Dream Opponents for Nebraska Non-Conference Football

If the College Football Playoff expands to 24 teams, Power 4 teams might be inclined to play more competitive games against traditional rivals. Let’s hope we see Oklahoma and Colorado again in Memorial Stadium

Nebraska punt returner Johnny Rogers (20) celebrates his punt return for a touchdown against Oklahoma in the 1971 'Game of the Century.' | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With talk about possibly expanding the College Football Playoff to 24 teams, one by-product might be Power 4 schools going on a limb and scheduling more challenging non-conference games.

Power 4 teams, such as Nebraska, might be inclined to schedule more interesting opponents — read: more difficult — as an early non-conference loss wouldn’t necessarily eliminate them from College Football Playoff consideration.

Actually, there is a school of thought that teams playing difficult non-conference games, while perhaps occasionally nicking up the final won-loss record, could reward both teams, no matter the outcome. Should a team play a respectable, competitive game and not lose 55-0, the loss likely won’t be viewed unfavorably by the folks who select the CFP teams. It wouldn’t be a deal breaker.

Alumni nationwide might tell a different story. Some Husker fans would rather see Nebraska defeat Houston Christian, 59-7, as happened last year, the game being part of the barbecue/tailgate/cold brews industrial complex that’s part of the majesty of a college football Saturday.

That alumni attitude breathes oxygen everywhere. Win a few no-sweat games, hammer the scoreboard, drive home happy.

Nebraska non-conference games

In 2026, Nebraska will play non-Power 4 teams Ohio, Bowling Green and North Dakota — which sounds like a solid Mid-American Conference schedule.

In 2025, Nebraska’s non-conference schedule was the Big 12’s Cincinnati, the MAC’s Akron, and Houston Christian, an FCS Southland Conference team. Remember, the Nebraska-Cincinnati game was a great one, a Huskers win decided on a last-minute interception by Malcolm Hartzog Jr., of mostly unknown, now-infamous Bearcats quarterback Brendan Sorsby.

In 2027, the Huskers will play Northern Illinois (Mountain West), Miami (Ohio), of the MAC, and FCS member Northern Iowa (Missouri Valley Football Conference).

Power 4 schools might benefit more from a prime-time broadcast against another Power 4 opponent instead of the Big Ten Network’s 11 a.m. kickoff in a game not expected to be competitive.

In 2025, only 10 of 136 FBS teams did *not* play FCS schools. That includes four Big Ten schools: Michigan, UCLA, USC and Wisconsin. Other FBS schools not playing FCS schools were: Colorado, Notre Dame, Sam Houston, Stanford, Texas and Tulane.

Nebraska, and other Power 4 schools, can do better. Here’s who we would enjoy seeing Nebraska schedule every season. Play just one of these classic Husker rivals each season. Husker fans would enjoy it — it’s an easy argument — as would television networks.

Give us the Sooners

Nebraska’s last meeting against its old Big Eight rival Oklahoma was a 49-14 Sooners win in Lincoln in 2022. Nebraska has lost 7-of-8 against Oklahoma. Nebraska-Oklahoma is one of the great college football rivalries — ranked No. 6 in The Athletic’s top 100 college football rivalries last year.

Oklahoma leads this rivalry, 47-38-3. Even casual college football fans know of the 1971 “Game of the Century,” a 35-31 Nebraska win in Norman that preceded the Huskers’ national championship that year.

Nebraska and Oklahoma have played only twice since they met in the 2010 Big Eight title game.

The rivals have played since 1912, a 13-9 Husker victory in Lincoln. Come on, guys.

How about the Buffaloes?

The Nebraska-Colorado rivalry was ranked No. 33 in The Athletic’s top 100 college football rivalries last year.

The last meeting was 2024, a 28-10 Nebraska win at Memorial Stadium, snapping a three-game Colorado winning streak over the Huskers. Nebraska's win came over Buffs coach Deion Sanders. The first meeting was in *1898*, a 23-10 Husker win in Boulder. Nebraska leads the series, 50-21-2.

Traditional rivals ought to play each other, the season’s final record be damned,

How about a wild card?

Forget for a moment about traditional rivals. Schedule them but how about a Notre Dame? Or Miami? Or an SEC opponent? Those games would have juice, and would have fans actually looking forward to Saturdays for more reasons than the burgers and brewskis.

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