The Nebraska Cornhuskers and the Wisconsin Badgers meet Saturday in college football action from Camp Randall Stadium. Nebraska took on Maryland in their latest outing. The 5-5 Cornhuskers went on to lose a close one. As for Wisconsin, they’re coming off a matchup versus Northwestern over the weekend. In that one the Badgers dropped to 5-5 with a 14-point loss. Check back all season long for free college football picks at Sports Chat Place.

Nebraska Cornhuskers 

The Cornhuskers managed to win five of their first nine games, with much of their issues coming from a lukewarm offense. Nebraska averaged just 19.2 points per game in that time, with the majority of the success (14 TDs and 185.4 yards per game) coming on the ground. Otherwise the Cornhuskers put up 131.9 yards per game, eight scores and 10 interruptions from passing. 

Back on Saturday versus Maryland, Nebraska was up 10-7 going into the final quarter but couldn’t hang on in a 13-10 loss. Jeff Sims put up just 62 passing yards and two interceptions. Emmett Johnson added 84 rush yards on 17 carries, and Billy Kemp caught two balls for 30 yards. 

Nebraska Cornhuskers Team Facts

• Nebraska has lost 10 of its last 11 games in November.
• Nebraska has covered the spread in 10 of its last 11 games as an underdog against non-AP-ranked teams.
• Six of Nebraska’s last seven November games as an underdog against non-AP-ranked teams have gone UNDER the total points line.

Wisconsin Badgers 

Over on the Badgers’ side, they won five of their first nine games this year as well and didn’t score especially well either. Wisconsin averaged 23.6 points per game in that stretch, with just eight touchdowns, 213.7 yards per game and four interceptions from the pass. The Badgers added 16 TDs and 162.0 yards per game on the ground. 

In their latest game against Northwestern, the Badgers were down 24-3 going into the final quarter. Wisconsin put up a cosmetic touchdown in the final frame for a 24-10 loss. Tanner Mordecai posted 255 yards passing, most going to Will Pauling with 96 receiving yards on 10 catches. Cade Yacamelli rushed for 47 yards on nine carries. 

Wisconsin Badgers Team Facts

• Wisconsin has won each of its last nine games against Nebraska.
• Wisconsin has failed to cover the spread in each of its last six games as a home favorite.
• Wisconsin has lost the first half in each of its last five games against conference opponents.
• Each of Wisconsin’s last five games at Camp Randall Stadium have gone UNDER the total points line.

Matchup/League Facts

• Wisconsin rank T25th among FBS teams for points allowed per game this season (19.6).
• Nebraska rank T18th among FBS teams for points allowed per game this season (18.2).
• Nebraska has suffered the equal-most road losses by a margin of five points or less of any FBS team this season (2).

ANDREW’S FREE PICK 

I’m going to stay with Wisconsin. Both teams are coming off pretty rough losses though, so there’s not a lot to get overexcited about here. That said, we should have a pretty competitive game and you could make a good case either way. The Badgers managed a tepid 341 yards on offense with 17 first downs in the loss to Northwestern, and couldn’t get the defense off the field after allowing 11-of-17 on third-down tries. That makes three straight losses for the Badgers, scoring 14 or fewer in each. 

As for Nebraska, they coughed up a whopping five turnovers in the Maryland game and couldn’t get the pass going on just 86 yards. The Cornhuskers have been at 17 or fewer points in three of their last four games, so this one’s looking like another low-scoring affair. I think Wisconsin can manage a cover pace but I’m not touching it.