Nebraska goes on the road for the first time this year, playing the Purdue Boilermakers in an early 11am CT kickoff on Saturday. The Huskers, who fell out of the top 25 after their disappointing loss to Illinois, are looking to bounce back with their first conference win of the season. Purdue enters the game with a 1-2 record, having most recently lost to Oregon State 38-21.
On behalf of the Common Fan podcast, here are three keys to victory for the Huskers, and three keys to victory for all the fellow Common Fans.
Nebraska’s Keys to Victory
Handle the Moment. Heading into their first road game of the season, how does the team respond after Saturday’s disappointing loss? Nebraska is better than Purdue on paper. The Huskers are favored by around 10 points according to most betting lines. But this is a team still learning how to win. How do they handle their first road game? Dylan Raiola has been up to the task in each game so far this season; playing on the road in the Big Ten will be another first for the standout true freshman.
In our Illinois game recap on the Common Fan Podcast, co-host MattyO suggested that perhaps getting out of town would be good for Nebraska. The home crowd at Memorial Stadium has been incredible so far this season, but going into hostile territory can have a unifying effect for the boys in red. In theory, if this team is taking the next step under Matt Rhule, we’ll see a renewed focus on details and solid execution on Saturday. More than anything, it would be great to see Nebraska play clean, penalty-free football.
Get the Defense Back on Track. What seemed to be minor red flags about the defense after the Northern Iowa game blossomed into much bigger concerns when the Huskers made Luke Altmyer and the Illinois offense look like Marcus Mariota leading a high powered Oregon team from days gone by. Illinois averaged 5.5 yards on first down plays. The Illini were 7-for-13 on 3rd down (and 2-for-3 on 4th down), with Altmyer completing 78% of his passes on the night. More than that…