PASADENA, Calif. (WOWT/KOLN) – Nebraska’s crisscrossing adventures in the recently expanded Big 10 find the Huskers in a late-night showdown against the upstart UCLA Bruins.

Nebraska comes to the west coast more underhanded than usual, as star QB Dylan Raiola suffered a season ending injury in the third quarter of the loss to USC the previous week.

Sophomore Tackle Gunnar Gottula is also out for the rest of the year, suffering a knee injury and adding on to a increasing laundry-list of injuries on the offensive side of the ball.

Backup QB TJ Lateef, a true freshman with athletic upside and plying experience in Nebraska’s two big blowouts, will have to take the reins against a UCLA squad that has found new life since firing their head coach, but still boasting a 3-5 record with wins over Penn State, Michigan State, and Maryland all in sequence.

Head Coach Matt Rhule said the team is focused on setting Lateef up for success in his debut.

“You know this week to me is not about TJ, at least my message to our guys,” Rhule said. “It’s about everyone else making this where every single person has to do their job at such a high level that TJ can just do his job and not try to do anything more. But TJ can do his job. He’s an excellent player and I think everyone’s going to see him play really, really well.”

While the Huskers are already bowl-bound, one would imagine a new version of the Big Red will be taking the field once Saturday rolls around.

GAME INFO

• WHERE: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, California
• WHEN: 8 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 8
• WATCH: FOX
• LISTEN: Huskers Radio Network
• VEGAS ODDS: UCLA -1.5, O/U 43.5

PRE-GAME UPDATES

PREVIOUS NEBRASKA FOOTBALL COVERAGE

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LINCOLN, Neb. (Nebraska Examiner) – Democrats have another candidate in eastern Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District primary.

Former U.S. State Department diplomat Chris Backemeyer will face renewable energy advocate Eric Moyer in the Democratic primary. Both are vying to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Flood.

“Frankly, I see our country is just going really in the wrong direction,” said Backemeyer.

Backemeyer has worked for the State Department for 20 years in Washington, D.C., with a focus on counterterrorism, economic policy and the Middle East. He moved back to Lincoln last month after accepting a buyout from the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency, which thinned out the ranks of the federal bureaucracy in the early days of the second Trump administration.

He said he felt there was “no mission or purpose left” in working for the State Department after the DOGE cuts, and that serving in Congress was the only way to push back against Trump’s approach to governing. Backmeyer’s pitch to voters is a moderate focus on affordability, reasserting congressional authority over tariffs and addressing rising health care prices and the national debt.

“Both parties are moving in opposite directions … I think there’s a lot of people in the middle that just want good … middle-of-the-road policies that will solve the problems that they see on a day-to-day basis,” Backemyer said.

Whoever emerges from the Democratic primary will most likely face Flood, who as yet has no GOP opponent and has won his past two elections by 20 and 16 percentage points, in a seat considered safely Republican by the nonpartisan Center for Politics, The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections.

The 1st District comprises 12 Nebraska counties, including heavily Democratic Lancaster County, which is often drowned out by the region’s more conservative rural areas.

Backemeyer said while it will be a “tough race,” the district being considered a safe seat isn’t a good reason not to “get into the fight.” He pointed to his work at the State Department as an example of his being able to work with people regardless of political differences.

One of Backemeyer’s areas of emphasis as a diplomat was Iran. He was a senior State Department negotiator for Obama’s Iran nuclear deal in 2015. During Trump’s first term, He was replaced by Andrew L. Peek in 2017 as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Iranian Affairs and moved to a new role. Trump withdrew from the nuclear agreement in 2018.

Backemeyer was also a national security advisor to former Vice President Kamala Harris.

Daniel Bass, a spokesperson for the Flood campaign, criticized his work with former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris. He said Backemeyer has “spent more of his life in Washington than in Nebraska, so it’s no surprise that he was inspired to run by coastal Democrat wins this week.”

“Meanwhile, Mike Flood has fought for Nebraskans,” Bass said. “To represent us, you have to be one of us.”

During Flood’s Lincoln town hall in August, Backemeyer asked Flood a question: “Who do you work for?” referring to his vote on Trump’s “big beautiful bill.” He used it as a part of his campaign lunch video. The Flood campaign pointed out that Backemeyer was still living in D.C. at the time.

Moyer, asked about a new opponent, said the entrance of another Democratic candidate in the race validates that there is “no such thing as a safe congressional seat when Donald Trump’s failed policies are on the ballot.”

“My campaign is building momentum throughout the district, and a competitive primary will serve the people of Nebraska well,” Moyer said.

Backemeyer said a competitive Democratic primary will only make the Democratic nominee stronger. He said he respects Moyer, but argues his experience in Washington prepares him for Congress.

“I’ve been working on some of the country’s most difficult national security challenges … I’ve briefed presidents and vice presidents and secretaries of state. I think I have the ability to hit the ground running,” said Backemeyer.

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Nebraska has no choice but to trust freshman quarterback TJ Lateef this Saturday as the Cornhuskers face the UCLA Bruins. During their loss to USC last week, Nebraska saw quarterback Dylan Raiola break his fibula, ending his season.

Matt Rhule expresses his belief in Lateef but at this point he has no other option

The Cornhuskers’ head coach Matt Rhule said all the right things about Lateef but the odds are stacked against him, with Nebraska likely to be without both of their starting tackles. Both tackles were injured in the Cornhuskers’ loss last week against USC.

Nebraska will adjust their gameplan to fit the dual-threat Lateef

“I think making sure we put together a plan and that he’s comfortable with everything he needs to do. As I said, guys are going to have to do a great job of being strong around him. Even in the game, he came out with a check down in the red zone and he saw zero, he checked it to a tunnel screen,” Rhule said of Lateef. “Jacory (Barney) is wide open and he would’ve walked it in, just dropped the snap. He’s mentally, though, at a really, really high level. He just needs reps. When you’re the backup quarterback, you’re getting reps but not as many. Now, he needs reps. Jalyn (Gramstad) needs reps. Anybody else we use at quarterback will need reps this week.”

Lateef has had success in his limited action

Lateef has seen a bit of action this season in relief duties, throwing for 261 yards and a touchdown on 16-19 passing. On the ground Lateef has picked up 50 yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns. Lateef has fumbled three times, all coming against the Trojans, but Nebraska was able to recover all three.