Nebraska (3-3, 1-2 Big Ten) is set to face Michigan (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) on Saturday for its second primetime home stand in back-to-back weeks.
This matchup will mark the 11th all-time matchup between the Huskers and Wolverines. Michigan currently holds a 5-4-1 advantage in the series, while the two have split four games since Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2011. With that said, Saturday’s matchup will be Michigan’s first visit to Memorial Stadium since 2012. An unranked Nebraska defeated a No. 20 Michigan, 23-9, in that meeting.
Nebraska-Michigan football TV channel, time, live stream
TV Channel: ABC
Time: 6:30 p.m. CT
Date: Saturday, October 9
Live stream: The game can be streamed on ESPN3
Radio: Nebraska fans can listen to the game on the new Huskers Radio Network. Internet radio, as well as a Spanish broadcast, will be available at Huskers.com.
Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska
Weather: We’re getting well into the month of October and should be cooling off by now, but that is not going to be the case for the Huskers’ matchup with Michigan!
Full forecast and updates brought to you by Rusty Dawkins of Husker Weather. More here.
Nebraska-Michigan football picks, odds
The line: Michigan -3
Over/under: 50.5
(per the VI Consensus)
Nebraska-Michigan preview
Nebraska comes into Saturday’s meeting with Michigan after most recently defeating Northwestern 56-7. The Huskers’ 56 points was the most the team scored in their 11 seasons in the Big Ten Conference. Nebraska’s offense had more than 600 yards of total offense for the second time in 2021, becoming the first team to record 600 yards of total offense against Northwestern in the Wildcat’s previous 16 seasons.
Nebraska’s offense is led by quarterback Adrian Martinez, who is a dual threat for the Huskers. He currently has 1,467 passing yards, completing 66.7% of his passes. He has thrown six touchdowns and two interceptions so far this season. On the ground, he’s rushed for 399 yards on 78 carries with nine rushing touchdowns.
With that said, Nebraska coach Scott Frost has said that he thinks the run game is going to be important for both teams in Saturday.
“I think the run game is probably the key to this game,” Frost said during his media availability at Memorial Stadium on Thursday. “They want to run it, we want to run it. They want to stop it, we want to stop it. The team that gets behind has to throw and probably isn’t in a good spot. We have to do everything we can up front on offense and defense.”
Michigan comes to Lincoln following a 38-17 victory at Wisconsin. The Wolverines—who are ranked ninth in the Associated Press Poll and eighth in the USA Today Coaches Poll—is currently one the country’s best running teams. Michigan is averaging 255 yards per game on the ground, which leads the Big Ten and ranks seventh nationally.
With that said, Michigan’s ground game production has dropped over its last two games against Rutgers and Wisconsin. In those two games, the Wolverines rushed for 224 yards on 82 carries (2.7 yards per carry). Nebraska’s defense has only allowed 3.67 yards per carry this season.
As for Michigan’s defense, the Wolverines are only allowing 12.8 points per game and 285.8 total yards per game. They have held all five of their five opponents so far to 17 points or less.
What else do you need to know? Here’s a look at what the Huskers said leading up to the matchup with Northwestern:
For more on the matchup, don’t miss the latest I-80 Preview Podcast.
