Nebraska Tailgate Talk: Dining on some Wolverines flambe

The Nebraska football team hosts the Michigan Wolverines in Lincoln, Nebraska Saturday at 2:30 p.m. The game will be televised on CBS. Weather for the afternoon kickoff will be a mix of wind with gusts up to 25 mph, and chances for spotty storms pretty much all day. A kickoff temperature in the low 70’s, and high of around 78 at halftime. Hey Mother Nature, we don’t need you complicating things. Good chat, Thx.

Michigan Head Coach Sherron Moore is serving a suspension this week so Interim Head Coach Biff Poggi will bring the Wolverines (aka Cheater McLiarsons) to Lincoln on Saturday. They are ranked 21st on the AP poll. They sport a 2-1 record having only lost to OU. They beat up on Central Michigan last week and opened up their playbook to do it.

What do we know about "the other team"? Michigan freshman QB Underwood showed he has some legs last week after not really being mobile against OU. He ran for 114 yards. The Wolverines like to shove multiple tight ends (3) for their power run game which is ranked 15th. They average 242.7 yards per game on the ground. Michigan hits hard. They are solid on their blocking and tackling schemes. Their D-line and Linebackers are good too. Nebraska has its work cut out for it.

Nebraska football tailgates will be wild for the Big Ten opener

There is a lot of chatter about the guys behind center this week. Just how do they compare? It’s a sophomore QB versus a freshman QB.  Michigan's Underwood has a completion rate of 57.5%, 46 completions on 80 attempts for 628 yards. He has 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. I'm betting that the interception rate goes up this week.

Contrast that with Nebraska’s QB who has a 76% completion percentage, Dylan Riola has completed 72 of 94 for 829 yards with 8 touchdowns. Zero interceptions. The Husker quarterback had more connections last Saturday than Tinder. For as much as this game stacks up very well on paper, this game will not be on paper. It will be on the field, on a damp windy day with a LOUD Husker crowd. The Blackshirts will want to keep Underwood contained and force him to throw. I want to see Underwood under center be very nervous and in his "happy feet" place before he coughs it up.

It's not all bad news. On the bright side, the blue and maize can’t defend the pass. Their special teams is suspect as their entire compliment of punting, kicking and fielding of punts is a ride worthy of a vomit inducing roller coaster. PFF (it's a football player rating thing, Mom) said the Huskers have the top ranked Special Teams and they are going to be a huge key in the game in my opinion.

What do we know about the good guys so far this year? Nebraska has a balanced offensive approach this year so far with 107 rushes to 111 passes. That being said, I expect to see Nebraska junior Emmett Johnson have a heavy load of run plays in this game. These past two weeks it was nice to see Husker running back Kwinten Ives get more involved. It was a chance for Husker Nation to get a glimpse into the future that we didn’t get to see at a Spring Game. But this week, no one doubts this will be a physical game. It will be a challenge for the Huskers run game to get to the edge but when they do, it will be a good thing.

The Cornhusker pass defense is very stingy only allowing the opposition to fewer than 70 yards passing so far this season. Opposing teams are not throwing at Ceyair Wright. He’s only been targeted a total of 4 times (out of 108 snaps) and only one was successful for 4 yards. To more fully illustrate this point, Cincinnati Brandon Sorsby was the highest PFF graded QB last week. Translation: Nebraska backfield is really good.

This is a BIG test for the Blackshirts. How will the front line of defense stack up against the run game of the Wolverines? I’m not thrilled they are a lighter D-Line than before but I also don’t get paid to coach D-1 football. Everyone agrees that stopping their run is the gameplan. I do take some solace knowing that, according to Defensive Lineman Cameron Lenhardt, the d-line is playing better than they did during the Cincinnati game. He noted that the line is “more comfortable with each other now.”

Everyone is a Nebraska fan this week, especially with Ohio State on a bye week. I'll take that extra energy. For the tailgate this week, I made a little something special. It takes patience and attention to detail to make it but so does the Husker gameplan. Soak Meraschino cherries overnight in your favorite alcohol. I went dark rum on this one. Dry off the cherry and dip it in melted white chocolate. Dabbing it dry is the key to getting the chocolate to stick. Let it set up and enjoy!

I would guess on a score but I still have to much therapy to go through on my Nebraska football PTSD. I want to drink the Rhule-aid but the hangovers have been too brutal on Sundays in the past. Yes, it's been since 2016 since the Cornhuskers have beaten a ranked team. Nebraska needs this. The players need this. Rhule & company needs this. It's time. It's past time. G - Freaking - B - R!