After a promising start to the 2026 season for this new look Nebraska football team, the Huskers hit the road to East Lansing to take on the Michigan State Spartans, a place where the Huskers have not had success at their last three trips.
The Huskers have lost their last three games when playing in East Lansing, but the bigger elephant in the room is the struggles that head coach Matt Rhule has had coaching on the road at Nebraska.
Rhule has a true road record of just 4-11 with the Huskers, but it should also be noted that it doesn’t always take the big game crowd atmosphere for the struggles to be shown and I anticipate Michigan State to provide the same atmosphere that the Huskers have seen at an Illinois or a Minnesota game.
This is a huge game for the Huskers, when you look at this schedule after the next two games, losing a game like this could be crucial.
The Michigan State Spartans provide a unique matchup for Husker defensive coordinator Rob Aurich, whose blackshirt defense has played extremely well since the debut of linebacker Owen Chambliss.
Key #1: Stop the Run:
If there’s any major key to this game where the Huskers can take control of the Spartans, it would start with shutting down the run game.
Cam Edwards is the starting running back and most certainly will get the bulk of the carries on Saturday, Edwards ranks 10th in the country in carries, while their offense ranks 93rd in passing.
Edwards played very well against Toledo and Eastern Michigan, combining for 250 yards and three touchdowns, but was shut down against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, only rushing for 38 yards on 12 carries.
Now, the Huskers aren’t necessarily the Fighting Irish on defense, but the Huskers have shown drastic improvement on the defensive side of the ball under Rob Aurich. The blackshirts rank 11th nationally in total defense, but have certainly not faced a running game like the Spartans can bring.
This could be a breakout moment for defensive tackle Jahsear Whittington, the Pitt transfer has shown up in a big way for the Huskers in non-con play, racking up 1.5 sacks, and constantly winning his matchups on the line of scrimmage.
Key #2: Offensive Consistency:
So far for the Huskers and offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen, his offense, led by quarterback Anthony Colandrea and a solid rushing attack, has looked really good, ranking 10th nationally in total offense and 12th in rushing offense, which is good enough for second in the Big Ten.
The Spartans enter this matchup with the 47th ranked defense nationally, 53rd against the run and if the Huskers can find early success on the ground with their trio of running backs plus Colandrea, that should provide the offense with enough juice to stay consistent the whole day.
You certainly don’t want to come out and get pushed in the mouth offensively, third downs will be big in this game. The Spartans are tied for 51st nationally in third down defense, while the Huskers convert third downs at a top 10 level, ranking 9th.
Key #3: Special Teams:
First year special teams coordinator and former Husker kicker Brett Maher is having some growing pains with his unit, that certainly comes with the loss of former and current USC special teams coordinator Mike Ekeler.
We’ve seen kicker Kyle Cunanan miss short on two 50+ yard field goals, limited return game and penalties from Maher's unit so far, which absolutely can not happen against a LeVar Woods coached unit.
Prediction:
This is the perfect opportunity to find out a lot about this team and I think the Huskers show up ready to play a dominant and physical football game.
Nebraska has the better offensive line, better weapons, more experience and I just don’t think the Spartans are ready to pull off a win this Saturday, they might scare the Huskers for a bit, but this is certainly one of Matt Rhule's best football teams he’s had at Nebraska and they should be ready for whatever gets thrown at them.
Nebraska: 28 Michigan State: 20
