The schedule sets up perfectly for a rebound
It takes a lot of things to be able to contend for a conference championship and one of the things you need is some good fortune. Another thing that can help is a quality schedule and that is what Nebraska has in store for them next season.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
While the non-conference schedule doesn’t really matter for this debate, it isn’t overly challenging either. A road game against Colorado could be trouble, but home tilts with South Alabama and Northern Illinois should be manageable enough.
What really is favorable for the Huskers is their Big Ten schedule. Nebraska still drew Ohio State as one of the three teams it will play in the division crossover.
The road games are very manageable as Nebraska will play Illinois, Minnesota, Purdue and Maryland. That also gives Nebraska five conference home games and those games include Wisconsin, Iowa, Northwestern, Indiana and Ohio State. So basically, every Big Ten West contender comes to Lincoln, which is a good thing for the Huskers.
Essentially, any game that matters for Nebraska and will decide the division race will be played at Memorial Stadium and that’s going to be a huge advantage for Nebraska football next season.
Certainly, the Huskers would have to take a big step forward if they want to get through the conference schedule 9-0 or 8-1, however, a 7-2 record seems very possible, especially with a favorable schedule and seven wins, with tiebreakers, should be enough to get Nebraska to Indianapolis.