On Saturday, the Nebraska Cornhuskers host Purdue head coach Ryan Walters and the 2-5 Boilermakers in Memorial Stadium. Let’s look at how they can redeem themselves from last year’s defeat.
Stop Devin Mockobee
Last year against the Cornhuskers, Purdue running back Devin Mockobee’s 178 yards were the catalyst to a Boilermaker’s 43-37 win in West Lafayette. But don’t expect there to be a repeat viewing of this performance in Memorial Stadium. In the Cornhusker’s last six out of their seven games, Huskers defensive coordinator Tony White has helped Nebraska’s defense limit each of their opponents to less than 100 rushing yards. And this trend continued with last week’s matchup against the Wildcats. In the contest, the Husker’s 13 tackles for loss only allowed Northwestern running backs Anthony Tyus III and Cam Porter to gain 81 yards on the day. Because of this, the program should be confident enough to be able to restrain Mockobee. The only challenging aspect about this? Junior defensive lineman Nash Hutmacher will have to replicate his two-and-a-half sacks from last week. If he can do this, Nebraska will be fine. But if he can’t, White can rely on other sources in order to halt Purdue’s rushing attack.
Read more about Nebraska’s defensive stars in Nebraska Wins Over The Northwestern Wildcats
Can NU’s Offense Perform Better Than Purdue’s Defense?
In each of Nebraska’s drives in the first quarter against Northwestern, Huskers quarterback Heinrich Haarberg threw two interceptions that were intended for tight end Thomas Fidone. Luckily, Northwestern never got a chance to capitalize on this early momentum. Instead, the team had to settle for kicker Jack Olsen to give the team an early lead. But if NU commits these types of errors against the Boilermakers, Purdue’s secondary will make the Cornhuskers pay. Under defensive coordinator Kevin Kane, freshman defensive back Dillon Thieneman has shined with 62 tackles and three interceptions. Senior safety Cam Allen has also been excellent as well with his two interceptions. Luckily Cornhuskers offensive coordinator Marcus Satterfield can get wide receiver Malachi Coleman to stop them. His touchdown against the Wildcats proves that he can be a big target for the Cornhuskers offense. But will Haarberg have enough time to throw? With injuries to starting left tackle Turner Corcoran and left guard Ethan Piper, there isn’t much hope. This is because Nebraska offensive line coach Donovan Raiola will be forced to play sophomore Teddy Prochazka and freshman Justin-Evans Jenkins at these positions. Will this be enough to help the Big Red capture its fifth win on Saturday?
Take Hudson Card Out Of the Equation
As a sophomore at Texas, quarterback Hudson Card played in 22 games for the Longhorns. In that time, he completed 65.5% of his passes while throwing six touchdowns and one interception. With the Boilermakers, he’s gotten off to a slow start. In only seven games, the signal-caller has only thrown seven touchdowns to five interceptions. Expect Nebraska defensive backs coach Evan Cooper to take advantage by using the experience of senior defensive back Quinton Newsome as well as sophomore safety Malcolm Hartzog. There is a good chance that the duo can disrupt Card’s rhythm in the passing game. This season, their combined efforts have led to eight pass deflections and one interception when they are in coverage. But can they create turnovers in this game? It’s certainly possible for them to take the next step in this matchup.
Contain Deion Burks
The toughest task that the Nebraska Cornhuskers will face in their matchup on Saturday is stopping Purdue wide receiver Deion Burks. On the season, his 24 receptions have allowed him to explode for 418 yards and five touchdowns. This will be one of the biggest tests for the scarlet and cream because it will remind them about Michigan wide receiver Roman Wilson. This didn’t go very well for Nebraska’s defense, as quarterback JJ McCarthy would end up passing two touchdowns to him. But the Cornhuskers haven’t let this affect them too much. Instead, they have used this loss as a learning opportunity. In their last two games, the Cornhuskers’ defense has improved to become worthy of a Top-25 ranking. As of now, the Huskers total defense is ranked 21st. Can they vault themselves into the top ten?
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