Nebraska’s prospects didn’t look particularly bright late against Wisconsin in Madison last fall, but trailing by 14 points and equipped with a humming offense, NU could squint and see a path back into contention when it punted with 13 minutes remaining and pinned UW at its own 12.
On the first play of the drive, though, Badger running back Jonathan Taylor ripped through the middle of the Husker defense — the pile-up of offensive and defensive linemen was pushed nearly 10 yards down the field — and dispatched a couple of would-be tacklers on his way to an 88-yard touchdown run, extending Wisconsin’s lead to 41-17.
If the scene felt familiar to NU fans, that’s because it was.
The Badgers finished the day with 38 carries for 370 yards and four touchdowns. Over the course of a six-game winning streak against Nebraska that dates to December 2012, the Badgers average 45 carries, 369 yards and 4.2 touchdowns per game.
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“We need to get our program to where we can give them a run and compete with them because they’ve been consistently probably the best team in our half for quite a few years,” Nebraska coach Scott Frost said this week. “Hats off to them and credit to where they are as a program. They’re probably going to have a target on their back from every Big Ten West team for a while because they’ve been at the top.”
Nebraska under Frost will never look exactly like UW, as Frost is deeply rooted in the spread, zone-read based offenses that want to maximize space and pace.
As the numbers bear out, though, the Huskers have to develop something they can consistently rely on -- both offensively and defensively -- the way the Badgers have been able to rely on the run game.
Taylor has rushed for 249 and 221 yards in his two career games against Nebraska, averaging more than 9 yards per carry and scoring five touchdowns. It’s not just him, though. Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten, 10 different Wisconsin backs have rushed for 50 or more yards, including 16 total instances in eight games. Four different players — Taylor, Dare Ogunbowale, Melvin Gordon and Montee Ball — have rushed for 100-plus multiple times, while Taylor (twice), Gordon (twice) and Ball have each logged games of 200-plus.
Head football coach Scott Frost talks about Wan'Dale Robinson's status for Saturday during a news conference on Nov. 14, 2019.
Since Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2011, it has finished fourth in rushing defense against Big Ten opponents once (2013), seventh once (2011) and ninth or worse in the other six seasons. This fall, the Huskers are currently 13th at 5.31 yards per carry allowed.
In the same span, Wisconsin is 7-1 against the Huskers and has rushed for 2,500 yards (6.9 per carry) and 33 touchdowns.
The Badgers started to veer away from the heavy personnel and power run game for two years under Gary Andersen, but have returned to it and flourished in four-plus seasons under current head coach Paul Chryst.
“They’re good at what they do because that’s all they do,” NU outside linebackers coach Jovan Dewitt said. “They’re not trying to find an identity of who they are offensively. They’ve found their identity and have been such for a really long time. … That can’t be overstated. When you have a program that’s got a culture and it’s got an identity and it’s had one for such a long period of time, you can’t overstate the value of that.
“They’re really good at what they do and they firmly believe in what they do. They understand their identity, they know who they are and they play within that.”
Nebraska coaches say their team has made big strides in terms of strength and conditioning, though they also admit there is still ground to make up to match the week-in, week-out power in the Big Ten. Power alone, though, isn’t enough to win games.
“It doesn’t matter if you’ve got a 6-2, 250-pound D-lineman or a 6-4, 300-pounder, everything’s got to be on point,” inside linebackers coach Barrett Ruud said. “There are going to be a few times where you’re going to have some guys that just manhandle people, but it always starts with technique. You can do as much as you can to get bigger, stronger, faster guys, but in-season it’s all about technique and being precise with what you do.
“Even if you’re a really, extremely talented player, if your technique isn’t on point, against good teams you’re going to get exposed.”
In that regard, the challenge for Nebraska on Saturday is the same as it’s been against Wisconsin since the Huskers arrived in the Big Ten: To be a match both physically and technically against an offense that doesn’t look anything like the one in Lincoln.
“Just about any scheme can work if you’re good at it and have the right players for it,” Frost said. “I believe in what we do. It’s what I know the best. Our system can work if we have the right guys and run it well and their system can work if they have the right guys and run it well.
“It’s just philosophical differences, but I think there are definitely some pieces of what they do that we would like to emulate — definitely their size and physicality. Regardless of what offense you run, you need to have those things.”