Nebraska Navigates Rough Big Ten, Where There are Challenges Every Game

Nebraska coach Matt Rhule started his postgame news conference Saturday with a quick recap of the Michigan State game, which the Huskers won, 38-27.

Rhule then almost immediately asked about the Penn State-UCLA score. Yes, Rhule is a former Penn State linebacker, but his interest in the game seemed to be more Big Ten-centric than in his letterman sweater.

“I think they are all going to be like that in the Big Ten,” Rhule said about the MSU game. “Did Penn State lose to UCLA?

“I know I say it and everyone rolls their eyes at me, but this is what every week is going to be like in the Big Ten now. You’re going all over the country, and every game is going to be a battle.”

UCLA 42, Penn State 37. What?

The Athletic characterized the UCLA victory over Penn State this way: “Upset of the year? Oh, it’s more.”

UCLA, a 25-point underdog to Penn State, was 0-4 coming into the game, with blowout losses to Utah (43-10) and New Mexico (35-10), for gosh sakes. The Bruins already made a coaching change -- in September. Some team will finish last in the Big Ten, and UCLA certainly looked like a worthy candidate.

Penn State was coming off a knockdown overtime loss to visiting Oregon, dropping the Nittany Lions from top three in most polls to No. 7.

What in the world is happening? Was it just a huge upset, an all-timer? Was Penn State overrated? Or, is the Big Ten so strong from top to bottom that one of the worst teams in the conference could defeat one of the best?

Through the early part of the season, the Big Ten’s top tier was comfortably settled. It was defending national champion Ohio State, 2024 Big Ten champion Oregon and 2025 preseason champion and darling Penn State.

Then, the rest.

Then, UCLA entered the chat.

It’s the first weekend of October, and Penn State is tied for last place in the conference at 0-2. In football.

Below the top three were Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, USC, Washington, Iowa and Nebraska maybe. A more refined examination of the tiers would be Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and USC in the second tier, and then Washington, Iowa and Nebraska.

And where do the Huskers fit into all of this madness?

Huskers getting by

Nebraska (4-1) is navigating its own schedule, bouncing back with an unattractive victory over Michigan State after a rough home loss to Michigan. Next up is Maryland, the first true road game this season for the Huskers against another Big Ten surprise.

Game time locked in against the Terps.#GBR x @jhlincoln_ pic.twitter.com/kNFjaNIwJG
— Nebraska Football (@HuskerFootball) September 29, 2025

Maryland, a solid lacrosse school, was 4-0 going into Saturday’s home game with Washington, an established perennial football power. Maryland led 20-0 at halftime, and 20-3 into the fourth quarter, but lost, 24-20.

“It’s a little different,” Huskers defensive back Ceyair Wright said about Nebraska being compared to other teams.

“Throughout the whole year, all the years, Nebraska has grown to be a winning program, especially with Coach Rhule and the way the players have taken on the culture and taken on the standard with the process that we do.

Nebraska defensive back Ceyair Wright prepares to defend against Michigan. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

“We have pride in it and it shows on the field. It may have taken a long time, but I’m glad the results are showing.”

Huskers’ rest of the way

Nebraska’s remaining schedule includes only one ranked team — free-falling Penn State. But these days in the Big Ten, every week is a tense, stomach-churning challenge. Some years, even second-tier teams could comfortably pencil in two or three conference wins.

Not anymore. And for the Huskers, trying to regain their place among the elites, both conference games so far were struggles. Future games promise the same kind of scraps — back-and-forth with a result uncertain throughout the game.

Maryland might be testy. Minnesota always seems to be, and has defeated the Huskers five consecutive times. You can never count on Northwestern to be easy. Then, there’s USC — a tossup game at best. And now UCLA’s season might have been revitalized. The season ends at Penn State , then against Iowa in Memorial Stadium.

Another way of looking at Nebraska’s remaining schedule: Each game is winnable, even Penn State.

And that sums up the Huskers' remaining schedule: They probably can win every game; they probably can lose every game. Such in life in the Big Ten.

Better than most, Rhule realizes every Big Ten game likely will be a dogfight. He has coached in the NFL, where every game is a dogfight, any given Sunday and all that.

“We’re trying to play good football and it’s really hard, the Big Ten is hard,” Rhule said.

“It’s not like we’re not focused. They [MSU] have good players, too. They game-planned us, too. I think the biggest thing is we just keep hanging in there and playing.

“I think this is a game [MSU] in previous years we might have lost, or not went the way it went, but we end up with a 17-point lead and then we give up a touchdown and they’re [Husker players] mad afterwards.

Nebraska defensive lineman Kade Pietrzak pressures Michigan State Spartans quarterback Aidan Chiles. | Kylie Graham-Imagn Images

“I like the mindset and where it’s headed. There’s a ton of things we have to clean up, there’s a ton of things we have to get better at. We are not a perfect team, we have to play around all of our things.

“I also say we show up every week, even when it’s not perfect, our guys show up, even the Iowa game last year you can’t say we didn’t show up, so our guys show up every week, since that UCLA game last year.”

In the modern, NIL-laced Big Ten, showing up is more than a requirement. It’s necessary for survival.

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