Huskers Visit Columbus, Meet Buckeyes on FOX at 11 am

NEBRASKA at OHIO STATE
NOV. 3, 2018 | OHIO STADIUM
COLUMBUS, OHIO | 11 A.M. (CT)

BROADCAST INFO
TV - FOX (Joe Davis, Brady Quinn, Bruce Feldman)
RADIO - Husker Sports Network (Greg Sharpe, Matt Davison, Ben McLaughlin)
SATELLITE RADIO - Sirius Channel 108, XM 196
INTERNET RADIO - Huskers.com, TuneIn.com
APP AUDIO - Official Huskers App, TuneIn App

HUSKERS
Record: 2-6, 1-4 Big Ten
Last Game: def. Bethune-Cookman, 45-9
Rankings: NR
Coach: Scott Frost
Career/NU Record: 21-13 (3rd Year)/2-6 (1st Year) 
vs. Ohio State: 0-0

BUCKEYES
Record: 7-1, 4-1 Big Ten
Last Game: lost to Purdue, 49-20
Rankings: AP-8, Coaches-8
Coach: Urban Meyer
Career/OSU Record: 181-32 (17th Year)/77-9 (7th Year)
vs. Nebraska: 3-0

The Matchup
Nebraska returns to Big Ten action on Saturday with a difficult road test at eighth-ranked and defending Big Ten champion Ohio State. The matchup between two of college football's top all-time programs will kick off shortly after Noon ET (11 a.m. CT) in Columbus. The game will be televised on FOX and can be heard on the IMG Husker Sports Network.

Nebraska enters the game at 2-6 overall and 1-4 in Big Ten play, following a 45-9 non-conference victory over Bethune-Cookman on Saturday in Lincoln. Nebraska used a fast start to pick up its second straight victory at Memorial Stadium. The Huskers opened a 28-3 edge after the first quarter, scoring on their first three offensive possessions, and led 38-3 at halftime. .

Ohio State comes into the game with a 7-1 overall record, including a 4-1 mark in Big Ten Conference play, and did not play last weekend. Ohio State rose to No. 8 in both national polls this week. OSU was ranked among the top five in the nation each week before a loss at Purdue on Oct. 20. Ohio State features one of the nation's most explosive offensive attacks, averaging 555.5 yards and 43.0 points per game, with both figures leading the Big Ten.

Saturday's game at Ohio State will mark the Huskers' third Big Ten road game of the season against a ranked opponent.

This Week's Numbers
1800 - Nebraska and Ohio State have combined for 1,800 all-time victories entering Saturday's matchup. Ohio State is second all-time with 905 victories, while Nebraska's 895 wins ranks fifth in college football history.

50 - Nebraska sophomore receiver JD Spielman is just the third player in school history with a pair of 50-catch seasons, including 53 receptions in 2018. Senior Stanley Morgan Jr. could join the group with six receptions on Saturday against Ohio State.

1 - Devine Ozigbo has carried the ball 67 times in the past five games for a total of 620 yards. Ozigbo has been stopped for a loss on just one of the 67 carries in those five games. Ozigbo is averaging 124.0 yards per game and 9.3 yards per carry while starting the past five games.

Nebraska-Ohio State Series
• Nebraska and Ohio State are meeting for the third straight year and will meet each season through the 2021 campaign.• Nebraska and Ohio State are meeting for the third straight year and will meet each season through the 2021 campaign.

• The schools have met four times since Nebraska joined the Big Ten. After the Huskers won the first meeting in 2011, Ohio State has captured the past three games. 

• With Ohio State ranked No. 8 in this week's AP poll, the Buckeyes have been ranked no lower than 12th for the five NU-OSU matchups in Columbus. 

Huskers to Face Anouther Ranked Opponent on the Road
The game at Ohio State will be Nebraska's third 2018 road game against a ranked opponent. The Huskers lost at then-No. 19 Michigan on Sept. 22 in their Big Ten opener, and at then-No. 16 Wisconsin on Oct. 6.

Ohio State enters Saturday's matchup ranked eighth by the Associated Press and is also No. 8 in the USA Today Coaches Poll.Nebraska has a potential fourth road game against a ranked opponent to conclude the regular season at Iowa.  

• Nebraska will be looking for its first win over a ranked opponent since a win over No. 22 Oregon in Lincoln in 2016. It would also be the highest ranked team Nebraska has defeated since a 39-38 win over No. 6 Michigan State in 2015. 

• The Huskers' last road win over a ranked opponent was a 17-14 win at No. 12 Penn State in 2011. 

• Head Coach Scott Frost led UCF to three consecutive wins against ranked teams to complete the 2017 season, capping the perfect campaign with a win over No. 7 Auburn in the Peach Bowl. Frost was 3-1 overall against ranked opponents at UCF.

Husker-Buckeye Matchup Pits Two Top Programs
Saturday's matchup features two of the historically great programs in college football.

• In looking at the most wins in college football over the past 30, 40, 50 or 60 years, Nebraska and Ohio State each rank in the top four in all of those categories. 

• The schools have combined to win 11 national championships and 82 conference crowns, including five national championships and 46 conference titles by Nebraska. 

Offense Hopes to Sustian Strong Momentum
Head Coach Scott Frost and his staff oversaw one of the nation's most potent offenses at UCF in 2017. In the past five games, Frost's Nebraska offense has posted numbers among the nation's best units.

Nebraska opened the year with 565 yards of total offense against Colorado, and has since posted three more games with better than 500 yards. NU had a season-high 659 yards against Minnesota, after posting 582 yards against Purdue and 518 yards at No. 16 Wisconsin.

The Huskers gained 364 yards of offense before halftime against Bethune-Cookman before finishing with 468 yards.

• Nebraska averages 471.3 yards of total offense to rank third in the Big Ten and 18th nationally.

• Nebraska's 659 yards of offense against Minnesota was its highest since gaining 787 yards against FAU in the 2014 season opener.

• The total offense output against Minnesota was Nebraska's largest in a Big Ten Conference game (since 2011). It was NU's highest total offense in a conference game since having 710 yards against Kansas State in 2007. 

• Nebraska has four 500-yard offensive games this season. NU has not had five 500-yard total offense games in a season since 2000. 

• Nebraska has gained better than 450 yards in each of the past five games. The last time NU had five straight games with more than 450 yards was a five-game stretch in the middle of the 2001 season. 

• The consecutive 500-yard games against Purdue and Wisconsin marked the first time NU had back-to-back 500-yard outputs in Big Ten games. It was the first time NU had consecutive 500-yard games in conference play since the final two Big 12 games in 2007. • The 565 yards against Colorado in the opener marked the first 500-yard total offense game for the Huskers since posting 556 yards at Northwestern in 2016. Nebraska has since topped 500 yards three more times.

• The total offense output against Colorado was the best at the time by Nebraska in 35 games, dating back to a 610-yard effort against Southern Miss in 2015.

Frost and Staff Guiding Another Offensive Revival
After helping turn Central Florida into the nation’s most improved offense in 2017, Nebraska head coach Scott Frost and his five offensive assistants - all of whom were on Frost’s UCF staff last season - are producing an encore performance this season in Lincoln.

• Nebraska is averaging 86.3 more total yards this season than it did last year, helping the Huskers climb 69 spots in the national rankings from 87th in 2017 to 18th this season.

• NU is averaging 113.1 more rushing yards in 2018 than it did in 2017, helping the Huskers climb 90 spots in the national rankings from 119th in 2017 to 29th this season.

• Nebraska’s offensive turnaround is led largely by underclassmen, who have produced 80.2 percent of the Huskers’ total offensive yards. In fact, NU’s freshmen and sophomores have combined to average 336.1 yards of total offense per game.

• In its second season at UCF in 2017, the staff helped the Knights increase their offense by 179.7 yards per game from the 2016 season, as the Knights climbed from 113th nationally in total offense in 2016 to fifth in 2017.

Huskers Passing Game Stressing Opposing Defenses
Nebraska has featured a high-powered passing attack over the past five games. The Huskers threw for 323 yards againt Purdue, had a season-high 407 passing yards at Wisconsin, before also topping 250 yards at Northwestern and against Minnesota.

• Nebraska's consecutive 300-yard passing games were its first since doing so against Minnesota and Penn State in 2017.

• Quarterback Adrian Martinez threw for at least 250 yards in four straight games from Purdue through Minnesota. That was the first time an NU quarterback has done that since Tommy Armstrong Jr. passed for better than 250 yards in the first four games of 2015. Martinez's streak ended against Bethune-Cookman, when he threw for 213 yards in the first half, and did not play after halftime.

• The Huskers are averaging 250.6 passing yards per game to rank fifth in the Big Ten.  

NU Looks to Find Success in the Running Game
Nebraska has shown the ability to run the ball throughout the season, highlighted by its effort against Minnesota on Oct. 20. Nebraska rushed for a season-high 383 yards, with a trio of Huskers surpassing the century mark.

• The 383 rushing yards by Nebraska were its most since pounding out 458 yards vs. Illinois in 2014. Nebraska gained 274 yards in the first half alone against Minnesota.

• Devine Ozigbo (152), Adrian Martinez (125) and Maurice Washington (109) each surpassed 100 rushing yards in the game. It marked the fifth time in school history Nebraska has had three or more players rush for 100 yards in the same game. It was the first time NU accomplished that feat since a 2010 victory at Washington.

• Nebraska is averaging 220.6 yards per game to rank fifth in the Big Ten. NU has rushed for at least 180 yards six times in eighth games.

• Nebraska has a total of 1,765 rushing yards in eight games in 2018. Last year Nebraska rushed for 1,290 yards in 12 games. 

• Nebraska set the tone in the rushing game in the opener, rushing for 329 yards against Colorado. NU had 243 rushing yards in the first half against the Buffs, bettering the Huskers' season high of 2017 (225 yards).

• The effort against Colorado marked NU's first 300-yard rushing game since rushing for 310 yards at Northwestern on Sept. 24, 2016.

• Prior to the three 100-yard rushers against Minnesota, Nebraska had a pair of 100-yard rushers against Colorado. That marked the first time Nebraska had a pair of 100-yard rushers in the same game since a 2014 win over Illinois.

• Nebraska has a total of eight 100-yard rushing games this season, including four by Devine Ozigbo and two by Adrian Martinez.  

• Ozigbo has topped 150 yards in three of the past four Big Ten games. His career-high 170 rushing yards against Purdue were the most by a Husker in a Big Ten game since Ameer Abdullah had 225 rushing yards against Rutgers in 2014. Ozigbo also topped the century mark against Bethune-Cookman with 110 yards on 11 carries before halftime.

Record Setting Duo Continues to Shine
In 2017, Stanley Morgan Jr. and JD Spielman combined for 1,816 receiving yards, the highest two-player total in Husker history.

Morgan set an NU record with 986 receiving yards in 2017. Spielman added 830 receiving yards, a total that ranked seventh in school history and was the most ever by a Husker freshman.

The duo is once again helping provide an explosive offense for Nebraska in 2018, and is on track to produce bigger numbers this fall.

• In eight games in 2018, the duo has combined for 97 receptions for 1,324 yards and 12 touchdowns. Those totals put them ahead of their combined pace in the 2017 season.

• Spielman and Morgan are one of eight pass-catching duos in the nation to each have more than 600 receiving yards in 2018.

Morgan Aimes to Be Nebraska's All-Time Leaving Receiver
After setting a school record with 986 receiving yards in 2017, Stanley Morgan Jr. is challenging to become Nebraska’s all-time leading receiver this fall.

Morgan has 163 career receptions, which ranks fourth on NU’s all-time list. He needs 18 receptions to tie Kenny Bell (181) atop the Husker chart, and just five catches to move into second place. Morgan has 2,381 career receiving yards to rank fifth on NU’s all-time list. Morgan needs 308 yards to tie Bell (2,689) for the most receiving yards in program history.

The New Orleans native put himself in position to challenge Nebraska’s all-time records thanks to a breakout junior season, when he earned All-Big Ten accolades. 

• Morgan had his best game of 2018 against Minnesota. He caught a career-high 10 passes for a season-high 163 yards and two touchdowns. The 163 yards tied for the sixth-best single-game effort in school history.

• Morgan helped seal the victory with two second-half touchdowns of 35 and 67 yards against Minnesota. In the game, Morgan became the fourth Husker player to top 150 career receptions.

• Morgan added two touchdowns as part of a seven-catch effort against Bethune-Cookman. His two touchdowns gave him 20 career receiving scores, good for fourth on the NU charts.

• Morgan has a streak of 34 consecutive games with a reception, the third-longest streak in Husker history. He has had at least three catches in 19 of the past 20 games. 

• Morgan set Nebraska records with 986 receiving yards and five 100-yard receiving games in 2017, while ranking third in school history in touchdown receptions (10) and fifth in catches (61).

• He led the Big Ten and ranked 14th nationally in receiving yards per game (89.6) in 2017. 

• Morgan led all Big Ten wide receivers and ranked 16th nationally in touchdown catches with his 10 touchdown grabs. He led the Big Ten with five 100-yard receiving games in 2017. 

• Morgan posted 185 receiving yards at No. 13 Penn State, the third-highest total in school history.

Nebraska's full notes package can be found in the PDF file at the top of this page