Nebraska Football Receives Coaches Poll Votes; Huskers to Face Two Preseason Top 25 Teams

Nebraska football received some preseason love Monday from college football coaches.

The Huskers received 19 points in the preseason edition of the USA Today Coaches Poll, placing the Big Red at No. 39 overall. Nebraska also saw two 2025 Big Ten Conference foes receive top-15 nods, while the Big Ten landed six programs in the top 25.

Nebraska was slotted behind Big Ten powers Ohio State, Penn State and Oregon as the Buckeyes, Nittany Lions, and Ducks all earned top 10 billings at No. 2, No. 3 and No. 7, respectively. Three other Big Ten teams landed in the teens: Illinois (No. 12), Michigan (No. 14) and Indiana (No. 19). USC and Iowa each received votes ahead of Nebraska, while the Huskers sat ahead of Washington and Minnesota in the preseason rankings.

Nebraska quarterback Dylan Raiola in 14-7 win over Rutgers | Dylan Widger / USA TODAY Sports

The Big Ten Conference totaled six teams in the top 25, while five other teams in the conference aslto received votes. The Big Ten finished runner-up behind the Southeastern Conference as the SEC nabbed 14 teams at least receiving votes, while nine SEC programs scored spots in the top 25. The SEC also corralled four spots in the top 10, with Texas claiming the top overall spot as No. 4 Georgia, No. 8 Alabama, and No. 9 LSU also were featured.

The Atlantic Coast Conference nabbed two top 10 positions with No. 6 Clemson and No. 10 Miami (FL), while added No. 16 SMU and four other programs receiving votes. The Big 12 Conference failed to garner a top 10 team, leaving No. 11 Arizona State as the conference's highest-rated program. Four other Big 12 teams were in the top 25: No. 20 Kansas State, No. 21 Iowa State, No. 23 BYU and No. 24 Texas Tech.

Notre Dame was the lone independent at No. 5, while the highest-rated Group of Five program was No. 25 Boise State.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman waits to run onto the field during the Blue-Gold game — Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman. | Michael Caterina-Imagn Images

Nebraska football has two preseason top-25 contests on its 2025 schedule: the Big Ten Conference opener at Memorial Stadium against No. 14 Michigan and a late-November trip to No. 3 Penn State. The Huskers avoid the conference's other top 25 teams: Illinois, Indiana, Oregon and Ohio State.

The Huskers will play three other teams that received votes: a mid-October Friday night test at Minnesota, a Nov. 1 home tilt against USC and the regular-season finale hosting Iowa. Nebraska finished 1-3 in top 25 contests (per the final USA Today Coaches Poll rankings) in 2024, downing No. 25 Colorado 28-10 in the second week of the season before falling to No. 16 Illinois at home in overtime. The Huskers were decimated by No. 10 Indiana 56-7 on the road, then fell to eventual national champion and No. 1 Ohio State 21-17 in Columbus.

Nebraska opens Matt Rhule's third season as head coach in Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium, taking on the Cincinnati Bearcats on Aug. 28. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. CDT.

Preseason Top 25 Coaches Poll

Texas
Ohio State
Penn State
Georgia
Notre Dame
Clemson
Oregon
Alabama
LSU
Miami
Arizona State
Illinois
South Carolina
Michigan
Ole Miss
SMU
Florida
Tennessee
Indiana
Kansas State
Texas A&M
Iowa State
BYU
Texas Tech
Boise State

Nebraska Football 2025 Schedule

Aug. 28 (Thursday) vs. Cincinnati (Kansas City) 8 p.m. ESPN
Sep. 6 vs. Akron 6:30 p.m. CDT BTN
Sep. 13 vs. Houston Christian 11 a.m. FS1
Sep. 20 vs. Michigan 2:30 p.m. CBS
Oct. 4 vs. Michigan State 11/2:30/3
Oct. 11 at Maryland TBA
Oct. 17 (Friday) at Minnesota 7 p.m. FOX
Oct. 25 vs. Northwestern TBA
Nov. 1 vs. USC TBA
Nov. 8 at UCLA TBA
Nov. 22 at Penn State TBA
Nov. 28 (Black Friday) vs. Iowa 11 a.m. CBS

Home games are bolded. All times central.

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