Huskers Visit Rutgers for First Time on Saturday

GAME 11: NEBRASKA at RUTGERS
NOV. 14, 2015 | HIGH POINT SOLUTIONS STADIUM
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. | 2:30 p.m. (CT)

BROADCAST INFO
TV - BTN (Josh Lewin, J Leman, Tina Cervasio)
RADIO - Husker Sports Network
SATELLITE RADIO - Sirius Channel 135, XM 196
INTERNET RADIO - Huskers.com

HUSKERS
Record: 4-6, 2-4 Big Ten
Last Game: Michigan State, W, 39-38
Rankings: NR
Coach: Mike Riley
Career/NU Record: 97-86 (15th Year)/4-6 (1st Year) 
vs. Michigan State: First meeting

SCARLET KNIGHTS
Record: 3-6, 1-5 Big Ten 
Last Game: Michigan, L, 49-16
Rankings: NR
Coach: Mark Kyle Flood
Career/RU Record: 26-22 (4th Year)/Same
vs. Nebraska: 0-1

The Matchup
Nebraska hits the road for the final time in the 2015 regular season when the Huskers travel to New Jersey for a matchup with Rutgers. The game is set for a 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff at High Point Solutions Stadium with television coverage provided by BTN.

The Huskers come into the contest with a 4-6 record and a 2-4 mark in the Big Ten. The Huskers are coming off a dramatic 39-38 victory over sixth-ranked Michigan State on Saturday night in Lincoln.

Nebraska trailed by 12 points at 38-26, before scoring two touchdowns in the game's final 1:47 to pull the upset. The Huskers drove 91 yards in just 38 seconds for the game-winning score. The win allowed Nebraska to keep its postseason hopes alive heading into the final two games of the regular season.

Rutgers comes into the contest with a 3-6 record and a 1-5 mark in Big Ten play. The Scarlet Knights fell to 17th-ranked Michigan last Saturday in Ann Arbor. Coach Kyle Flood's team features a balanced offense, averaging better than 165 rusing yards and 200 passing yards per game.

The game is Nebraska's first ever trip to Rutgers and marks the Huskers' first trip to the state of New Jersey since playing in three Kickoff Classic games at the Meadowlands between 1983 and 1994.

Nebraska Football Top 10
• Nebraska is 878-367-40 all-time, one of only 10 schools with 800 wins.

• The Cornhuskers rank fourth all-time with their 878 victories.

• Nebraska has won five national titles (1970, 1971, 1994, 1995, 1997).

• The Huskers have won 43 conference championships.

• Nebraska’s 51 all-time bowl appearances rank third nationally.

• Three Huskers have won the Heisman Trophy (Rodgers, Rozier, Crouch).

• Nebraska’s 107 football Academic All-Americans lead the nation.

• The Huskers have 110 first-team All-Americans in school history.

• Nebraska football is the only team in any sport in NCAA history to total 100 athletic and academic All-Americans.

• Memorial Stadium has been sold out every game since Nov. 2, 1962, a streak of 346 consecutive sellouts.

Nebraska Set for First Big Ten Trip to Rutgers
Nebraska's matchup at Rutgers on Saturday marks the Huskers' first trip to New Jersey to face the Scarlet Knights. The Huskers hold a 2-0 series edge, winning in Lincoln in 2014, and defeating Rutgers in 1920 at the New York Polo Grounds.

Nebraska has played conference road games at 10 of the other 13 Big Ten schools. NU will travel to Indiana for the first time in 2016, and is scheduled to visit Maryland for the first time in 2019.

• Nebraska returns to the state of New Jersey for the first time since the 1994 Kickoff Classic at The Meadowlands. No. 4 Nebraska defeated West Virginia, 31-0, in that game. Nebraska also won Kickoff Classic games in New Jersey to open the 1983 and 1988 seasons.

NU Looks to Pick Up Road Win
Nebraska's trip to Rutgers marks the Huskers' final road game of the regular season. Nebraska is 1-3 away from Lincoln, winning at Minnesota, with losses at Miami, Illinois and Purdue.

Since joining the Big Ten in 2011. Nebraska is 11-8 overall in Big Ten road games.

• Nebraska has had a .500 or better road record in each of its first four seasons in the league. The Huskers need a win at Rutgers to finsh with a 2-2 record on the road in the Big Ten in 2015.

Huskers Upend Unbeaten MSU
Nebraska posted a dramatic 39-38 victory over No. 6 Michigan State on Saturday night in Lincoln. The win was a milestone victory for Coach Mike Riley and the Huskers.

• The Spartans were the highest ranked team Nebraska has defeated since beating No. 2 Oklahoma in Lincoln in 2001. The victory marked the ninth time in school history Nebraska has defeated a team ranked sixth or higher in Lincoln. Nebraska is now 9-21 all-time at Memorial Stadium against teams ranked sixth or higher.

• The win was Nebraska's first over a top-10 opponent since a 24-3 victory over No. 9 Michigan State in 2011.

• The victory marked the first time an unranked Nebraska team has defeated a top-10 opponent since a 31-24 win over No. 4 Alabama in September of 1977 in Lincoln. It was only the third time in school history an unranked NU team defeated a top 10 foe.

• Nebraska has now won five of its past seven matchups against ranked teams at Memorial Stadium, dating back to 2009.

• The Huskers are 3-1 against ranked Big Ten teams at Memorial Stadium since 2011. Nebraska is 4-6 overall against ranked Big Ten teams since joining the league.

• Nebraska ended a three-game overall losing streak against AP ranked teams.

Riley Continues History of Success Against Ranked Teams
Michigan State was the first ranked team Mike Riley faced as Nebraska's head coach. Riley had a history of defeating ranked teams in 14 seasons as Oregon State's head coach.

• The win over No. 6 Michigan State marked the sixth top-10 opponent a Riley-coached team has defeated in the past 10 seasons. This marks the second straight year Riley has led a team to a win over a team ranked seventh or higher, after his OSU team defeated No. 7 Arizona State last November.

• Riley has now defeated 13 ranked teams over the past 10 seasons, including 11 wins over top-20 opponents.

• The win over No. 6 Michigan State marked the highest ranked opponent a first-year Husker coach has defeated. The previous high had been Nebraska’s 19-3 victory over Texas in the 1974 Cotton Bowl following Tom Osborne’s first season as head coach in 1973.

• Riley led Oregon State to 14 wins over ranked teams in his 14 seasons in Corvallis.

Nebraska Knocks Off Unbeaten Foe in November
Michigan State was just the 10th opponent to bring an undefeated record into a November matchup with Nebraska in Lincoln since Memorial Stadium opened in 1923.

The Huskers improved to 6-3-1 when facing an unbeaten opponent at Memorial Stadium in November.

The Huskers could face another unbeaten in in Lincoln this month with Iowa currently at 9-0 with a trip to Lincoln on Nov. 27 looming.

NEBRASKA VS. AN UNBEATEN OPPONENT IN NOVEMBER AT MEMORIAL STADIUM
• Nov. 10, 1923 vs. Notre Dame (6-0)
(Won, 14-7)
• Nov. 20, 1926 vs. New York Univ. (2-0)
(Won, 15-7)
• Nov. 24, 1927 vs. New York Univ. (7-0-2)
(Won, 15-7)
• Nov. 12, 1932 vs. Pittsburgh (6-0-1)
(Tied, 0-0)
• Nov. 19, 1955 vs. #1 Oklahoma (9-0)
(Lost, 41-0)
• Nov. 23, 1974 vs. #1 Oklahoma (9-0)
(Lost, 28-14)
• Nov. 11, 1978 vs. #1 Oklahoma (9-0)
(Won, 17-14)
• Nov. 21, 1987 vs. #2 Oklahoma (10-0)
(Lost, 17-7)
• Nov. 13, 1999 vs. #5 Kansas State (9-0)
(Won, 41-15)
• Nov. 7, 2015 vs. #6 Michigan State (8-0)
(Won, 39-38)

2015 Huskers Suffer Series of Close Losses
The Huskers' 39-38 win over Michigan State reversed the trend of close setbacks Nebraska has suffered through in 2015. Nebraska's six losses have came by a total of 23 points, with the first five by a total of 13 points.

Nebraska's first four losses were especially difficult. Each of the first four setbacks occurred with the opponent scoring the winning points on the game's final play or in overtime.

According to Stats, Inc., NU is only the second FBS team since 2006 to lose four games in which the opponent scored the winning points in the final 10 seconds or overtime. (SMU, 2007).

• Nebraska's 33-28 loss to BYU came when the Cougars completed a Hail Mary on the game's final play as time expired.

• NU rallied from a 23-point fourth-quarter deficit at Miami to force overtime. The Hurricanes escaped with a 36-33 win after kicking a walk-off game-winning field goal.

• The third close loss came as Illinois drove 72 yards in the game's final minute and scored with 10 seconds left for a 14-13 win.

• Wisconsin kicked a 46-yard game-winning field goal with four seconds left for a 23-21 win. The Badgers drove 46 yards in six plays in 59 seconds to get into field goal range.

Injuries Shuffle Nebraska Lineup Throughout 2015
Nebraska has battled an unusually large number of injuries in 2015, forcing the Huskers to use makeshift lineups. Against Michigan State, Nebraska was as close to full strength as it has been since the start of the season.

The most recent significant injury kept three-year starting quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. out of the Purdue game with a foot injury. Armstrong had made 22 consecutive starts, and is hopeful of returning against Michigan State.

• The injuries have forced NU to use 21 different starters on offense and 20 on defense in 2015. Nebraska is one of only eight teams in the FBS ranks to start at least 20 players on both sides of the ball this season.

• Armstrong returned to action against Michigan State and threw for 320 yards.

• Sophomore receiver De'Mornay Pierson-El suffered a leg and knee injury at Purdue and is out for the season. Pierson-El had missed the first four games of 2015 with a foot injury.

• Junior I-back Terrell Newby injured his ankle after a strong start at Purdue with 56 first-half rushing yards. Newby was not at full strength against Michigan State but did play.

• Junior receiver Alonzo Moore (shoulder) was injured early in the Northwestern game, and did not return. He missed the game at Purdue, but played against Michigan State.

• Senior cornerback Daniel Davie (groin) missed three games before returning to start against Northwestern. He then suffered a dislocated finger against Purdue and did not play against Michigan State.
• Senior defensive tackle Kevin Williams (groin) missed five games, before returning in a limited role against Michigan State.

• Junior linebacker Michael Rose-Ivey has missed five full games and been limited in others because of a groin injury. He returned in limited duty against Michigan State.

• Redshirt freshman linebacker Luke Gifford (hip) has missed the past four games and will be sidelined for the season.

• Starting right tackle Nick Gates injured his left ankle against Wisconsin and missed the next three games, before returning against Michigan State.

• Sophomore linebacker Chris Weber has started four games at middle linebacker. He missed three straight games with a neck injury before returning against Michigan State.

Several other Huskers missed significant time this season.

• Junior defensive tackle Kevin Maurice made his first career start at Illinois, but suffered a foot injury in the game. He missed the next three games, before returning at Purdue.

• Junior defensive tackle Vincent Valentine (ankle) was injured in the second half against South Alabama and missed three games.

• Redshirt freshman defensive end Freedom Akinmoladun (knee) started four games at defensive end, but missed two games after knee surgery.

• Starting linebacker Josh Banderas (groin) missed four of five games before returning to action the past month.

• Senior defensive end and captain Jack Gangwish (elbow) was injured against BYU and missed the following three games.

• True freshman linebacker Dedrick Young (toe) was unable to play against South Alabama.

• Senior tight end David Sutton used a strong fall camp to earn a starting role. However, he suffered a serious ankle sprain against BYU which kept him out for six games, before he returned three weeks ago.

• Punter Sam Foltz sprained his ankle against BYU and missed the South Alabama game, before returning at Miami.

Games Lost By Injury in 2015* (52)
• De'Mornay Pierson-El, WR 7
• David Sutton, TE 6
• Michael Rose-Ivey, LB 5
• Kevin Williams, DT 5
• Daniel Davie, CB 4
• Josh Banderas, LB 4
• Jack Gangwish, DE 3
• Vincent Valentine, DT 3
• Kevin Maurice, DT 3
• Nick Gates, OT 3
• Chris Weber, LB 3
• Freedom Akinmoladun, DE 2
• Tommy Armstrong Jr., QB 1
• Alonzo Moore, WR 1
• Dedrick Young, LB 1
• Sam Foltz, P 1

Tommy Armstrong Jr. in Third Season Under Center
Junior quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. is in his third year guiding the NU offense. He has 20 wins as Nebraska's starting quarterback. He started 22 consecutive games before being sidelined by a foot injury at Purdue.

Armstrong returned in strong fashion against Michigan State. He threw for 320 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for another two touchdowns. He engineered Nebraska to three fourth-quarter touchdowns, allowing the Huskers to rally from a 12-point deficit in the final two minutes. His play earned him Big Ten Offensive Player-of-the-Week honors for the second time in 2015.

Armstrong is backing up a strong sophomore season with one of the best statistical seasons in the Big Ten in 2015.

• Armstrong has completed 54 percent of his passes for 2,372 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2015.

• Armstrong has surpassed 2,000 passing yards for the second straight year. He is just the third Husker with two 2,000-yard passing seasons joining Zac Taylor and Taylor Martinez.

• The 2,372 passing yards in 2015 rank seventh in school history. He is within 500 yards of the No. 3 spot on the season passing chart.

• Armstrong has five career 300-yard passing games, including four in 2015 (319 vs. BYU, 309 at Miami, 368 vs. Southern Miss, 320 vs. Michigan State). He had a career-high 381 passing yards against USC in the 2014 Holiday Bowl.
• Armstrong has 15 career 200-yard passing games, all since the start of 2014. Armstrong has seven 200-yard passing games in 2014.

• Armstrong recorded his 11th career game with more than 250 passing yards with his 320-yard effort against Michigan State. His 11 games of 250 yards ties Joe Ganz for a school record.

• Armstrong is third in the Big Ten by averaging 263.6 passing yards per game.

• Armstrong has 6,032 career passing yards, good for second on the NU passing list. He passed Zac Taylor in the Michigan State game to move into the No. 2 position, and became the second player in NU history with 6,000 passing yards.

• Armstrong tied his career high with four touchdown passes against Miami, all in the second half. Armstrong has six career games with at least three touchdown passes. Dating back to last season, Armstrong has 25 touchdown passes in his past 11 games, including 18 in 2015.

• His 49 career passing touchdowns are second on the NU career charts, seven shy of Taylor Martinez's school record. His 22 passing touchdowns in 2014 were the fourth most in school history.

• Armstrong threw at least one touchdown pass in 10 straight games prior to the Illinois game. That streak was one shy of the Nebraska school record.

• Armstrong had a career-high 431 yards of total offense against Southern Miss, bettering his 422 yards against USC in the Holiday Bowl. Armstrong has nine career games of at least 300 yards of total offense, including 339 yards against Michigan State. The nine 300-yard total offense games ties for the most in school history.

• Armstrong is averaging 294.2 yards of total offense per game to lead the Big Ten and rank 22nd nationally.

• Armstrong ranks 19th in the nation in passes of more than 10 yards (100) and is 16th in passes of 20-plus yards (41).

• Armstrong cracked the 7,000-yard career total offense mark against Michigan State. He is third on the NU career chart with 7,216, yards. Armstrong has 2,648 yards of total offense in 2015, seventh on the season chart.

• Against Southern Miss, Armstrong became the 10th Nebraska quarterback to surpass 1,000 career rushing yards. He now has 1,183 rushing yards.

• Armstrong is one of only eight active FBS quarterbacks with 5,000 career passing yards and 1,000 career rushing yards. The other seven QBs on the list are seniors.

• Armstrong is one of only 18 players in the FBS ranks to run, throw and catch a touchdown pass during their career.

• Armstrong set Nebraska bowl records for attempts (51), completions (32), passing yards (381) and total offense yards (422) in the Holiday Bowl against USC.
In 2014, Armstrong passed for 2,695 yards and 22 touchdowns, while rushing for 705 yards and six touchdowns. His 3,400 yards of total offense was third-best total in NU history.

His 261.5 yards of total offense per game ranked second in the Big Ten and 35th nationally.

Westerkamp Challenging Husker Receiving Records
Junior receiver Jordan Westerkamp is the leader of an outstanding Husker receiving corps and one of six team captains for 2015.

The Chicago area product is challenging Nebraska season receiving records in 2015. He is also poised to challenge NU's career receiving records next year.

In 2015, Westerkamp has 58 catches for 801 yards and six touchdowns, an average of 13.8 yards per catch.

• His 58 catches rank fourth on the NU single-season chart. He is six catches from setting a record for the most catches by an NU wideout. He is 17 receptions from the single-season record for any player.

• Westerkamp has 801 receiving yards this season, the sixth-most in school history. He is 142 yards from setting a season record, and has an opportunity to post the first 1,000-yard receiving season in NU history.

• Westerkamp is fourth in the Big Ten in receptions per game (5.8) and fifth in receiving yards per game (80.1).

• With his 2015 receiving totals, Westerkamp continues to move up the NU charts. He is now fourth on the NU career receiving yardage list with 1,831 yards.

• He has 122 career receptions, good for sixth on the career list.

• Westerkamp had a career-high 11 receptions for 118 yards against Southern Miss. The 11 catches were tied for third on the Nebraska single-game receptions list. He has had nine catches each of the past two weeks and at least five receptions in four straight games.

• Westerkamp had a season-high 143 receiving yards against Michigan State for his fourth 100-yard game of 2015 (107 vs. BYU, 118 vs. Southern Miss, 123 at Purdue). The four 100-yard games ties the Nebraska season record, accomplished five times previously.

• Westerkamp posted a second straight strong effort against Michigan State. The past two seasons, Westerkamp has combined for 18 receptions for 301 yards against the Spartans.

• Westerkamp has seven career 100-yard receiving games to rank third on the NU career list in that category.

• Westerkamp caught a touchdown pass in five straight games prior to not having a TD at Illinois. The streak was one shy of the NU school record of six consecutive games with a TD reception set by Johnny Rodgers in 1971.
• Westerkamp (118) and fellow junior Brandon Reilly (112) each topped 100 receiving yards against Southern Miss. That marked only the second time in NU history a pair of wideouts topped 100 receiving yards in the same game. Westerkamp and Kenny Bell combined for the feat against FAU in 2014.

• Westerkamp has caught a pass in 23 straight games, marking the eighth time in school history a player has had a streak of at least 20 consecutive games with a catch.

• Westerkamp caught 44 passes last season, ranking just outside of the Nebraska single-season top 10 in receptions.

• Westerkamp averaged 17.0 yards per catch last season, with 747 receiving yards on his 44 receptions. The 747 yards were the 11th-best season total in school history.

Reilly Provides Big-Play Punch
Westerkamp is joined in the wide receiving corps by fellow junior Brandon Reilly. The Lincoln product scored the game-winning touchdown on a 30-yard catch against Michigan State.

Reilly finished the night with three catches for 87 yards. All three of his catches went for at least 22 yards against the Spartans, including two receptions of at least 30 yards.

• Reilly has eight receptions of at least 30 yards, the second-most in the Big Ten.

• Reilly has 32 receptions for 650 yards and four touchdowns this season. He averages 20.3 yards per reception this season. Reilly's average yards per reception is on pace to rank as the second-best average in NU history for players with at least 30 receptions.

* Check out the attached Nebraska Games Notes PDF for more notes