The Nebraska Cornhuskers and No. 19 Michigan Wolverines are ready to do battle on the turf at Michigan Stadium. FS1 owns the TV rights and kickoff will take place at 12:00 p.m. ET.
Betting Preview: Nebraska Cornhuskers at Michigan Wolverines
In this Saturday Big Ten game, Michigan is projected as the big favorite and is currently giving up 19 points. The Cornhuskers are also receiving +830 moneyline odds while the Wolverines are -1550. Vegas has placed the over/under (O/U) at 49.5 points, and if one side gets out in front early, it will probably generate a nice betting scenario in-game.
The line opened at -18. The game’s over/under hasn’t changed after it was initially established at 49.5.
The less-than-stellar Cornhuskers are down 5.8 units this season and 0-2 against the spread (ATS). They’ve been a good under bet and have posted an O/U record of 0-2.
The Wolverines have lost 1.6 units for moneyline bettors so far. They’re 1-2 ATS and have an O/U record of 1-2.
The Cornhuskers are a lousy 0-2 straight up (SU) and they haven’t faced any Big 10 competition yet. The Wolverines are 2-1 SU overall and are also 0-0 SU in conference play.
The Cornhuskers are still looking for their first win after a 24-19 defeat to Troy last weekTheir defense allowed the Trojans to eat up the clock by rushing for 143 yards on 34 attempts, including two rush TDs. B.J. Smith logged a good day for the Trojans in that one with 70 rushing yards and both touchdowns on 11 attempts. On the offensive side of the ball, Andrew Bunch completed 19 passes on 27 attempts for just 177 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Maurice Washington (92 yards on 14 rush attempts) and Greg Bell (64 yards on 14 carries) spearheaded the running attack in the loss while JD Spielman (six receptions, 45 yards, one TD) and Stanley Morgan Jr. (five catches, 64 yards, one TD) shared the receiving duties.
Michigan is coming off of a lopsided 45-20 win over SMU. The defense allowed the Mustangs to run for 110 yards on 31 rush attempts. James Proche was on a different level for SMU, putting up 166 yards and two touchdowns on 11 catches. For Michigan, Shea Patterson completed 14-of-18 passes for 237 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Chris Evans (85 yards on 18 rush attempts) and Tru Wilson (53 yards on 11 carries, one TD) mounted the ground game in the win as Donovan Peoples-Jones (four receptions, 90 yards, three TDs) and Zach Gentry (four catches, 95 yards) led the pass-catching attack.
Nebraska has run the ball on 64.6 percent of its offensive possessions this year while Michigan has a rush percentage of 60.2 percent. The Cornhuskers have produced 258.0 rush yards per game and have three touchdowns via handoffs this year. The Wolverines are averaging 187.7 rushing yards per game and have six total rush TDs.
The Cornhuskers offense has averaged 206.5 yards through the air overall and has three passing TDs so far. The Wolverines have produced 209.7 pass yards per game and have seven total pass scores.
On the defensive side of the ball, Nebraska has allowed 93.5 rush yards and 230.5 pass yards per game. The Michigan defense has allowed 154.7 yards per game to opposing passers and 121.7 yards per game to opposing runners. The Wolverines are allowing an adjusted net yards per pass attempt (ANY/A) of only 3.90 to opponents, while the Cornhuskers have given up a 5.11 ANY/A.
Offensively, Bunch is up to 177 passing yards this season. He’s completed 19-of-27 attempts with two passing scores and two interceptions. Bunch has a 3.47 adjusted net yards per pass attempt, including 3.92 over the last two games.
For the home team, Shea Patterson has completed 34-of-48 passes for 464 yards, three TDs and two INTs. Patterson’s ANY/A sits at 7.71 for the year and 11.35 over his past two outings.
These two Big 10 foes did not get a chance to face each other a year ago.
