Link: Full Game Notes (Huskers.com)
Northwestern (1-3, 0-2) at Nebraska (3-2, 1-1)
When: Saturday, October 5 | 3:00 P.M. (CT)
Where: Memorial Stadium | Lincoln, NE
TV: FOX (Tim Brando, Spencer Tillman, Coley Harvey)
Radio: Husker Sports Network (Greg Sharpe, Matt Davison, Ben McLaughlin)
Internet Video: FOX Sports App
Internet Radio: Huskers.com | TuneIn.com
App Audio: Official Huskers App | TuneIn App
Spanish Radio: Huskers.com | Huskers App } 97.7 FM (Omaha/Lincoln), 93.3 FM (Grand Island)
Satellite Radio: Sirius (Ch. 83) | XM (Ch. 83)
This Week's Numbers
6 - Quarterback Adrian Martinez has topped 300 yards of total offense in six of seven career games against Big Ten West opponents. Northwestern held Martinez to 288 total yards in last year's game in Evanston.
7 - The past two games between Nebraska and Northwestern have been decided in overtime. Overall, six of the eight meetings between the two schools as Big Ten foes have been decided by seven or fewer points
150 - Saturday will be Homecoming for the Huskers in Lincoln. Nebraska owns an 81-23-4 all-time record in Homecoming games. At this year's Homecoming game, Nebraska will continue the celebration of the 150th Anniversary of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The Matchup
Nebraska plays its second straight home game at Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as the Huskers entertain Northwestern in a Big Ten West battle. The game will mark Homecoming 2019 in Lincoln. Kickoff is set for shortly after 3 p.m. with national television coverage on FOX. The game can be heard on the Husker Sports Network from Learfield-IMG.
Nebraska will look to bounce back from a loss to fifth-ranked Ohio State on Saturday night in Lincoln. The setback dropped Nebraska to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in Big Ten Conference play. The Huskers now head into a key stretch of two Big Ten West games in the next two weeks, with games against Northwestern and at Minnesota before heading into their first bye week of the 2019 season.
Northwestern heads to Lincoln with a 1-3 overall mark and an 0-2 record in conference play. The Wildcats have faced a difficult early-season schedule, opening Big Ten play against a pair of nationally ranked opponents in Wisconsin and Michigan State. The reigning Big Ten West champion Wildcats again have a strong defense, allowing 318.8 yards and 21.5 points per game in 2019.
Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten, the series between the Huskers and Wildcats has consistently provided some of the most entertaining and tightly contested league games on an annual basis.
Series History
Nebraska holds a 7-5 all-time lead in the series between the two schools. Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2011, the schools have split eight games, with the visiting team winning six of the eight contests.
Prior to Nebraska joining the Big Ten, the schools had met four times. Nebraska held a 2-1 edge in regular-season matchups, and also defeated the Wildcats in the 2000 Alamo Bowl.
Six of the eight meetings in conference play have been decided by three or fewer points or in overtime, with the teams needing overtime in each of the past two meetings.
The four games in Lincoln between the two schools have all went down to the wire. The first three meetings at Memorial Stadium between 2011 and 2015 were decided by a total of eight points. The 2017 meeting in Lincoln went to overtime before the Wildcats posted a 31-24 victory.
The Huskers hold a 226-205 scoring edge in the eight meetings as Big Ten opponents
1902 - Nebraska 12, Northwestern 0 (Lincoln)
1931 - Northwestern 19, Nebraska 7 (Evanston)
1974 - #10 Nebraska 49, Northwestern 7 (Lincoln)
2000 - #9 Nebraska 66, #17 Northwestern 17 (Alamo Bowl)
------------------------Big Ten Games------------------------
2011 - Northwestern 28, #9 Nebraska 25 (Lincoln)
2012 - Nebraska 29, Northwestern 28 (Evanston)
2013 - Nebraska 27, Northwestern 24 (Lincoln)
2014 - #19 Nebraska 38, Northwestern 17 (Evanston)
2015 - Northwestern 30, Nebraska 28 (Lincoln)
2016 - #20 Nebraska 24, Northwestern 13 (Evanston)
2017 - Northwestern 31, Nebraska 24 (OT) (Lincoln)
2018 - Northwestern 34, Nebraska 31 (OT) (Evanston)
Nebraska on Homecoming
Nebraska will play host to Northwestern as part of the annual Homecoming festivities on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus. The game will be the 109th all-time Homecoming contest in school history. The Huskers boast an all-time record of 81-23-4 (.769) in Homecoming games.
The Huskers lost last year's Homecoming game against Purdue in Lincoln, ending a streak of nine straight Homecoming victories. Nebraska is 6-1 against Big Ten teams in Homecoming games since 2011.
Nebraska Joins 900-Win Club
Nebraska reached a major milestone in the history of its program with its win at Illinois on Sept. 21, becoming the fifth program in the country with 900 all-time victories. Nebraska joined Michigan (956), Ohio State (916), Texas (911), and Alabama (910) in the 900-win club. Oklahoma and Notre Dame joined the 900-win club a week later on Sept. 28.
All-Time Wins (thru Sept. 28)
1. Michigan - 956
2. Ohio State - 916
3. Texas - 911
4. Alabama - 910
5. Nebraska - 900
5. Notre Dame - 900
5. Oklahoma - 900
About Northwestern
Northwestern has fielded a football team since 1882 and is 544-667-44 all-time in its 134 seasons. The Wildcats have claimed eight Big Ten titles and have made 13 bowl appearances. Northwestern has won four of its bowl games, most recently beating Utah 31-20 in the 2018 Holiday Bowl after also winning the Big Ten West.
First Season: 1882
All-Time Record: 544-667-44
Big Ten Titles: 8
National Titles: 0
Stadium: Ryan Field
Location: Evanston, Illinois
Enrollment: 8,367
Conference: Big Ten
School Colors: Purple and White
About 2019 Northwestern Wildcats
Schedule
at Stanford (L 7-17)
UNLV (W 30-14)
Michigan State (L 10-31)
at Wisconsin (L 15-24)
at Nebraska
Ohio State
Iowa
at Indiana
at Purdue
Massachusetts
Minnesota
at Illinois
Northwestern (1-3) is coming off a 24-15 loss at then-ranked No. 8 Wisconsin last week. Northwestern outgained Wisconsin in total yards (255-243) and the defense held the Badgers to just 10 points, but the Wildcats committed a pair of costly turnovers that the Badgers turned into 14 points en route to the victory.
The Wildcats have lost two straight after falling to Michigan State on Sept. 21. Northwestern has one victory on the season -- a 30-14 win over UNLV on Sept. 14.
Hunter Johnson leads the team in passing with 43 completions for 367 yards and one touchdown. On the ground, Drake Anderson has 305 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. JJ Jefferson leads the team with two receiving touchdowns. On defense, Travis Whillock has a team-high 37 total tackles.
About Northwestern Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald
Pat Fitzgerald is in his 14th season as head coach of the Northwestern Wildcats and sports an overall record of 97-73 and a Big Ten record of 56-53. he had guided the Wildcats to one division championship and nine bowl appearances with a 4-5 bowl record. Fitzgerald as an alumnus of Northwestern, starring at linebacker for the Wildcats and earning All-America honors, graduating in 1995. He served as an assistant coach at Maryland (1998), Colorado (1999), and Idaho (2000) before becoming an assistant at NU in 2001. He was named head coach of the Wildcats prior to the 2006 season. Fitzgerald is 4-4 in his head coaching career against Nebraska.
Last Time Out: October 13, 2018 - Evanston, IL
Northwestern 34, Nebraska 31 (OT)
Rolling along with a 10-point lead, Nebraska had its first victory under coach Scott Frost and the end of the longest losing streak in its proud history in sight.
Northwestern yanked it all away. Now the Cornhuskers are off to their worst start ever.
Clayton Thorson threw for a career-high 455 yards and three touchdowns, and Drew Luckenbaugh kicked a 37-yard field goal in overtime to give Northwestern a 34-31 victory over the winless Cornhuskers on Saturday afternoon.
Nebraska (0-6, 0-4 Big Ten) blew a 10-point lead in the final 5:41 in regulation and fell to 0-6 for the first time in program history. The Cornhuskers extended the longest losing streak in their storied history to 10 games, dating back to the 2017 season. This isn't the start Frost envisioned when he decided to take over at his alma mater after orchestrating a drastic turnaround in two seasons at Central Florida.
"This is wearing on me, but mostly I just feel bad for them, especially the seniors," he said.
When asked, Frost said he agreed with the notion that a young team such as this needs to learn how to win.
"Lombardi said it: Winning is a habit, and unfortunately, so is losing," Frost said. "We challenged the guys before the game: Find a way to make one more play to put us over the top. ... We had some guys step up and make some plays today. Coulda, woulda, shoulda ended the game for us."
Flynn Nagel set career highs with 220 yards receiving and two touchdowns.
Luckenbaugh made the first two field goals of his career in the fourth quarter and overtime after missing a 42-yarder in the third. The Wildcats (3-3, 3-1) won at home for the first time after an 0-3 start at Ryan Field.
"That's the most fun football game I've ever been a part of," Nagel said.
Things weren't looking good for them trailing 31-21 with 5:41 left in the fourth quarter. But Luckenbaugh kicked a field goal, and Northwestern drove 99 yards after getting pinned at the 1 with 2:02 left.
The Wildcats were aided by a roughing-the-passer penalty against Carlos Davis that moved the ball from the 1 to the 16, and Thorson finished the drive with a 5-yard TD to JJ Jefferson with 12 seconds left in regulation.
Nebraska got the first shot in overtime after Northwestern deferred. Frost decided to go for it on fourth-and-1 at the 16, rather than kick a field goal in part because Barret Pickering missed one earlier in the game. A low snap out of the shotgun on what quarterback Adrian Martinez said was a running play did in the Cornhuskers. He scooped up the loose ball around the 30, heaved it to the end zone from the 37 and was intercepted by JR Pace.
Northwestern moved six yards before Luckenbaugh nailed the 37-yarder on fourth down to give the Wildcats their second straight victory and set off a wild celebration.
Nebraska's Devine Ozigbo ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Martinez threw for 251 yards and a TD along with 2 INT on 25-of-35 passing while also adding 37 yards on the ground.
JD Spielman caught eight passes for 76 yards and a touchdown. But Nebraska remained winless since a victory at Purdue last Oct. 28.
Clayton Thorson was 41-of-64 for 455 yards with 3 TDs and 2 INT. John Moten IV was the leading Wildcat rusher with just 23 yards on seven carries. Nagel led the receivers with 220 yards and two scores on 12 catches.
Northwestern outgained the Huskers in total offense 487 (455 pass, 32 rush) to 482 (251 pass, 231 rush). Nebraska committed three turnovers in the game to two for the Wildcats. The Huskers were also penalized nine times for 89 yards wile Northwestern was flagged just once for five yards.
Northwestern (1-3, 0-2) at Nebraska (3-2, 1-1)
When: Saturday, October 5 | 3:00 P.M. (CT)
Where: Memorial Stadium | Lincoln, NE
TV: FOX (Tim Brando, Spencer Tillman, Coley Harvey)
Radio: Husker Sports Network (Greg Sharpe, Matt Davison, Ben McLaughlin)
Internet Video: FOX Sports App
Internet Radio: Huskers.com | TuneIn.com
App Audio: Official Huskers App | TuneIn App
Spanish Radio: Huskers.com | Huskers App } 97.7 FM (Omaha/Lincoln), 93.3 FM (Grand Island)
Satellite Radio: Sirius (Ch. 83) | XM (Ch. 83)
This Week's Numbers
6 - Quarterback Adrian Martinez has topped 300 yards of total offense in six of seven career games against Big Ten West opponents. Northwestern held Martinez to 288 total yards in last year's game in Evanston.
7 - The past two games between Nebraska and Northwestern have been decided in overtime. Overall, six of the eight meetings between the two schools as Big Ten foes have been decided by seven or fewer points
150 - Saturday will be Homecoming for the Huskers in Lincoln. Nebraska owns an 81-23-4 all-time record in Homecoming games. At this year's Homecoming game, Nebraska will continue the celebration of the 150th Anniversary of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The Matchup
Nebraska plays its second straight home game at Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon, as the Huskers entertain Northwestern in a Big Ten West battle. The game will mark Homecoming 2019 in Lincoln. Kickoff is set for shortly after 3 p.m. with national television coverage on FOX. The game can be heard on the Husker Sports Network from Learfield-IMG.
Nebraska will look to bounce back from a loss to fifth-ranked Ohio State on Saturday night in Lincoln. The setback dropped Nebraska to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in Big Ten Conference play. The Huskers now head into a key stretch of two Big Ten West games in the next two weeks, with games against Northwestern and at Minnesota before heading into their first bye week of the 2019 season.
Northwestern heads to Lincoln with a 1-3 overall mark and an 0-2 record in conference play. The Wildcats have faced a difficult early-season schedule, opening Big Ten play against a pair of nationally ranked opponents in Wisconsin and Michigan State. The reigning Big Ten West champion Wildcats again have a strong defense, allowing 318.8 yards and 21.5 points per game in 2019.
Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten, the series between the Huskers and Wildcats has consistently provided some of the most entertaining and tightly contested league games on an annual basis.
Series History
Nebraska holds a 7-5 all-time lead in the series between the two schools. Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2011, the schools have split eight games, with the visiting team winning six of the eight contests.
Prior to Nebraska joining the Big Ten, the schools had met four times. Nebraska held a 2-1 edge in regular-season matchups, and also defeated the Wildcats in the 2000 Alamo Bowl.
Six of the eight meetings in conference play have been decided by three or fewer points or in overtime, with the teams needing overtime in each of the past two meetings.
The four games in Lincoln between the two schools have all went down to the wire. The first three meetings at Memorial Stadium between 2011 and 2015 were decided by a total of eight points. The 2017 meeting in Lincoln went to overtime before the Wildcats posted a 31-24 victory.
The Huskers hold a 226-205 scoring edge in the eight meetings as Big Ten opponents
1902 - Nebraska 12, Northwestern 0 (Lincoln)
1931 - Northwestern 19, Nebraska 7 (Evanston)
1974 - #10 Nebraska 49, Northwestern 7 (Lincoln)
2000 - #9 Nebraska 66, #17 Northwestern 17 (Alamo Bowl)
------------------------Big Ten Games------------------------
2011 - Northwestern 28, #9 Nebraska 25 (Lincoln)
2012 - Nebraska 29, Northwestern 28 (Evanston)
2013 - Nebraska 27, Northwestern 24 (Lincoln)
2014 - #19 Nebraska 38, Northwestern 17 (Evanston)
2015 - Northwestern 30, Nebraska 28 (Lincoln)
2016 - #20 Nebraska 24, Northwestern 13 (Evanston)
2017 - Northwestern 31, Nebraska 24 (OT) (Lincoln)
2018 - Northwestern 34, Nebraska 31 (OT) (Evanston)
Nebraska on Homecoming
Nebraska will play host to Northwestern as part of the annual Homecoming festivities on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus. The game will be the 109th all-time Homecoming contest in school history. The Huskers boast an all-time record of 81-23-4 (.769) in Homecoming games.
The Huskers lost last year's Homecoming game against Purdue in Lincoln, ending a streak of nine straight Homecoming victories. Nebraska is 6-1 against Big Ten teams in Homecoming games since 2011.
Nebraska Joins 900-Win Club
Nebraska reached a major milestone in the history of its program with its win at Illinois on Sept. 21, becoming the fifth program in the country with 900 all-time victories. Nebraska joined Michigan (956), Ohio State (916), Texas (911), and Alabama (910) in the 900-win club. Oklahoma and Notre Dame joined the 900-win club a week later on Sept. 28.
All-Time Wins (thru Sept. 28)
1. Michigan - 956
2. Ohio State - 916
3. Texas - 911
4. Alabama - 910
5. Nebraska - 900
5. Notre Dame - 900
5. Oklahoma - 900
About Northwestern
Northwestern has fielded a football team since 1882 and is 544-667-44 all-time in its 134 seasons. The Wildcats have claimed eight Big Ten titles and have made 13 bowl appearances. Northwestern has won four of its bowl games, most recently beating Utah 31-20 in the 2018 Holiday Bowl after also winning the Big Ten West.
First Season: 1882
All-Time Record: 544-667-44
Big Ten Titles: 8
National Titles: 0
Stadium: Ryan Field
Location: Evanston, Illinois
Enrollment: 8,367
Conference: Big Ten
School Colors: Purple and White
About 2019 Northwestern Wildcats
Schedule
at Stanford (L 7-17)
UNLV (W 30-14)
Michigan State (L 10-31)
at Wisconsin (L 15-24)
at Nebraska
Ohio State
Iowa
at Indiana
at Purdue
Massachusetts
Minnesota
at Illinois
Northwestern (1-3) is coming off a 24-15 loss at then-ranked No. 8 Wisconsin last week. Northwestern outgained Wisconsin in total yards (255-243) and the defense held the Badgers to just 10 points, but the Wildcats committed a pair of costly turnovers that the Badgers turned into 14 points en route to the victory.
The Wildcats have lost two straight after falling to Michigan State on Sept. 21. Northwestern has one victory on the season -- a 30-14 win over UNLV on Sept. 14.
Hunter Johnson leads the team in passing with 43 completions for 367 yards and one touchdown. On the ground, Drake Anderson has 305 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns. JJ Jefferson leads the team with two receiving touchdowns. On defense, Travis Whillock has a team-high 37 total tackles.
About Northwestern Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald
Pat Fitzgerald is in his 14th season as head coach of the Northwestern Wildcats and sports an overall record of 97-73 and a Big Ten record of 56-53. he had guided the Wildcats to one division championship and nine bowl appearances with a 4-5 bowl record. Fitzgerald as an alumnus of Northwestern, starring at linebacker for the Wildcats and earning All-America honors, graduating in 1995. He served as an assistant coach at Maryland (1998), Colorado (1999), and Idaho (2000) before becoming an assistant at NU in 2001. He was named head coach of the Wildcats prior to the 2006 season. Fitzgerald is 4-4 in his head coaching career against Nebraska.
Last Time Out: October 13, 2018 - Evanston, IL
Northwestern 34, Nebraska 31 (OT)
Rolling along with a 10-point lead, Nebraska had its first victory under coach Scott Frost and the end of the longest losing streak in its proud history in sight.
Northwestern yanked it all away. Now the Cornhuskers are off to their worst start ever.
Clayton Thorson threw for a career-high 455 yards and three touchdowns, and Drew Luckenbaugh kicked a 37-yard field goal in overtime to give Northwestern a 34-31 victory over the winless Cornhuskers on Saturday afternoon.
Nebraska (0-6, 0-4 Big Ten) blew a 10-point lead in the final 5:41 in regulation and fell to 0-6 for the first time in program history. The Cornhuskers extended the longest losing streak in their storied history to 10 games, dating back to the 2017 season. This isn't the start Frost envisioned when he decided to take over at his alma mater after orchestrating a drastic turnaround in two seasons at Central Florida.
"This is wearing on me, but mostly I just feel bad for them, especially the seniors," he said.
When asked, Frost said he agreed with the notion that a young team such as this needs to learn how to win.
"Lombardi said it: Winning is a habit, and unfortunately, so is losing," Frost said. "We challenged the guys before the game: Find a way to make one more play to put us over the top. ... We had some guys step up and make some plays today. Coulda, woulda, shoulda ended the game for us."
Flynn Nagel set career highs with 220 yards receiving and two touchdowns.
Luckenbaugh made the first two field goals of his career in the fourth quarter and overtime after missing a 42-yarder in the third. The Wildcats (3-3, 3-1) won at home for the first time after an 0-3 start at Ryan Field.
"That's the most fun football game I've ever been a part of," Nagel said.
Things weren't looking good for them trailing 31-21 with 5:41 left in the fourth quarter. But Luckenbaugh kicked a field goal, and Northwestern drove 99 yards after getting pinned at the 1 with 2:02 left.
The Wildcats were aided by a roughing-the-passer penalty against Carlos Davis that moved the ball from the 1 to the 16, and Thorson finished the drive with a 5-yard TD to JJ Jefferson with 12 seconds left in regulation.
Nebraska got the first shot in overtime after Northwestern deferred. Frost decided to go for it on fourth-and-1 at the 16, rather than kick a field goal in part because Barret Pickering missed one earlier in the game. A low snap out of the shotgun on what quarterback Adrian Martinez said was a running play did in the Cornhuskers. He scooped up the loose ball around the 30, heaved it to the end zone from the 37 and was intercepted by JR Pace.
Northwestern moved six yards before Luckenbaugh nailed the 37-yarder on fourth down to give the Wildcats their second straight victory and set off a wild celebration.
Nebraska's Devine Ozigbo ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Martinez threw for 251 yards and a TD along with 2 INT on 25-of-35 passing while also adding 37 yards on the ground.
JD Spielman caught eight passes for 76 yards and a touchdown. But Nebraska remained winless since a victory at Purdue last Oct. 28.
Clayton Thorson was 41-of-64 for 455 yards with 3 TDs and 2 INT. John Moten IV was the leading Wildcat rusher with just 23 yards on seven carries. Nagel led the receivers with 220 yards and two scores on 12 catches.
Northwestern outgained the Huskers in total offense 487 (455 pass, 32 rush) to 482 (251 pass, 231 rush). Nebraska committed three turnovers in the game to two for the Wildcats. The Huskers were also penalized nine times for 89 yards wile Northwestern was flagged just once for five yards.
