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Despite losing a heartbreaker just two weeks ago against Michigan State, the Nebraska Cornhuskers still have a legitimate shot at winning the Big Ten title. The Cornhuskers had a come-from-behind effort stopped short in week six against the Spartans and that comeback should bring extra life and confidence to this Nebraska team.
Not many people saw the Northwestern Wildcats doing much of anything this season following a poor 2013 season that saw them win just five games after a 4-0 start to the year. Pat Fitzgerald is an underrated coach and he has his Wildcats playing solid football this season, and despite a mediocre 3-3 record, Northwestern is 2-1 in conference play.
Nebraska’s Ameer Abdullah has been a Heisman contender all season long, but a poor performance against Michigan State in which he rushed for just 45 yards on 24 carries may have halted any hope he had at winning the coveted trophy. On the year, however, Abdullah has 878 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground and 130 yards and two receiving scores, catching the ball out of the backfield. Tommy Armstrong Jr. is the engineer of the offense at quarterback, passing for 1,325 yards and 10 touchdowns along with five interceptions while completing just 52 percent of his passes. Armstrong Jr. has also added to the sixth-best rush offense with 427 yards and two touchdowns of his own. Jordan Westerkamp had a huge game against the Spartans, pushing his season total up to 474 yards and three scores on 25 catches while Kenny Bell has 22 catches for 420 yards and two scores.
Northwestern’s offense lost a key piece from a season ago in dual-threat quarterback Kain Colter, but primary passer Trevor Siemian has been solid this season for the Wildcats. Northwestern ranks 69th in the nation in passing yards per game behind Siemian who has accounted for 1,323 yards, four touchdowns and five interceptions. His touchdown-to-turnover rate is under one, meaning he will need to get his interception numbers down and throw some more TD passes if Northwestern is going to have a shot at a West Division title. Dan Vitale has been Siemian’s favorite target, catching 24 passes for 260 yards and a score while Kyle Prater is close behind with 23 catches for 243 yards and a touchdown of his own. Venric Mark has also been lost from last year’s offense as he transferred from the program; that has severely hurt the run game as it ranks 107th in the nation. Freshman Justin Jackson has a bright future in the backfield, however, as he leads the team with 502 yards and two scores.
Defensively, the Wildcats have been quite solid this season to everyone’s surprise. Northwestern ranks 42nd nationally in total yards allowed per contest while ranking 11th in points allowed per game. Nebraska has been much improved compared to last season, ranking 31st in total yards allowed per game as well as ranking 28th in points allowed per game. The secondary has struggled a bit, however, giving up 225 yards per game through the air. Ryan Field will be raucous and mixed with a sea of red and purple on Saturday night for a huge Big Ten showdown near the Windy City.
Nebraska will travel to Northwestern to take on the Wildcats at 7:30 p.m. EST on Saturday, Oct. 18. The game will be broadcasted on the Big Ten Network.
PREDICTION: Nebraska 40, Northwestern 28
Want to see the Cornhuskers take on the Wildcats in week eight? Check out ScoreBig for tickets.
Connor Muldowney is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connormuldowney, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. You can also reach him at [email protected].
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