The Nebraska Cornhuskers and Northwestern Wildcats are set to go at it on the grass at Ryan Field. The daytime game is scheduled to get underway at 12:00 p.m. ET and fans can catch the action by tuning in to ABC.
Betting Preview: Nebraska Cornhuskers at Northwestern Wildcats
In this Saturday Big Ten game, Northwestern is tabbed as the favorite and the team’s currently giving up 6 points. The Cornhuskers are also receiving +185 moneyline odds while the Wildcats are -230. There might be some good live betting opportunities for this game.
The public has been siding with the Cornhuskers, as the line opened at -9.
The hapless Cornhuskers have lost 8.8 units so far and are 1-4 against the spread (ATS). The team’s posted an O/U record of 3-2.
The Wildcats have gained 1.6 units for moneyline bettors this season. They’re 3-2 ATS and also have an O/U record of 3-2.
The Cornhuskers have gone 0-5 straight up (SU), including 0-3 SU against conference opponents. The Wildcats are 2-3 SU overall and 2-1 SU in conference play.
The Cornhuskers are still seeking their first win after a 41-24 loss to Wisconsin last week. Adrian Martinez completed 24-of-42 passes for 384 yards and two touchdowns. Martinez (57 rushing yards on 13 attempts, one TD) also led the running attack in the loss. JD Spielman (nine receptions, 209 yards, one TD) and Stanley Morgan Jr. (eight catches, 93 yards) shared the receiving duties.
Northwestern just put together a 29-19 win over Michigan State. The defensive secondary allowed the Spartans to air it out for 329 yards. Felton Davis III had a good showing in the loss, posting 50 rushing yards and a score on two attempts, along with 96 yards on seven catches for Michigan State. For Northwestern, Clayton Thorson completed 31-of-47 passes for 373 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. Solomon Vault (six yards on 10 rush attempts) spearheaded the ground game in the win while Flynn Nagel (10 receptions, 111 yards) and Cameron Green (nine catches, 76 yards, one TD) led the pass-catching attack.
Nebraska has run the ball on 54.0 percent of its offensive plays this year, including 45.8 percent across possessions in conference play. Northwestern has a rush percentage of 41.9 percent, and has carried the ball 45.9 percent of the time when playing Big 10 opponents. The Cornhuskers have produced 185.0 rush yards/game (including 136.3 per game against Big Ten opponents) and have seven scores via handoffs this year. The Wildcats are putting up 77.4 rushing yards per game (67.3 in conference) and have 10 total rush TDs.
The Cornhuskers offense has logged 247.2 yards/game through the air overall (274.3 per game versus conference opposition) and has seven passing TDs so far. The Wildcats have put up 293.8 pass yards per contest (261 against Big 10 foes) and have six total pass scores.
Nebraska appears to possess an advantage when it comes to limiting the pass. The team’s allowed opponents to run for an average of 206.0 yards and pass for 231.6 yards per game. The Northwestern defense has allowed 255.2 yards per game to opposing passers and 133.0 yards per game to opposing runners. Both teams allow similar adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) to the opposition, as the Cornhuskers have given up an ANY/A of 6.24 to opposing QBs, while the Wildcats are yielding an ANY/A of 6.53.
Offensively, Martinez is up to 593 passing yards on the year, and has connected on 46-of-77 attempts with three scores through the air and two interceptions. Martinez’s got a 5.88 adjusted net yards per pass attempt overall, although that number sits at 8.17 over the last two games.
JD Spielman, Devine Ozigbo and Stanley Morgan Jr. have combined to account for 736 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns over the last two outings.
Clayton Thorson has managed to complete 102-of-163 passes for 1,126 yards, six TDs and five INTs for Northwestern. His ANY/A stands at 5.79 for the season and 5.70 over his last two games.
We expect Thorson to attack all areas of the Nebraska secondary. Flynn Nagel (337 receiving yards), Kyric McGowan (122 receiving yards, one receiving TD), and Bennett Skowronek (232 receiving yards, one TD) have collectively notched 353 receiving yards over the last two games.
When these two programs faced each other last year, Northwestern won by a touchdown 31-24.
Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. Northwestern Wildcats NCAA Pick
SU Winner: Northwestern, ATS Winner: Northwestern
Team Betting Notes
- The Cornhuskers offense has registered two pass plays of 40 or more yards, while the Wildcats have put up three such plays.
- The Nebraska defense has allowed five pass plays of 40+ yards, while Northwestern has given up four such plays.
- The Nebraska offense has created 12 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while Northwestern has created three such runs.
- The Cornhuskers defense has allowed 12 rushing plays of 20 or more yards, while the Wildcats have given up seven such runs.
- The Nebraska defense has 13 sacks on the year while Northwestern has eight.
- Nebraska, as a team, has produced 4.39784946236559 yards per carry over its past three games and 5.9 over its last two.
- Northwestern has averaged 1.4 yards per carry over its last three contests and 0.7 over its last two.
- Over its last three matches, Northwestern is 2-1 ATS and the over cashed in two of those three.
- Nebraska was favored by 19 points in its last game and the O/U was set at 59.5. The over cashed and Nebraska did not cover in the 41-24 defeat to Wisconsin.
- Over its last three matchups, Nebraska is 1-2 ATS and the over cashed in each of those three.
- Northwestern was favored by 11 points in its last match and the O/U going into it was 44. The over cashed and Northwestern failed to cover in the team’s 29-19 victory over Michigan State.
