Nebraska

HUSKER GAMEDAY: Nebraska, Wisconsin seek bowl eligibility in Big Ten clash

Published

1 year ago

November 23, 2024

HUSKER GAMEDAY: Nebraska, Wisconsin seek bowl eligibility in Big Ten clash

LINCOLN, Neb. (WOWT) – When Nebraska (5-5, 2-5) and Wisconsin (5-5, 3-4) face off in a Big Ten conference bout Saturday, it will be like looking in the mirror.

Yes, the similarities between these teams run far deeper than the color palette.

Both squads exceeded expectations early in the 2024 season, each stringing together solid wins and even earning conference championship contender status for a brief moment. But then both teams faltered… and faltered, and faltered again.

Alas, neither team has won a game in the last 30 days.

GAME INFO

WHERE: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Neb.
WHEN: 2:30 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 23
WATCH: Big Ten Network
LISTEN: Huskers Radio Network
VEGAS ODDS: Wisconsin +1, O/U 41.5

And both head coaches — Nebraska’s Matt Rhule and Wisconsin’s Luke Fickell — are in their second year with their current employer, both of whom were brought in to turn their respective programs back toward the success of old. Both of whom seem to be slightly behind schedule on said objective, depending on who you ask.

Again, the similarities are striking, and that’s without even mentioning the fact that both teams sit at 5-5 and need one more win to achieve bowl eligibility. That’s where one of the few differences can be exposed, though. Wisconsin’s last bowl appearance came, well, last year. In fact, they’ve played in a bowl game every season since 2002.

For Nebraska, it’s been a long, arduous eight-year bowl drought, which could all come to an end inside Memorial Stadium on Saturday. But the Huskers haven’t won a game since it beat Rutgers 14-7 at home on Oct. 5. Four consecutive losses followed. Still, as Husker fans know so well, not all losses are the same.

Nebraska’s 56-7 blowout loss to Indiana left a gross taste in the mouths of Big Red Nation, but then, the Huskers lost three straight games by one score, including a near upset of No. 4 Ohio State. There are no moral victories, though, and fans have grown far too used to seeing one-score losses.

Nebraska defensive lineman Ty Robinson (9) pursues Purdue quarterback Hudson Card (1) in the backfield during an NCAA football game on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in West Lafayette, Ind. (AP Photo/Doug McSchooler)(Doug McSchooler | AP)

But despite all the ire and hand-wringing present around the Husker program over the past six weeks, they still have a chance to do something no Nebraska team has managed to do since 2016, and that’s make a bowl game.

To do so in front of their home crowd on senior day would be a cherry on top.

“I think the veteran guys, those senior guys are locked in,” Rhule said in his press conference Thursday. “There’s 30 seniors. There’s a lot of guys who’ve been here for five or six years, so this means a lot to them. The gravity of the situation is not lost on them and I know how much they’d like to win. I know how much they’d like to be the ones who broke through.”

This will be the second game in which Nebraska’s play-calling duties are in the hands of Dana Holgorsen, who Rhule hired last week to be the team’s new offensive coordinator, demoting Marcus Satterfield to tight ends coach.

Though, according to Rhule, it wasn’t necessarily the X’s and O’s that were the problem, and Holgorsen has echoed that.

“[Holgorsen] is putting a lot of pressure on the guys to make the plays,” Rhule said. “He’s been very direct with them. If they want to win, they’re going to have go make plays. They’re going to have to catch balls, break tackles, make long runs, make big blocks against an excellent defense, score touchdowns in the red zone. It’s not the plays that do it, it’s the players that do it. We want our players to believe that players win games.”

Wisconsin poses a unique challenge to Nebraska in that, again, they’re very much alike. The Badgers don’t really boast any major firepower on offense. Halfback Tawee Walker is their best playmaker, having found the end zone 10 times this year with an average of just under five yards per carry.

Wisconsin cornerback Ricardo Hallman (2) returns an interception 95-yards for touchdown as... — Wisconsin cornerback Ricardo Hallman (2) returns an interception 95-yards for touchdown as Rutgers quarterback Gavin Wimsatt, left, chases during the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)(Andy Manis | AP)

But this year’s Wisconsin squad hangs its hat on the defensive side of the ball — namely, the secondary. The Badgers rank in the top 10 nationally in both passing yards allowed and passing yards per game. Cornerback Ricardo Hallman is one of the top-rated NFL Draft prospects at his position.

Last week, the Badgers held Oregon quarterback and Heisman candidate to just 218 yards, no touchdowns and an interception.

“They’re an excellent defense,” said Rhule. “They’ve got guys who can cover. They’re going to play man [coverage]. They’ve got a great safety, linebackers who can run, excellent pass rush. They held Oregon to 16 points and they were really good in the red zone against Oregon, so it’s probably as good of a defense as we’ll see all year.”

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Nebraska

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen appoints Antonio Gomez to Racing and Gaming Commission

Published

12 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen appoints Antonio Gomez to Racing and Gaming Commission

LINCOLN, Neb — Gov. Jim Pillen has appointed Antonio Gomez of Jackson to the Nebraska Racing and Gaming Commission, adding a longtime Siouxland business leader and public servant to the panel.

Commission members serve four-year terms and are subject to approval by the Nebraska Legislature.

Gomez launched Gomez Pallets in South Sioux City in 1983. He has since retired from daily operations, but last year the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce recognized him with the W. Edwards Deming Business Leadership and Entrepreneurial Excellence Award.

Gomez previously served on the Nebraska Commission on Latino Americans from 1981 to 2002. He also served as a Dakota County commissioner for 12 years and was on the Foundation Board for Northeast Community College.

Gomez’s appointment is effective April 1.

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Nebraska

CBS Sports predicts Nebraska-Iowa basketball in the Sweet 16

Published

24 hours ago

March 26, 2026

Press Room

CBS Sports predicts Nebraska-Iowa basketball in the Sweet 16

The Nebraska Cornhuskers will face the Iowa Hawkeyes on Thursday in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. This is the Huskers’ first Sweet 16 in program history, while Iowa is playing in its first Sweet 16 since 1999.

Nebraska defeated Vanderbilt 74-72 in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Iowa advanced after beating the defending national champion, the Florida Gators, 73-72.

CBS Sports reporter Isaac Trotter broke down Thursday’s Sweet 16 matchup. Trotter started by looking at the two previous matchups in this series.

These teams have played twice. Iowa won at home in a 57-52 rockfight. Nebraska returned the favor by winning at home, 84-75 in overtime, in another to-the-death brawl.

It’s no secret that Nebraska’s defense caused significant problems for the Iowa offense in the second game, and if the Hawkeyes are going to win the rubber match, Trotter believes that turnovers will be the key.

There are no secrets in the rubber match. Nebraska’s no-middle defense has given Iowa real problems both times. The Hawkeyes turned it over 20% of the time in Game 1 and 26% of the time in Game 2. That can’t happen in the third encounter.

CBS Sports believes that Iowa has the best player on the floor in Bennett Stirtz, but Trotter also believes that Nebraska’s defense is just too much in the end for Iowa.

Iowa has the best player on the floor, Bennett Stirtz, and can hurt Nebraska on the glass, but the Huskers get the nod because of this pick-and-roll defense. You have to be able to guard ball screens effectively to shut down Iowa, and Nebraska has been an elite pick-and-roll defense, rating in the 99th percentile nationally, per Synergy.

In the end, Trotter selected Nebraska as his pick. Should the Huskers advance to the Elite Eight, Nebraska would play the winner of the Illinois-Houston game. Nebraska-Iowa play in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday, March 26 at 6:30 p.m. CT on TBS.

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This article originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire: CBS Sports predicts Nebraska-Iowa basketball in the Sweet 16

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Nebraska

Protect Colorado agriculture — do the homework on Nebraska canal plan (Letters)

Published

2 days ago

March 25, 2026

Press Room

Protect Colorado agriculture — do the homework on Nebraska canal plan (Letters)

We need to do our homework on Nebraska canal plan

Re: “Colorado’s water war with Nebraska comes to a head,” Sept. 21 news story

Farming in northeastern Colorado has never been easy, and it is getting harder. Markets are tough, input costs are up, and young people are leaving. What keeps communities in Northeastern Colorado going is agriculture, the water, the ground, and the community that ties everything together. The proposed Perkins County Canal — to carry South Platte River water into Nebraska — threatens all of it.

When you take water off farmland, the damage does not stop in crop yields. Equipment dealers, elevators, local banks, and businesses all feel it. Schools and roads will suffer. We have seen what happens to towns that lose their agricultural base, and we cannot let that happen again without a real fight.

That fight needs to be a regional one. I am asking communities across northeastern Colorado to come together and hire an independent economic consultant to assess the true local impact of this project (acres affected, jobs at risk, income lost, tax base eroded).

The Corps of Engineers will do its own analysis, but we need our own numbers. If their conclusions do not match what our communities are actually facing, we need the documentation to say so and demand they take another look.

Rural communities have always figured out how to help each other when it counts. This is one of those times. I urge local officials, water boards, farm bureaus, and civic leaders to set aside any differences and work together on this. The permit process will not wait, and neither can we.

Kimberly L. Kinnison, Ovid

Don’t let our children be ‘policy pawns’

Re: “District accused of violating Title IX,” March 14 news story

The Trump administration seems intent on the persecution of transgender children, excluding them from bathrooms, sports and school activities. Refusing to allow transgender children to participate in school in a manner consistent with their gender identity promotes the exclusion of particularly vulnerable children.

Participation in sports, access to bathrooms in which they feel comfortable, and full inclusion are critical components of healthy development for all children.

Some children are taller, faster, or stronger, have been training with private coaches or attending schools with better facilities, but the requirement of biological uniformity applies only to transgender children.

Exclusion harms children. Is this in dispute? Our children are not political pawns.

Jane Cates, Jefferson County

Don’t forget the Denver Chamber Music Festival

Re: “Classical blast,” March 15 feature story

Thanks to Ray Rinaldi for a terrific article about classical music festivals in the mountains this summer. I’d like to add one, and it’s right here in town: the Denver Chamber Music Festival from June 5 to June 13. World-class musicians, including the amazing classical/bluegrass violinist Tessa Lark, our first composer in residence, and local favorites Stephanie Cheng and Margaret Dyer Harris, and the members of the Colorado Cello Quartet.

All performances are at the Newman Center for the Performing Arts; tickets available at denverchambermusicfestival.org. Avoid Interstate 70 and enjoy phenomenal music in Denver!

Alix Corboy, Denver

Editor’s note: Corboy is executive director of the Denver Chamber Music Festival

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