McMaster's Keys to the Game: Nebraska Football vs. Wisconsin

Matt McMaster offers his three keys for the Huskers to see success Saturday against the Badgers.

Nov 2, 2024; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers quarterback Dylan Raiola (15) hands the ball off to running back Dante Dowdell (23) against the UCLA Bruins during the first quarter at Memorial Stadium. / Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Matt McMaster offers his three keys for the Huskers to see success Saturday against the Badgers.

Punch It In 

The Nebraska Cornhuskers are losers of four straight. There’s a lot to be said about the Big Red’s incredibly disappointing skid after their terrific start to the season.

There are a lot of plays, a lot of tape, and a lot of mistakes to point at. Bad penalties, costly turnovers, blown defensive coverages, and failure to capitalize on takeaways are all factors in Nebraska’s current losing streak. 

But the fact is that if the Huskers were able to turn red zone opportunities into touchdowns they would be 8-2. 

They would have upset Ohio State on the road. They would’ve pulled off a massive home comeback against UCLA. They would've clinched bowl eligibility last week against USC if they punched the ball in the end zone. 

In all of those games NU had the ball in the red zone at pivotal points of the contest and failed to score seven. 

This season, Nebraska’s red zone scoring percentage is 68.57%, which ranks 127th in the nation. This is the thing that must change if NU is to grab that all elusive 6th victory against the Wisconsin Badgers. 

Expect the Unexpected 

Phil Longo was let go as the Wisconsin offensive coordinator earlier in the week after the team’s near upset of Oregon. 

I think some people view this as an advantage for Nebraska. And I understand the thinking of those people. The firing of a coordinator this late into the season signals intra team turmoil that could negatively affect offensive performance. 

Transitioning from coordinators during the off-season is already tough enough but to do it mid season is a whole other task. You also have to factor in that Wisconsin opted to not officially assign a new play caller and instead are doing it by committee. More cooks in the kitchen isn’t necessarily a good thing especially with something as nuanced as playcalling 

But I think there’s an advantage here for the Badgers. What tape is Nebraska supposed to watch? Wisconsin isn’t going to be a completely different offense on Saturday. They aren’t going to have 100 new plays and be a far cry from what they’ve been this season but there will be new wrinkles. Also you have to factor in that it’s now impossible to predict any playcalling tendencies from the Badgers. 

There are certain packages or plays that Longo likes to use in specific situations. You can’t count on that anymore. Tony White can no longer play any guessing game he could’ve played before Longo was let go. 

The defense needs to be ready to see anything and expect nothing. In fact they need to expect the unexpected, be disciplined, and play on their toes.

RTDB 

This is a great game to run the damn ball for the Big Red. 

Wisconsin’s run defense has left a lot to desire, surrendering nearly five yards a carry and over 160 total rushing yards per game. Both of those figures rank in the bottom half of the country. 

We saw last week that Emmett Johnson was more of a focal point with new offensive coordinator Dana Holgerson calling the plays and bruising RB Dante Dowdell was able to break off some big runs against USC. 

The Big Red must double down on their halfbacks and try to punish this Badgers D on the ground.

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