I would guess that if you polled Husker fans, 99% would say that the upcoming game is a gimme. That's kind of to be expected when you're playing your 99th game against an opponent and your all-time record against them stands at 83-14-2.
Gimme status is emphasized when you're playing at home where you have a 48-6 advantage, haven't lost to said opponent in Lincoln since 1977, and the average margin of victory is over 20 points. If you're wondering why the betting line is around 17-18 in favor of Nebraska, there's your answer.
Are things any different this time? Maybe the '92 loss tends to make one paranoid, but I don't think so.
Statistics are once again courtesy of cfbstats.com. This time I've included the national and conference rankings in parentheses, to provide a better view of where these two teams stand.
Offensive Comparisons
| Nebraska | Iowa State | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rush YPG | 151.7 (55/8) | 213.57 (14/1) | |
| Rush YPC | 4.72 (26/3) | 5.17 (11/1) | |
| Rush TDS | 11 (47/8) | 13 (30/5) | |
| Pass YPG | 233 (45/7) | 195.3 (80/11) | |
| Pass YPA | 7.2 (56/8) | 6.4 (89/11) | |
| Pass TDS | 12 (33/6) | 10 (50/9) | |
| Pass Efficiency | 137.84 (38/5) | 118.62 (88/11) | |
| Total Offense | 384.7 (56/9) | 408.9 (36/7) |
Defensive Comparisons
| Nebraska | Iowa State | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rush YPG | 94.83 (12/3) | 140.86 (67/10) | |
| Rush YPC | 2.75 (11/3) | 3.99 (73/10) | |
| Rush TDS | 5 (20/4) | 5 (20/4) | |
| Pass YPG | 174.5 (23/1) | 245.9 (95/10) | |
| Pass YPA | 5.5 (13/3) | 7.2 (78/10) | |
| Pass TDS | 2 (2/1) | 15 (109/11) | |
| Total Defense | 269.3 (11/3) | 386.7 (88/9) | |
| Scoring Defense | 11.8 (6/2) | 21.6 (42/7) |
Opponent Positional Rank
| Total Offense Rank | Nebraska Opponent | Total Defense Rank | Total Offense Rank | Iowa State | Total Defense Rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33 | Florida Atlantic | 115 | xx | North Dakota State | xx | |
| 96 | Arkansas State | 57 | 79 | Iowa | 22 | |
| 59 | @Virginia Tech | 32 | 101 | Kent State | 83 | |
| 84 | UL-Lafayette | 79 | 115 | Army | 17 | |
| 40 | @Missouri | 45 | 70 | Kansas State | 47 | |
| 3 | Texas Tech | 49 | 2 | Kansas | 53 | |
| 68 | Baylor | 95 | ||||
| 52.5 | Average |
62.83 |
72.5 | Average | 52.83 |
*North Dakota State not included as they are not a FBS team.
- I was aware that Iowa State had a decent running game, but i was not aware that they were the best in the Big 12. They have faced some decent defenses, but no where the caliber of Nebraska's defense coming into this game.
- Nebraska's running game versus Iowa State's ground game.... well, let's just say the Husker offense agains the Cyclone defense weighs heavily in our favor, even with an offense that can't seem to perform on a consistent basis. Perhaps this is a game where the offense gains some confidence on the ground and in the air.
- The Husker defense compares very favorably with the Cyclone offense as well. Their strength on the ground plays right into our strength, so they don't gain much of an advantage in that sense.
- Fact is, we should smash Iowa State again, but the angst felt over how badly the offense performed against Texas Tech lingers in the air this week.
- Thoughts?