A chance to make good
What if Nebraska could replay the Illinois game? We might find out Saturday when another undefeated, Rutgers, visits Lincoln.
What if Nebraska could replay the Illinois game? We might find out Saturday afternoon.
Rutgers, like Illinois two weeks ago, comes to Lincoln undefeated but as about a touchdown underdog. The Illini were ranked, No. 24, while the Scarlet Knights are just outside the AP top-25 in the “others receiving votes” category. In four power ratings—SP+, FPI, McIllece and FEI—Rutgers ranks between 44th and 50th. Illinois came to Lincoln in a similar range, ranking from 32nd to 54th.1
Perhaps most notably, Rutgers employs a similar straight-ahead style of play that asks opponents to match what has been a high level of effort and execution. The Scarlet Knights have maybe the Big Ten’s best running back but can move the ball through the air, too, and the defense is a well-rounded group front to back.
Every game is unique, of course, but a lot Saturday could feel like a do-over for the Huskers. Win and Nebraska has probably answered a few of the questions that dominated the week after the loss to Illinois. Lose and NU goes into a bye week having lost—at home, as a favorite—to the two best teams it has played and will be a road underdog in its first two games coming out of the break.
The perception gap between 5-1 and 4-2 is larger than just one game, but so are the ramifications given what lies ahead over the back half of the season.
How do the Huskers knock the Knights from their undefeated steed? There are some tightly contested matchups in this one. Let’s break it down.
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