The Nebraska Cornhuskers enters Saturday at an important crossroads that could define the rest of the 2024 campaign under the second-year coach Matt Rhule. The Huskers were blown off the field last week against No. 13 Indiana 56-7, a result that sent shock waves across the college football landscape.

NU has just one week to lick its wounds before facing a No. 4 Ohio State who should be upset after losing 32-31 to now #1 Oregon two weeks ago in Euguene. The matchup between the teams couldn’t be worse for the Huskers. There is no expectation that Nebraska will come away with a win in Columbus, but the amount of fight and perseverance will set the stage for the remaining contests as the Huskers look to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2016.

The HuskerMax and Nebraska Cornhuskers SI the crew makes their predictions. The average score is 41-14 Ohio State.

Suffice it to say that the final score surprised all predictions. The closest predictions from last week belong Josh Peterson and Tanner Johnson who both predicted a 31-20 win for Indiana. That was 38 points short of the actual 56-7 Hoosier victory.

*Indicates the closest from the previous week’s prediction and how many “wins” throughout the season. Links will result in win-win for all parties.

Why

Austin Jacobsen: First time not taking Nebraska this season. Matt Rhule should have time ready to go, but sometimes a team of Jimmies and Joes beats another team. I have no doubt that Nebraska could struggle early, but the Buckeyes’ talent and resentment from their Oregon loss has them motivated for a solid win.

Eric Hess: Nebraska is coming back and playing healthy football, but the gap between the programs is still too big to overcome the Huskers at this point.

Josh Peterson: Nebraska’s offense continues to struggle and the running game is becoming stale. Ohio State never looks great, but cruises to an easy win.

ThotDoc: The timing of this game after the Bloomington blowout is not ideal. The hope is that the Huskers can gain some confidence by playing tough against a superior opponent and that it can carry on for the remaining games on the schedule. The Huskers have no pressure this week because virtually no one expects them to win, so they play loose and play hard and keep it closer than expected.

Dave Fact: My only prediction is that the fanbase’s existential crisis over all things in the program will turn into panic and absurd upheaval.

Cole Stukenholtz: A fired-up Huskers team comes out with a drop to catch OSU off guard and hold them close at halftime, but the Buckeyes’ talent takes over in the third quarter.

Jay Stockwell: Satterfield has to “remember to run the ball” and has no clue about yards per play metrics. I remember the first time I heard him speak on Matt Rhule’s first day, he didn’t sound smart. We now have direct evidence from the witness while he is on the stand.

Bob Frady: Both sides of the ball are getting a little better, but it’s still not enough.

Middle-aged ball coach: Something isn’t right with Nebraska’s running game, and things are going to get ugly if they don’t fix it.

David Max: Columbus is a tough place to play. My last visit there in 1974 as a student coach at Indiana was a 49-9 loss. Things haven’t changed after 50 years.

Tad Stryker: The Huskers have a physics crisis that needs to be resolved by Nov. 2.

Chris Fort: The Huskers expect to lose and do so in convincing fashion, losing their fire after a flurry of first-half touchdowns by the Buckeyes.

Jeremy Pernell: Ohio State will win this game, but how the Huskers lose will tell the mental strength of this team. Will they go down swinging and look like a team that just doesn’t have the horses to keep up? Or are they relegated to the back of the woodshed and look like the unfortunate pile from the Indiana disaster?

Find more predictions at HuskerMax.com.

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MORE: Nebraska football preview: No. 4 Ohio State

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