When Michigan State visits Nebraska on Saturday, both teams will be coming off a bye week with hopes of rebounding from a recent loss and reigniting the Big Ten campaign.
The Cornhuskers (3-1, 0-1 Big Ten) fell at home to Michigan 30-27 on Sept. 20. Nebraska coach Matt Rhule said everyone involved with the program was frustrated with the outcome.
“No one cares about your feelings,” Rhule said. “I was frustrated, they were frustrated, play better. That’s the message, play better, practice better, no one’s coming to rescue you. There’s a lot of really good teams out there that are frustrated after a loss.”
Both Rhule and Michigan State coach Jonathan Smith focused on evaluating and addressing their teams’ biggest concerns heading into the Saturday matchup.
Rhule said the emphasis is on running the ball and also stopping the run. Nebraska’s run defense is allowing 173.5 yards per game, tied for 108th in the country, while the Cornhuskers are gaining 144.8 yards per contest on the ground, 86th in the nation.
And now they face Michigan State quarterback Aidan Chiles. In four games this season, he has thrown for 868 yards, nine touchdowns and one interception while adding 154 yards and two scores on the ground.
“He is dynamic,” Rhule said of Chiles. “He can run. We’ll obviously see the quarterback draw and all the things that we’ve seen. So we’ll have to be prepared to stop that. But it’s also him, his ability to run behind the line of scrimmage when needed to and create plays. (He’s an) explosive player, one of the better quarterbacks in the Big Ten.”
Michigan State (3-1, 0-1) lost 45-31 to Southern California on Sept. 20 in Los Angeles.
The Spartans have struggled stopping the pass, allowing 263.5 yards per game, which ranks 115th in FBS. They will have their hands full facing Cornhuskers quarterback Dylan Raiola, who has thrown for 1,137 yards and 11 touchdowns with just one interception through four games.
Nebraska is second in the nation in passing offense at 351.8 yards per game and 12th in scoring at 43.5 points per contest.
“Good football team,” Smith said of the Cornhuskers. “They can score points. Quarterback’s one of the better ones we’re going to play. You can see their stats and points scored and passing yards.
“We got a real, real challenge coming Saturday.”
