Cornhuskers vs Bruins NCAA Football Spread/Handicapping
This game represents an excellent Week 2 match-up in college football. Over the past couple seasons under head coach Bo Pelini, Nebraska has been a very good football program that hasn’t quite been able to get over the hump.
#17 Nebraska Cornhuskers at UCLA Bruins
Saturday, Sept. 8, 2012, 7:30 pm EST
Venue: Rose Bowl, Pasadena CA
Gambling Odds from Sportsbook.com:
Spread: Nebraska -5.5, UCLA +5.5
MoneyLine: Nebraska -225, UCLA +185
Over/Under: 60.5
In Pasadena, the Rick Neuheisel era finally ended for the Bruins, and a couple young players give fans who don’t like the USC Trojans reason for optimism.
If UCLA’s offense can perform this week like it did last week against Rice, the Cornhuskers could be in for a really tough game.
Quarterback Brett Hundley looked outstanding in his first start wearing the powder blue and gold, supporting him was RB Johnathan Franklin, who simply took 15 carries for a whopping 214 yards and three TDs.
Hundley also had a long run and the Bruins’ backfield shredded Rice en route to a 49-24 victory in Houston.
The Huskers must find a way to keep Hundley and Franklin contained. There are other players on the UCLA offense – TE Joe Fauria and WR Shaquelle Evans, for two examples – but by bottling up the redshirt freshman Hundley and senior Franklin, you take most of the sting out of the Bruins’ attack. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
While the Nebraska “D” must be up for this game, there is plenty of excitement in Lincoln also about how their offensive game-plan is shaping up; enigmatic junior QB Taylor Martinez looked fantastic in a 49-20 spanking of Southern Miss. Martinez, known generally for his scrambling and elusiveness, threw for 354 yards and an uncanny five TDs.
If Martinez can perform half as well as that consistently in 2012, Nebraska will be a force in the Big Ten.
Nebraska also has RB Rex Burkhead, who is one of the more underrated stars in the college game, and TE Kyler Reed, but the Huskers success this week and throughout the balance of the 2012 campaign is truly on Martinez’s back.
Martinez has been prone to injury and inconsistency, which is definitely a concern. Assuming Nebraska gets the reliable pivot play, with plenty of run game to supplement the attack and the defense shows up, Nebraska should be able to take care of UCLA.
Yet, the Bruins believe they can upset the Huskers. If the combination of Hundley and Franklin can re-capture the Week 1 magic, it will be hard to keep the Bruins out of the endzone.
California football fans are traditionally pretty laid back (I mean, there isn’t even an NFL team in Los Angeles!) but the Rose Bowl ought to be raucous with a top Big Ten team like Nebraska coming to town early in the season.
You don’t always know what you’re going to get out of Martinez, but I’m not gutsy enough to call a UCLA upset here. Nebraska should win a close contest.
#17 Nebraska vs. UCLA Score Prediction: Nebraska 35, UCLA 31
