Where Football Polls and Metrics Have Nebraska Placed Going Into Week 4

The Huskers are finally noticed by AP Top 25, but other rankings move them down despite third consecutive win

Nebraska running back Mekhi Nelson carries the ball against North Dakota. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Nebraska caught the eye of the AP Top 25 Poll after its third consecutive win, but other rankings were not as generous to the Huskers.

Two rankings and polls moved the Huskers down slightly after their 34-7 win over North Dakota on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium. They improved slightly in two rankings and remained the same in another.

Nebraska’s rankings will begin to sort themselves out after the Huskers (3-0) play their first Big Ten game Saturday at 2-1 Michigan State (4 o’clock, CT, Big Ten Network). We also should get a better feel for what kind of team Nebraska is fielding when it plays a fellow Power 4 team in the Spartans on the road. The MAC schedule is over. Nothing but Big Ten the rest of the way.

But ESPN’s Football Power Index moved the Huskers to 21 from 20, and ever so slightly decreased their odds for six wins, making the 12-team College Football Playoff and winning the Big Ten title.

Each Wednesday, we’ll take a look at where six national polls and rankings place Nebraska’s football team.

The six polls and rankings we monitor are:

* Associated Press Top 25
* The Athletic 138
* CBS Sports
* USA Today Coaches Poll
* ESPN’s Football Power Index
* Massey Ratings

The Huskers rank 39.1 in an average of six polls and rankings we monitor. Last week, it was 31.3.

Nebraska’s best ranking is 21 by ESPN (last week it was 20), and its worst ranking is 58 by The Athletic (last week it was 59).

Associated Press Top 25

Nebraska finally got a mention in the AP Top 25 after being ignored for four consecutive weeks. The mention wasn’t much but it was something.

Seventeen teams were among “others receiving votes” across America including the Huskers, who were at the bottom with two votes.

Seven Big Ten teams are ranked in the Top 25. Indiana is the highest-ranked conference team at 5, dropping one spot from last week.

5. Indiana
7. Ohio State
12. USC
13. Penn State
17. Iowa
18. Michigan
20. Oregon

Among “others receiving votes,” Washington is 26, and UCLA is 38. That’s nine Big Ten teams ranked above Nebraska, which is 42.

The Athletic 138

Nebraska is ranked 58, by far its worst among the rankings we monitor and better by one spot from last week. The Huskers finished 52 last season.

CBS Sports

Nebraska remained at 41. The Huskers are ranked ahead of the following eight Big Ten teams:

43. Illinois
48. Maryland
56. Minnesota
60. Northwestern
65. Wisconsin
79. Michigan State
94. Purdue
101. Rutgers

Nebraska plays Michigan State, Maryland, Illinois and Rutgers from this group in 2026.

Nine Big Ten teams are ranked above Nebraska:

5. Ohio State
6. Indiana
11. USC
15. Penn State
16. Oregon
20. Michigan
21. Iowa
28. Washington
30. UCLA

Nebraska plays Ohio State, Indiana, Oregon, Washington and Iowa from this group.

USA Today Coaches Poll

Nebraska is among “others receiving votes” at 40 — a surprising drop of six places — with 11 points. The 25th-ranked team, SMU, has 162 points. The USA Today panel consists of 72 coaches who vote, including Matt Rhule.

ESPN’s Football Power Index (FPI)

Nebraska moved to 21 from 20, the Huskers’ best ranking among the polls and rankings we monitor. Nebraska took a slight hit on FPI’s odds for this season.

Here are FPI’s odds for Nebraska’s season:

* Chance of winning six games, which would make the Huskers bowl eligible: 95.4 percent (last week: 95.8 percent)
* 8.1 projected wins and 3.9 projected losses (last week: 8.3 projected wins to 3.8 projected losses)
* 2.6 percent chance of winning the Big Ten (last week: 3.0 percent chance)
* 16.7 percent chance of making the College Football Playoff (last week: 18.0 percent chance)
* 0.6 percent chance of making the national championship game (last week: 1.4 percent chance)
* 0.5 percent chance of winning the national championship (last week: 0.1 percent)

Massey Ratings

Massey Ratings are a compilation of 40 different college football rankings. In the consensus of the 40 rankings, the Huskers moved up one place to 33. Indiana is No. 1, followed by Texas, Notre Dame, Georgia and Alabama.

---

Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.