AMES, Iowa—It was the same old story for nearly a century. Nebraska would roll into Jack Trice Stadium with a lofty national ranking and proceed to throttle Iowa State; the Cyclones playing the role of the fly on the Cornhuskers windshield.
That isn’t true anymore.
Nebraska (3-3, 0-2 Big 12) enters Saturday’s game at Iowa State (2-4, 0-2) on a three-game losing streak and losers of eight of nine conference games dating back to last season. The Huskers have also dropped two of their last three at Jack Trice—a stadium they had owned since it opened in 1975—and five straight road games overall.
Nebraska could use a return to the days of old against Iowa State, which is once again dealing with its own issues. The Cyclones are coming off a 38-10 drubbing at the hands of Baylor, one of the few Big 12 teams most thought it had a chance against.
“There are probably a lot of people out there saying we’re going to lose the next six. There probably are a lot of people out there saying we’ll win the next six,” said Nebraska coach Bo Pelini, in his first season of trying to clean up the mess left by Bill Callahan. “I’d rather it get decided between the lines. That’s all I can hope to control.”
Neither team is looking like a serious contender in the Big 12 North, but the Huskers appear to be in better shape than Iowa State. That’s after bouncing back from a 35-point road loss against No. 11 Missouri with a spirited effort against No. 7 Texas Tech in Lubbock.
Down 24-10 heading into the fourth quarter, quarterback Joe Ganz led Nebraska on three touchdown drives, the last coming with 29 seconds left to force overtime. The Huskers eventually fell in OT, 37-31, but there were plenty of encouraging signs.
Nebraska was 7-of-12 on third-down conversions, 5-of-5 inside the red zone and Ganz was 36-of-44 passing for 349 yards.
“Joe Ganz is playing really well. It’s amazing they took that ball down the field there (at Texas Tech) and got it into overtime,” said Iowa State coach Gene Chizik. “He put the ball right on the money in some places he could only put the ball for the ball to be caught. I think they’re playing really well.”
For Iowa State, a season that held hope of a return to respectability is starting to look like yet another painful march to the Big 12 cellar.
The Cyclones have lost their last four; perhaps none as painful as the one they had last week in Waco. Iowa State suffered a blow two days before the game when backup quarterback Phillip Bates left the program, and the Cyclones were never really in it.
The Cyclones biggest concern these days has to be their defense, which has given up an astounding 73 points in the last six quarters—including the 35 they surrendered in the second half of a two-point loss to No. 16 Kansas.
Iowa State ranks 88th in the nation in scoring defense at 28.2 points per game. The Cyclones are 10th in the Big 12 in rushing defense and last in the conference in passing efficiency defense—and they know it won’t be easy turning those numbers around against a Nebraska team that’s scoring 33 points a game.
“It’s pretty tough. You’ve got to look forward. You can’t think about the past, you can’t think about Baylor, you can’t think about Kansas. All we can do is continue to work, have good practices during the week and show up on Saturday,” Iowa State nose guard Nate Frere said.
This appears to be a manageable portion of Nebraska’s schedule, though that’s a relative term for teams in the Big 12. The Huskers host Baylor on Oct. 25, and these next two games—along with a pair against Kansas State and Colorado to end the season—will go a long way in determining whether Pelini can lead Nebraska back to a bowl game.
But to earn that right, the Huskers first have to prove they can win outside of Lincoln.
“They’re convinced they can win. I think we have to do it,” Pelini said. “Winning is not beating yourself, executing, being precise, playing with discipline. At times we do that, but we’re not consistent enough in a lot of facets in the game.”
