The Rutgers Scarlet Knights are set to face the Nebraska Cornhuskers this Friday Night. Rutgers is currently 3-2, coming off of two straight losses to Big Ten Teams. Nebraska is 2-3 coming off a win against Indiana. The game is a Rutgers home game, but the Scarlet Knights do not have luck against Big Ten opponents at home. Here is a week six preview of what to expect.
Rutgers Offense
The Rutgers offense has been the biggest struggle for the team. In this week six preview, the offense will be analyzed on how they can take advantage of Nebraska’s weak defense.
Quarterback Position
There have been many questions about the Rutgers’ quarterback position. Last week, the team primarily used Evan Simon, with other quarterbacks on the roster still injured. According to ESPN, Simon completed ten out of 19 pass attempts for only 74 yards. Only one pass attempt was for a touchdown. Simon also threw one interception. According to the NCAA, Nebraska has allowed eight passing touchdowns and 1,345 passing yards. With the weak secondary, Rutgers’ offense, no matter the quarterback, should be able to get some momentum and get points on the board.
The Run Game
The Scarlet Knights have only rushed for 850 yards this season. They could not quite get the run game going against Ohio State last weekend, only rushing for 36 yards. Between poor passing and poor rushing attempts, it has been quite difficult for the offense to get anything going. The NCAA has Nebraska’s rushing defense ranked at 120, which means the Scarlet Knights should be able to get more than 36 yards this week.
Rutgers Defense
The Scarlet Knights’ defense has been surprisingly good considering their record. Against the Ohio State Buckeyes, Rutgers totaled 53 tackles. There was only one sack, by senior Linebacker Tyreem Powell, but the Scarlet Knights also intercepted Ohio State quarterback CJ Stroud. The interception was Stroud’s second of the season and a big accomplishment for the Rutgers’ defense. Nebraska totals only 889 rushing yards and 1,300 receiving yards for the season. While their passing yards are high, the team has thrown five interceptions between two quarterbacks this season. If Rutgers’ defense can force turnovers and prevent touchdowns, it can give their offense more chances to score.
Odds
At the time of writing this article, ESPN predicts Rutgers has a 54.6% chance of winning, but it is close with Rutgers Wire listing Nebraska as the favorites as of two days ago. The university has been promoting this game all week and is set to be a blackout. This can be Rutger’s chance to break a losing streak against Big Ten opponents at home.
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