Saunders Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Game 8 “Expert” Picks: Rutgers @ Nebraska ————— CollegeFootballNews.com Rutgers (5-2) at Nebraska (6-1) Oct. 25, 12:00, ESPN2 Here's The Deal: There was a time not all that long ago when Nebraska was the new guy on the Big Ten block, but now it’s old school compared to Rutgers, who’s coming up with a nice first part of the season, but might have to fight to get that sixth win to become bowl eligible. The Scarlet Knights lost in heartbreaking fashion against Penn State, and got blown out by Ohio State, but they’ve been able to get to 5-2 with a good passing game and just enough defense to get by. With Wisconsin up next, and road games at Michigan State and Maryland to finish things up, Rutgers has to either beat Indiana in a few weeks, or it’s going to take a massive upset to avoid a disastrous back half. This is a good team, but it needs a great win after beating Washington State, Navy and Michigan on the resume – beating Nebraska in Lincoln would be a national statement moment for the program, and a killer for a Big Ten that needs as many teams with strong records as possible. Still deep in the College Football Playoff hunt, 6-1 Nebraska would almost certainly get in by winning out – especially if it can avenge an earlier loss to Michigan State in the Big Ten championship. This begins a nice run of three home games in the next four, hosting Purdue and Minnesota over the next few weeks, but having to go to Wisconsin and Iowa. If the Huskers really are good enough to be around the big four, they need to take care of this relatively easy slate – yes, Wisconsin is easy – and they need to use their terrific ground game and offense to blow past Rutgers. It’s a bit of a measuring stick moment considering Ohio State’s success last week – Nebraska doesn’t need to destroy the Scarlet Knights, but they need to win handily. This is just the second meeting between the two with Nebraska winning the first time around 28-0 in New York in 1920. Why Rutgers Might Win: Nebraska’s secondary has been challenged a little bit, but now it’s about to get pushed. Miami and Bray Kaaya threw for 359 yards and three touchdowns, and while Michigan State’s Connor Cook was a disaster at times – hitting 11-of-29 throws – he pushed the ball throwing for 234 yards. Nebraska’s secondary is doing a great job in terms of completion percentage – quarterbacks are connecting on 48% of their throws – but it’s getting beaten a bit too much deep by the decent passers. Why Nebraska Might Win: It always comes down to this for everyone who plays Nebraska – can you stop the run? The answer for Rutgers is yes, but last week against Ohio State was a concern giving up 324 yards and four scores. Even when the defensive front was holding its own, it was giving up almost five yards a crack to Tulane and 4.5 per try to Michigan, allowing 15 rushing scores over the last six games. On the other side of the ball, the Rutgers offensive line is way too leaky, allowing 44 tackles for loss. The RU ground attack is okay, but it’s not going to control the game. Who To Watch Out For: The Rutgers passing game spreads it around to several different options, but the main man continues to be Leonte Carroo, a 6-1, 205-pound junior who makes his grabs count. Last year he averaged 17 yards per catch with nine touchdowns on just 28 receptions. This year he’s averaging 19 yards per pop with five touchdowns on 34 grabs, coming up with two 100-yard games in the last three, catching seven passes for 140 yards and three touchdowns against Tulane and five for 100 yards against Ohio State. Nebraska has the eighth-ranked pass efficiency defense. What’s Going To Happen: Nebraska will start running and won’t stop. The Rutgers defense doesn’t do enough against the better offenses, and it’s about to have a bad day as Ameer Abdullah runs for 200 yards in an easy Husker win. Prediction: Nebraska 38 - Rutgers 20 ————— BTN.com http://btn.com/2014/10/22/week-9-see-our-predictions-for-all-five-big-ten-football-games/ Sean Merriman: Nebraska 34 - Rutgers 28 Brent Yarina: Nebraska 42 - Rutgers 20 Tom Dienhart: Nebraska 33 - Rutgers 21 Doug Lesmires: Nebraska 35 - Rutgers 16 ————— ESPN Big Ten Blog http://espn.go.com/blog/bigten/post/_/id/109629/big-ten-week-9-predictions Can the Huskers avoid a slow start? If so, they should be able to pull away from a Rutgers team that had no answers for Ohio State's offense. QuarterbacksTommy Armstrong Jr. and Gary Nova both put up big numbers in this one. Nebraska 41 - Rutgers 27 ————— Athlon Sports http://athlonsports.com/college-football/big-ten-2014-week-9-preview-and-predictions David Fox: Nebraska 49 - Rutgers 14 Braden Gall: Nebraska 41 - Rutgers 20 Steven Lassan: Nebraska 38 - Rutgers 20 Mitch Light: Nebraska 31 - Rutgers 17 ————— CBS Sports http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/features/writers/expert/picks/straight-up/9 Dennis Dodd - N Jeremy Fowler - N Jon Solomon - N Jerry Palm - N Tom Fornelli - N Jerry Hinnen - N* Chip Patterson - N *Not covering - 16.5 spread ————— Big Red Wrap-Up http://netnebraska.org/interactive-multimedia/sports/big-red-wrap-rutgers-prediction Kevin Kugler: Nebraska 31 - Rutgers 17 Blake Lawrence: Nebraska 34 - Rutgers 27 Adrian Fiala: Nebraska 41 - Rutgers 13 ————— AP - Ralph D Russo http://collegefootball.ap.org/article/vols-wolverines-out-flip-trends-against-rivals From Columbus, Ohio, to Lincoln, Nebraska, in back-to-back weeks. Schedule-makers did Scarlet Knights no favors in first Big Ten season Nebraska 45 - Rutgers 17 ————— 7 Quote Link to comment
Minnesota_husker Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Rutgers isnt a bad team like I had expected coming in to the season. 2 losses. One was only by 3, other was a blow out. They can throw it around the yard a bit with Nova and if we come in still rubbing away the sleep, they could put up 14-21 points on us quick.... This isnt going to be Illinois easy.. Probably more like Northwestern where we pull away late because of the talent gap. I think we win, but gotta come out and punch them in the face. Quote Link to comment
The Maudfather Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Rutgers isnt a bad team like I had expected coming in to the season. 2 losses. One was only by 3, other was a blow out. They can throw it around the yard a bit with Nova and if we come in still rubbing away the sleep, they could put up 14-21 points on us quick.... This isnt going to be Illinois easy.. Probably more like Northwestern where we pull away late because of the talent gap. I think we win, but gotta come out and punch them in the face. 8 Quote Link to comment
blackshirt98 Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Dis game gonna be ain't no thang. Rutger play dat offense which fall directly into the Pelini trap, drop back? Sack attack, heard dat, on yo back, blackshrts flex on dat, will u!? 6 Quote Link to comment
GSG Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Dis game gonna be ain't no thang. Rutger play dat offense which fall directly into the Pelini trap, drop back? Sack attack, heard dat, on yo back, blackshrts flex on dat, will u!? 5 Quote Link to comment
Count 'Bility Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Dis game gonna be ain't no thang. Rutger play dat offense which fall directly into the Pelini trap, drop back? Sack attack, heard dat, on yo back, blackshrts flex on dat, will u!? Who What are you? 1 Quote Link to comment
darkhorse85 Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 I feel like a rap battle is gong to break out at any moment. 1 Quote Link to comment
The Dude Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Dis game gonna be ain't no thang. Rutger play dat offense which fall directly into the Pelini trap, drop back? Sack attack, heard dat, on yo back, blackshrts flex on dat, will u!? Who What are you?I'm fairly certain it's Vincent Valentine. Quote Link to comment
Redux Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Finlays insider finally revealed! Quote Link to comment
Count 'Bility Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Dis game gonna be ain't no thang. Rutger play dat offense which fall directly into the Pelini trap, drop back? Sack attack, heard dat, on yo back, blackshrts flex on dat, will u!? Who What are you?I'm fairly certain it's Vincent Valentine. Well then big Vince needs to shut his yapper and get back in the training room and get his leg healed. We gotta win tommorrow!!! Quote Link to comment
NUinID Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Rutgers is not some juggernaut of a team, but any team that is 5-2 can't be all bad. Nebraska needs to show up and play. If they come out and take care of business they should win by 17-21 points, but they've got to get up on them and play. Nova has good stats and all, but doesn't strike me as someone all that special. Quote Link to comment
Mavric Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Apparently the line on this game opened Huskers -15 and is now Huskers -20. I'm a little surprised it's that high but I think we should be right there. Quote Link to comment
Minnesota_husker Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Dis game gonna be ain't no thang. Rutger play dat offense which fall directly into the Pelini trap, drop back? Sack attack, heard dat, on yo back, blackshrts flex on dat, will u!? Who What are you?I'm fairly certain it's Vincent Valentine. Well then big Vince needs to shut his yapper and get back in the training room and get his leg healed. We gotta win tommorrow!!! You no good at reading a calendar. Quote Link to comment
Minnesota_husker Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Apparently the line on this game opened Huskers -15 and is now Huskers -20. I'm a little surprised it's that high but I think we should be right there. Ill take Rutgers +20--garbage points Quote Link to comment
ADS Posted October 23, 2014 Share Posted October 23, 2014 Dis game gonna be ain't no thang. Rutger play dat offense which fall directly into the Pelini trap, drop back? Sack attack, heard dat, on yo back, blackshrts flex on dat, will u!?I concur. Quote Link to comment
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