Nebraska’s painted the town black. Literally.
The end zones are black. The “N” at midfield is black. The goalposts are black. Even the balloons might be (but it’s looking very likely it will be so). Memorial Stadium will look and feel different Saturday night, and that’s the point.
The Huskers have gone all in on the “Blackout,” trading red for something bolder — a full-stadium statement under the lights against No. 23 USC. It’s Nebraska’s first November night game at home since 2016 and its biggest stage of the season: national TV, a ranked opponent and a team that just extended its head coach through 2032.
This doesn’t feel like just another home game.
Nebraska vs. USC
When: Saturday, Nov. 1 | 6:30 p.m. CT
Where: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln
TV: NBC (Noah Eagle, Todd Blackledge, Kathryn Tappen)
Radio: Huskers Radio Network (Kyle Crooks, Damon Benning, Jessica Coody)
Streaming audio: Huskers.com / Official Huskers App
Records: Nebraska 6-2 (3-2 B1G); USC 5-2 (3-1 B1G)
Series: USC leads 5-0-1 (2-0 in Lincoln)
Last meeting: USC 28–20 (2024)
Setting the scene
Nebraska opens November with everything on the table. The Huskers are bowl eligible, climbing and now hosting one of college football’s marquee brands in prime time.
The Huskers fought past Northwestern last week 28–21, their third fourth-quarter win of October, to hit 6–2 for the first time since 2016. The performance wasn’t clean but it was enough. Now comes the real test: a USC offense that leads the nation in both total yards (530.0) and passing (326.1) per game.
It’s a clash of opposites. The Trojans bring flash and tempo. Nebraska has built its identity on patience, toughness and one of the nation’s stingiest defenses against the pass. The atmosphere — an all-black Memorial Stadium — amplifies everything.
Saturday night will say as much about where Nebraska is as it does about where it’s going.
Rhule on the moment
On the team’s health and rotation up front:
“We felt like there’s some guys (on the D-line) just watching practice that deserve to play more just based upon their effort in practice and you start to get guys banged up and worn out a little bit. We went the other way and put those guys in. Guys like David Hoffken can get in there and they get pressure on the quarterback. Kade Pietzrak deserves to play more... We believe in practice. Our guys do a great job of taking care of their bodies. Drew Hambin, our trainer, Mitch Cholewinski, sports science and all the people that work underneath him. We have these infrared beds that I can’t even get in anymore because there’s a player always waiting... Where are we at health-wise? I mean we’re down to some injuries at right tackle. Teddy (Prochazka) is done, he won’t be able to play anymore. Gunnar (Gottula) is banged up. We’re going to have them battle through. That’s what every other team is dealing with too, so we need our guys to continue doing what they’ve been doing.”
On Turner Corcoran stepping in at right tackle:
“I thought he did a great job. He went in as left tackle last week when we lost (Elijah) Pritchett with the targeting and flipped over and took no reps at right tackle and went right onto right tackle. People think it’s the same thing, but go switch your grip and hit a golf ball and see how that feels. It’s difficult. Turner is a guy who started here a bunch and he had a really massive injury last year that took a long time to heal. We weren’t even sure he’d get to play. Credit to him. He’s just a winner.”
On David Hoffken:
“He’s so big. He’s 6’7”, 6’8” that you’re always trying to find where to put him. Should he be an outside player, should he be an inside player? He’s got great length. The thing is that he’s really coachable... David is one of the guys who actually uses his hands and feet. He’s working really hard. He’s been getting some reps. He got some reps the past couple of games and some packages. Now we’ll continue to use him more and more.”
Storylines to remember
A Blackout in every sense
Nebraska has flipped its identity for this one. Black uniforms. Black end zones. Black goalposts. A black “N” at midfield.
It’s part spectacle, part signal that the Huskers are ready to own the moment. Rhule probably said it best, especially within the realm of recruits that will make their way to Lincoln on Saturday. The whole thing is a selling point.
“Why would you not come to the University of Nebraska from where you live? It’s safe, it’s cheap, it’s easy living, it’s awesome…,” he said. “You can go watch a great football game with 90,000 other people and then go over and watch an amazing volleyball game.”
He even joked he still doesn’t have four tickets for Sunday’s match.
“I got an extension and all these things. I don’t have four tickets for Sunday... That’s how good they are,” Rhule said.
Talk about a recruiting pitch.
A new deal and the right timing
Nebraska locked in its future this week, signing Rhule to a two-year extension through 2032. His buyout jumped from $5 million to $15 million, effectively taking him off the coaching carousel and solidifying the foundation of what he’s building.
“Coach Rhule has shown he is the right leader at the right time for Nebraska Football,” athletic director Troy Dannen said. “Our program has seen significant progress under Matt’s leadership, and at this stage in the evolution of the program continuity and stability are critical.”
As for Rhule, he added that Nebraska has become his home.
“The University of Nebraska, the city of Lincoln and the state of Nebraska are special,” he said. “It is a place our family is proud to call home... Our focus remains on building Nebraska Football into a perennial championship contender.”
Let Emmett Johnson go
If there were ever a night to feed Emmett Johnson, this is it.
He’s the only Power Four player with 1,000 yards from scrimmage (1,019) through eight games, and Nebraska will need every bit of that production to keep USC’s offense watching from the sideline.
The Trojans are athletic up front but inconsistent against the run (137.0 yards allowed per game). Johnson can take pressure off a battered offensive line and shorten the game if Nebraska commits to him.
Strength vs. strength
The matchup is clean: USC’s No. 1 passing offense (326.1 yards per game) versus Nebraska’s No. 2 passing defense (127.5).
Seven of eight opponents have been held under 160 yards through the air by the Blackshirts. That discipline will be tested by Lincoln Riley’s air-raid system and quarterback Jayden Maiava, who’s thrown for 2,180 yards and 15 touchdowns with just four picks.
“Just unbelievable athletes,” offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen said. “They do a great job... They have four-, five-star guys out there. Every one of their D-linemen’s 6-5, 275. Every one of them. Never seen that before.”
The big stage test
Saturday night is a measuring stick for Nebraska’s ceiling, its composure and its confidence under pressure.
Rhule talked all week about the opportunity to show off not just his team, but the entire university.
“It’s a night game. There will be all kinds of guys that end up in the portal that watch this,” Rhule said. “There’s going to be kids that are in seventh grade that see this game and say, ‘Oh, you know what, that’s a cool place.’ It’s an awesome week to show off everything that we have here.”
It’s the kind of game Nebraska has lost in recent years. Will Saturday night be different?
Electric Nebraska?
A week ago, Bruce Springsteen released the electric versions of the songs from Nebraska, his famously spare and bleak 1982 album that few liked upon its release, but everyone loves now. I’ve always been Springsteen-agnostic—particularly on a sportswriter scale
What the numbers say
1 — Emmett Johnson is the only Power Four player with 1,000 yards from scrimmage (1,019).
2 — Nebraska ranks second nationally in passing yards allowed per game (127.5).
5 — Nebraska ranks top 20 nationally in five special teams categories: kickoff return average (3rd), punt return average (19th), punt return defense (3rd), kickoff return defense (14th), and blocked kicks (5th).
530.0 — USC’s total yards per game, first in the country.
42.4 — USC’s points per game, fifth nationally.
53–11 — Nebraska’s all-time record in home night games.
Odds and ends
>> Nebraska’s down a few bodies up front, but depth is there. Corcoran held his own at right tackle last week. Hoffken continues to carve out snaps.
>> The Trojans will test the secondary early and often. Expect defensive coordinator John Butler to disguise pressure, lean on rotations and challenge USC’s receivers to win in traffic.
>> Offensively, Nebraska’s formula doesn’t change: let Johnson set the tone, protect the football and use special teams to steal a drive.
If the Huskers can do that and feed off a blackout crowd, that momentum can be a real thing.
So, here we are.
Nebraska’s stage doesn’t get bigger than this. A ranked opponent. A national broadcast. A sea of black in Memorial Stadium.
Grab an energy drink or two. See you tonight.
I hope this is the tunnel Walk music tonight. https://youtu.be/vsMWVW4xtwI?si=8mXvfTa4ugCIV2Xr