Preview of Nebraska Game

Folks, when I made my preseason prediction that the Spartans would go 12-2, this is one of the games I thought they'd lose. The Spartans just don't seem to know how to beat Nebraska, even when they clearly have the better team. As the season has unfolded, however, it has become clear that MSU is one of the top 3 teams in the B10 and really has no business losing this game to a weakened Nebraska team.

Sure, Nebraska is starting to salvage what at one point looked like a season that would get Bo Pellini canned. And they put together a nice road victory against Michigan, last week. Plus, they do have some dangerous players, like Ameer Abdullah. But the bottom line is that this is MSU's game to lose, so they have to come in focused and passionate. This is the type of game that could ruin what is becoming one of the greatest seasons in MSU football history.

MSU comes in looking dominant on D and improving on O. I expect the defense to do well against a Nebraska offense that is missing Taylor Martinez and half their starting o-line. Another dominant performance looks likely, if they can avoid the big plays.

The offense should also do well, even if Connor Cook struggles -- hopefully he won't. MSU is starting to develop a solid running game and Nebraska's run defense is allowing 160 yards per game. If the o-line is gelling the way it usually does later in the season, MSU should be able to run the ball quite effectively. It would be nice if they could run it as effectively as Wisconsin ran the ball on Nebraska in last year's B10 championship game, but I'll settle for a replication of Minnesota's rushing performance (271 yards) against Nebraska.

One thing I'll never forget is how Nebraska defeated a superior Spartan team 2 years ago by engaging in a lot of pass interference. The refs basically allowed Nebraska to get away with what was clearly an underhanded strategy. Come to think of it, the refs gave Nebraska the game last year, particularly when they called Johnny Adams for a block in the back on an interception returned for a touchdown (if I recall correctly). Son of a . . ., MSU is bascially going to have to take it out of the ref's hands by dominating the way they should.

Final Score: MSU 25  Nebraska 10