Nebraska will try to build on its win over Indiana when it faces Rutgers in a road game on Friday night. The Cornhuskers bounced back from a two-game losing streak with their 35-21 win over Indiana, marking the first win for interim coach Mickey Joseph. Rutgers won its first three games of the season, but its offense has been limited in back-to-back losses to Iowa and No. 3 Ohio State.
Nebraska has been one of the biggest storylines in college football this season, but for all the wrong reasons. The Cornhuskers went 3-9 last year, with all nine losses coming by single digits. Many experts felt they were due for some positive regression this year, but everything came crashing down starting with a 31-28 loss to Northwestern in Ireland as double-digit favorites. Nebraska picked up a win over North Dakota in its second game before getting beat by Georgia Southern as a 23.5-point favorite in its third game, leading to the firing of head coach Scott Frost. Joseph took over at that point, getting blown out by then-No. 6 Oklahoma in his first game at the helm.
Team W. pic.twitter.com/PyrNClXC0g
— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFBNation) October 2, 2022
He led a bounce-back effort last week, though, as Nebraska snapped a nine-game losing streak against FBS opponents with a 35-21 win over Indiana following a bye week. The Cornhuskers are now going on the road for their first true road game of the season. They are currently in a six-way tie for first place in the Big Ten West, so they could take sole possession of the top spot for one day with a win on Friday. Nebraska needs a better effort from its defense, which ranks last in the Big Ten in scoring (32.6 points per game). The Cornhuskers held Indiana to 290 yards last week in the first game since Bill Busch took over as defensive coordinator. Quarterback Casey Thompson has completed 65.3% of his passes for 1,265 yards, seven touchdowns and four interceptions, while running back Anthony Grant has rushed for 600 yards and five scores on 114 carries.