Wisconsin @ Nebraska preview

Last Meeting ( Nov 15, 2014 ) Nebraska 24, Wisconsin 59

With one very notable exception, no team has enjoyed the sight of Nebraska more recently than Wisconsin. The Badgers seek their second Freedom Trophy victory in as many years and look to continue their recent domination of the host Cornhuskers on Saturday when they visit Lincoln in search of their first win at Memorial Stadium since 1965.

Wisconsin has humiliated Nebraska in three of the four meetings since the Cornhuskers joined the Big Ten four years ago, posting victories of 48-17 in 2011, 70-31 in the 2012 conference championship game and 59-24 last season. The Badgers’ lone setback during that span was a 30-27 defeat in September 2012 in which the Cornhuskers overcame a 17-point second-half deficit in Lincoln, setting the stage for the second of three Wisconsin routs just over two months later. Both schools are coming off low-scoring losses in their Big Ten openers last weekend, with the Badgers dropping a 10-6 decision at home versus Iowa and Nebraska suffering its third loss in the final seconds (14-13) at Illinois to fall below .500 after five games for the first time since 1959. "The fact of the matter is we’ve had a string of games like I’ve never seen," Cornhuskers first-year coach Mike Riley – a veteran of 178 college games – told reporters earlier this week.
TV: 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN2. LINE: Nebraska -1.5

ABOUT WISCONSIN (3-2, 0-1 Big Ten): The Badgers own the fourth-best scoring defense (9.6 points) and are tied for 12th in FBS with 15 sacks; much of the credit for both goes to outside linebacker Joe Schobert, who leads the country with nine sacks and 13 tackles for loss. The reigning co-Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week was dominant against Iowa, recording 3.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and five quarterback hurries. Receiver Alex Erickson (concussion) and tight end Austin Traylor (right arm) have been ruled out and questionable, respectively, joining other injured Badgers such as starting running back Corey Clement (sports hernia), who is expected to miss at least three more weeks.
ABOUT NEBRASKA (2-3, 0-1): Tommy Armstrong Jr. leads the conference in passing yards (274.2) and total offense (305.4), but is coming off his worst game (10-of-31 for 105 yards) since throwing for 62 yards on 18 attempts against the Badgers last season. One bright spot has been a run defense that ranks 12th in FBS; the Cornhuskers have surrendered a total of 1,120 yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground in their last two losses to Wisconsin. “(The Badgers) may think they’re going to run for 400, but I don’t think it’s going to happen like that this year. They’re going to have to beat us some other way,” safety Byerson Cockrell told the Omaha World Herald.

EXTRA POINTS
1. The Badgers, who have lost five straight and nine of the last 10 conference road openers, have allowed opponents to score on 13.1 percent of their possessions – tied for the second-lowest rate in FBS.
2. Nebraska’s 49 penalties are tied with Bowling Green for the most in FBS.
3. The last three times Wisconsin lost its Big Ten opener, the Badgers went on to win at least a division title (2014) or the Big Ten championship (2010, 2012).

PREDICTION: Nebraska 27, Wisconsin 24