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Nebraska’s Coordinators Address Challenges on Both Sides of Ball

Illinois among nation’s elite at running back and on defense
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It stands to reason that containing Illinois running back Chase Brown will be a top priority Saturday for Nebraska. He leads the nation in rushing, having eclipsed 1,000 yards before October was half over. 

"He has so many yards after contact that it's ridiculous," interim defensive coordinator Bill Busch said after Wednesday's Nebraska football practice.

"He has breakout runs, and he can make you miss," Busch said. "But his biggest strength that Chase has is that he's able to turn three-yard runs into six-yard runs. ... You look at the film, and it should be second-and-7 and it's second-and-4. That's the biggest challenge probably going on — with the run fits, and then the tackling and being able to get him wrapped up."

Accomplishing that becomes more of a challenge without inside linebacker Nick Henrich, who suffered a season-ending knee injury Oct. 15 against Purdue. Busch called the loss of the co-captain a "kick in the gut." Taking Henrich's place atop the depth chart is senior Chris Kolarevic, and backing him up is true freshman Ernest Hausmann.

Offensive coordinator Mark Whipple also has a nation-leading entity to contend with Saturday: the Illinois defense. The Illini are No. 1 in total and scoring defense and are in the top 10 in several other defensive categories.

The Huskers need to be "really good on third down," Whipple said, to keep drives going and to help keep Illinois' offense off the field.

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