Identifying keys to victory for Nebraska vs. Colorado

On Saturday, Nebraska and Colorado will meet for the second straight season. Last year, the Buffaloes defeated the Cornhuskers 36-14. On Thursday, HuskerOnline’s Sean Callahan explained how Nebraska can avoid a similar fate this weekend.

“I just think the plan with Shedeur Sanders — are they going to drop seven? Can they blitz him? When do they blitz him?” Callahan said. “North Dakota State didn’t really blitz him a lot. I do think Nebraska is going to come at him with more looks and defensive schemes that they haven’t shown yet, and their front four can get to him.

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“North Dakota State did a little bit, but this will be a tougher matchup. Nebraska has got to take advantage of it. The crowd noise also needs to play a factor to disrupt Colorado’s offensive line that doesn’t have a lot of continuity in terms of playing together.”

Colorado’s offensive line was its weakness last season. In its win over Nebraska, Colorado allowed eight sacks on quarterback Shedeur Sanders, losing 65 total yards. However, the Buffaloes beefed up its front five this offseason in the transfer portal.

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Colorado looked improved in the trenches in Week 1, only giving up one sack. Alas, Nebraska has a much more dangerous defensive front than NDSU. The Cornhuskers notched nine tackles for loss in their Week 1 blowout win over UTEP alone.

Of course, Nebraska’s defense will only be one half of the puzzle on Saturday.

“On offense, can Dylan Raiola just be the guy we saw last week?” Callahan said. “If he plays anywhere close to what we saw last week, Nebraska has a very, very good chance to win this game.

“They need to slow it down a little bit, though. Force Colorado to play more of a Big Ten game. This is not a track meet or seven-on-seven game. This needs to be an 11-on-11, physical football game that you play in the Big Ten conference.”

Freshman quarterback Dylan Raiola shined in his collegiate debut last week, tallying 238 passing yards and two touchdowns without throwing an interception. Nonetheless, there will be much more pressure on him to perform against the Buffaloes — the type of pressure that can cause some freshmen to fold.

Nebraska fans won’t have to wait long to see how their Cornhuskers respond to the bright lights. On Saturday, Nebraska and Colorado will face off at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on NBC.