The No. 9 rated Nebraska Cornhuskers came up large in a pivotal 24-3 win over No. 13 Michigan State to make the Big Ten Legends Division race much more compelling.
The win forced a three-way tie between Nebraska, Michigan state and Michigan. Had the Spartans beaten Nebraska, they would have had a big leg up on the rest of the division. For the Huskers, the key becomes sustaining that momentum as the calendar turns to November. Since Bo Pelini took over as the head coach in 2008, November has been a month to remember. The Huskers have gone 11-1 under Pelini in November.
The Huskers host a Northwestern (3-5 overall, 1-4 Big Ten) team that is decidedly different than Michigan State. The Spartans entered the contest with defensive numbers not terribly far behind Alabama and LSU but also had a pedestrian offense. The Wildcats, however, are averaging 31.6 points per game but in their five defeats have yielded an average of 35.2 points per contest.
With the exception of the first half of its 34-27 win over Ohio State, Nebraska has been playing well ever since its 48-17 loss to Wisconsin.
When the Huskers parted ways with offensive coordinator Shawn Watson and replaced him with Tom Beck, the biggest question was “what will be the offense’s identity?” It’s pretty obvious now. The Huskers are a run first team with running back Rex Burkhead carrying the load. He did just that against Michigan State as he carried 35 times for 130 yards and two touchdowns.
The question becomes, does Nebraska reduce Burkhead’s carries this week and mix in carries for Ameer Abdullah or Aaron Green. Keep in mind the Huskers follow this game with key road tests at Penn State and Michigan.
The Huskers should be able to run the ball at will on Northwestern’s defense. Well, the numbers would certainly indicate as much as Nebraska is ninth in rushing offense (averaging 253 yards per game) and the Wildcats are 95th in defending the run (allowing 194 yards per contest). As long as Nebraska is not careless with the ball, it should be fine.
On defense, injuries have forced Pelini to try finding the right mixture of players. Nebraska did just that last week in shutting down a good but not great Spartan offense. This week, however, will be a much better barometer to determine whether the Blackshrts are back into form.
While this is not the Ndamukong Suh led defense of 2009, I did not see anything in that game that makes me think the Blackshirts are not back. The younger Blackshirts who were thrust into key roles as a result of injuries now appear to understand the system.
That trend needs to continue this week because though the Wildcats win-loss record is not good, quarterback Dan Persa gives them a punchers chance. Keep in mind, Persa was the first team all-Big Ten quarterback last season. To illustrate even further how good Persa is, he received that nod over Michigan’s Denard Robinson and Ohio State’s Terrelle Pryor.
Persa will also present a much different matchup than MSU’s Kirk Cousins did. Cousins is more of a classic, dropback passer who was a minimal threat to run. Persa, however, will take off and run so the Huskers must be much more disciplined in its pass rush.
Northwestern may get its yards and/or points but with the way the Blackshirts are rounding into form defensively, the Wildcats will have a harder time scoring. The key for Nebraska is to not let Northwestern get an early lead to subdue the home crowd.
On special teams, Abdullah has also provided another weapon as a kick and punt returner. The Huskers are ranked No. 2 in the country in kick returns and No. 44 in the country in punt returns. However, opponents have negated that advantage lately by kicking away from him.
However, another huge plus to Nebraska’s kicking game has how placekicker/punter Brett Maher has replaced Alex Henery so well. Maher has made 14-17 field goals and is averaging 45 yards per punt.
Northwestern might be 3-5 but it’s a deceptive 3-5. That thinking would go against Bill Parcells’ motto of “your record is exactly what it is.” However, Northwestern has had a lead in the second half of every one of its five defeats. That statement could mean one of two things: a) The Wildcats are dangerous enough to beat you on a given day or b) They will make enough mistakes to get beat.
As long as the Huskers don’t commit penalties and turnovers, they should win this game and go to 8-1.
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