is 52nd in The Athletic 138, Rutgers 100th - but they’ve spent most of the season proving that numbers only go so far. The next step is turning those advantages into a result.
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Nebraskas Bowl Hopes Now Ride On One Huge Rutgers Gamble
Nebraskas bowl picture has been thrown into sharper focus by a coaching shakeup, with Matt Rhule firing offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen and turning the offense over to Glenn Thomas just before the matchup with Rutgers. For a team still trying to steady itself, the timing matters, because the game arrives with plenty on the line and with the Cornhuskers looking for any edge they can find as they try to keep their postseason path alive.
Rutgers, meanwhile, is dealing with its own major personnel hit on the other side of the ball. The Scarlet Knights are already without starting quarterback Dylan Lonergan, and the absence of star receiver KJ Duff only adds to the challenge of matching Nebraskas urgency in a game that could come down to which sideline handles the disruption better. With the numbers and matchup metrics pointing toward a tight, uncertain contest, the biggest question is whether Rutgers can absorb those losses well enough to keep the game in reach. [Read more 🡒]
Nebraska Heads To Rutgers With No Excuse For Another Sloppy Showing
Nebraska arrives in Piscataway with a fresh set of eyes on the offense and a clear need for cleaner football. Dana Holgorsen is out of the play-calling role, Glenn Thomas is now handling those duties, and the Cornhuskers are trying to shake off an attack that has too often been slowed by penalties and mental mistakes. There is also some internal discussion about tweaking formations to better fit the personnel on hand and add more physicality, which tells you this is more than a minor tune-up.
Rutgers, meanwhile, is dealing with its own injury concerns and enters this matchup short on depth at key spots, which only raises the pressure on Nebraska to look sharper than it has in recent weeks. For the Scarlet Knights, the challenge is obvious: take advantage of a Nebraska offense still trying to find its footing under a new voice, and do it before the game turns into one of those frustrating afternoons where execution matters more than any pregame storyline. [Read more 🡒]
Rutgers Nebraska Lands In A Spot Big Ten Cant Afford To Waste
Big Ten football has been packing stadiums this season, with home crowds across the league showing up at a healthy clip and nobody reporting attendance below roughly 86% capacity last week. For Rutgers fans, that kind of in-person support is part of the familiar league backdrop, but it also comes with a reminder that the conferences reach is being judged well beyond the turnstiles.
The bigger issue is what happens on television, where the Big Ten has not matched the SECs visibility in recent weeks and only a handful of league games cracked the top tier of national viewership. With a slate of upcoming matchups headed to major networks, including Indiana-USC and Illinois at UCLA, the spotlight will be on how much attention the conference can command, and Rutgers meeting with Nebraska lands in a spot the Big Ten cannot really afford to waste. [Read more 🡒]