Nebraska has lost three straight, all by one score. Illinois has won three straight in the Big Ten. Those two teams meet Friday at 7 p.m. CT at Gies Memorial Stadium in Champaign, on FOX (Illinois game notes).
Both teams are 5-3. Nebraska is 2-3 in the Big Ten after the 17-10 loss to Washington. Illinois is 3-2 after a walk-off win at Maryland.
The line
The opening line has Nebraska favored by 5.5 points, according to the Associated Press. The AP also lists Nebraska at 6-2 against the spread this season and Illinois at 4-4.
The streak
Illinois has beaten Michigan State, Oregon and Maryland in a row. Only undefeated UCLA has a longer active Big Ten winning streak, per Illinois. The Illini are 15-4 at home since the start of 2024.
That Oregon win matters for Nebraska fans. Oregon beat the Huskers 17-14 in Eugene on Oct. 17. Illinois beat the Ducks 21-10 in Champaign a week later.
Who Nebraska has to stop
WR Collin Dixon. Illinois’ notes list him with 60 catches (seventh nationally), 781 receiving yards (11th) and 10 receiving touchdowns, fourth in the country and tied for the Illinois single-season record.
RB Aidan Laughery. He has two touchdown runs of more than 75 yards this season and 100-yard games against Ohio State (113) and Oregon (123).
RB Javari Barnett. The freshman ran for a career-high 80 yards on six carries at Maryland, including a 64-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter.
QB Katin Houser is 24th nationally in ESPN’s QBR at 77.5, per Illinois.
Illinois also says its offensive line is ninth nationally in fewest tackles for loss allowed, at 3.13 per game.
Recent history
Illinois won the last meeting, 31-24, on Sept. 20, 2024. Before that Nebraska won 20-7 in 2023, and Illinois won in 2022 (26-9) and 2021 (30-22).
The setting
Friday is Dads Day at Illinois, a tradition that dates to 1920, and the school’s first “Hail to the Blue Out” under the lights. Jack Kizer and Mark Helfrich have the FOX call.
For Nebraska, the math is simple and has not changed: one more win makes the Huskers bowl eligible. After Friday, the schedule goes to Rutgers, Ohio State and Iowa. More on that in our November math breakdown.
Featured image: Photo: The Des Moines Register. Public domain. Source: Wikimedia Commons
