Nebraska Cornhuskers football back home to face Northwestern after 2 close losses

LINCOLN, Neb. — Nebraska reaches the halfway constituent of its regular play Saturday against Northwestern.

Regrets? To accidental the Cornhuskers person a fewer would beryllium an understatement.

Nebraska’s nonaccomplishment to Illinois successful the opener is looking worse each the time, yet the Huskers (2-3, 0-2 Big Ten) pushed a top-five Oklahoma squad to the brink connected the roadworthy 2 weeks ago. Then past week, minutes from ending a 10-year drought against ranked teams connected the road, a peculiar teams gaffe and an interception turned into an overtime nonaccomplishment astatine Michigan State.

“We are truthful close,” manager Scott Frost said. “We person been a atrocious squad that has won a fewer games and a beauteous bully squad that won immoderate and mislaid some. Right now, we are a bully squad that has mislaid immoderate games. We person to get implicit that hurdle.”

A nighttime crippled astatine location against Northwestern (2-2, 0-1) would look winnable. The Wildcats mislaid the bulk of their cardinal contributors from the 2020 West Division champion team, and the Huskers are 10.5-point favorites, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.

But Northwestern-Nebraska games person been hard fought since the Huskers joined the Big Ten successful 2011. The teams person divided 10 meetings. Eight person been decided by 1 score, including six by 3 points oregon less.

“We’ve got large respect for the Cornhuskers, and I deliberation it’s a two-way street,” Wildcats manager Pat Fitzgerald said. “And this crippled conscionable seems similar it’s ever conscionable down to the wire. We’ve had immoderate large battles. I don’t deliberation this 1 volition beryllium immoderate different.”

HUSKERS O-LINE WOES

Frost declared aboriginal successful the week that each occupation up was for grabs connected the violative line. Adrian Martinez has been sacked 20 times, by Pro Football Focus’ count, and 18 times, according to the NCAA.

Tackles Turner Corcoran and Bryce Benhart person allowed a combined 50 backmost pressures successful 5 games, according to PFF.

“There are immoderate guys that I cognize person the quality to play amended than what we person been playing astatine a mates of positions, truthful contention is unfastened and we are going to springiness radical a existent shot,” Frost said. “If we would person gotten bully play there, I deliberation we would beryllium successful a wholly antithetic spot this year. Special teams arsenic well.”

ABOUT THOSE SPECIAL TEAMS

The Huskers are past successful the Big Ten and 124th nationally successful peculiar teams efficiency, according to ESPN.

“It seems similar each week determination is simply a caller occupation arise,” Frost said. “You hole 1 and enactment connected 1 and walk a batch of clip connected 1 and thing you person not adjacent anticipated comes up.”

LIKING LINCOLN

Northwestern is 3-2 successful Lincoln, with its losses coming successful 2013 connected the Ron Kellogg-to-Jordan Westerkamp Hail Mary and successful 2019 connected a tract extremity arsenic clip expired. Their 3 wins, 1 decided successful overtime, were by a full of 12 points.

EYE ON ADRIAN

The Wildcats person a caller antiaircraft coordinator successful Jim O’Neil, and his task is to devise ways to support Martinez nether control. Martinez is the Huskers’ starring rusher by far, is completing 67% of his passes and has a knack for making thing retired of thing erstwhile plays interruption down.

“”As manager O’Neil ever talks about, effort erases mistakes truthful we’ve got to marque definite we’re taking due angles, getting to the shot and making definite that our tackling is connected point,” linebacker Bryce Gallagher said.

ON THE RUN

Northwestern ran for 373 yards successful a 35-6 triumph implicit Ohio past week, with Evan Hull going for a season-high 216.

It won’t beryllium arsenic casual against Nebraska, which held nationalist rushing person Kenneth Walker III of Michigan State to 61 yards connected 19 carries. The Huskers held the Spartans to 14 full yards and nary archetypal downs successful the 2nd and 3rd quarters.

“They enactment everybody other successful the Big Ten connected announcement past play connected the roadworthy with the mode they played successful that 2nd half,” Fitzgerald said. “I mean, it was arsenic ascendant a show arsenic I’ve seen.”