Game Week: Maryland

NEBRASKA vs. MARYLAND
Nov. 11, 2023 | MEMORIAL STADIUM
LINCOLN, NEB. | 11 AM CT

HUSKERS
Record: 5-4, 3-3 Big Ten
Last Game: at Michigan State, L, 20-17
Rankings: NR
Head Coach: Matt Rhule
Career/NU Record: 52-47 (8th Year)/5-4 (1st Year)
vs. Maryland: 0-0

TERRAPINS
Record: 5-4, 2-4 Big Ten
Last Game: vs. Penn State, L, 51-15
Rankings: NR
Head Coach: Mike Locksley
Career/MD Record: 28/58 (8th Year)/26-32 (5th Year)
vs. Nebraska: 0-1

SERIES HISTORY
All-Time Series: Nebraska leads, 2-0
At Lincoln: Nebraska leads, 1-0
Last Game: Nebraska 54-7 (2019)
Win Streak: Nebraska, 2 games

BROADCAST INFO
TV -- Peacock (Paul Burmeister, Kyle Rudolph)
RADIO NETWORK -- Huskers Radio Network
INTERNET RADIO -- Huskers.com
APP AUDIO -- Official Huskers App

The Matchup
Nebraska returns to Memorial Stadium for the first of two November home games, taking on Maryland on Saturday. Kickoff between the Huskers and Terrapins is set for shortly after 11 a.m. CT. The game will be broadcast on Peacock, NBC's streaming service. The game can be heard on the Huskers Radio Network, the official Huskers App and Huskers.com. Saturday's game will also be Nebraska's Military Appreciation and Veterans Day Salute game.

Nebraska enters the game with a 5-4 record and a 3-3 Big Ten Conference mark. The Huskers are coming off a 20-17 setback at Michigan State last Saturday. The Huskers were tied 10-10 at halftime, but 10 Michigan State points in an eight-minute span in the middle of the second half spelled the difference. The loss kept Nebraska in search of a sixth victory to gain bowl eligibility in the 2023 season.

Nebraska plays two of its three remaining games at home. The Huskers are 4-1 at Memorial Stadium this season and are looking for a fifth home victory for the first time since winning all seven home games in the 2016 campaign.

Maryland comes to Lincoln with a 5-4 record, including a 2-4 mark in Big Ten Conference play. The Terps opened the year with five straight victories, but have dropped their past four games, including a pair of losses to opponents ranked in the top 10.

Coach Mike Locksley's team is headlined by one of the Big Ten's most explosive offenses, as Maryland ranks third in the conference in total offense at nearly 400 yards per game. Maryland ranks second in the Big Ten in passing offense at 280.8 yards per game. Defensively, the Terps are stout against the run, allowing just 114.7 yards per game on the ground. 

Series History: Nebraska vs. Maryland
Saturday's meeting will be just the third all-time between the schools and the first since 2019.

• Maryland will visit Nebraska for the second time, with 19th-ranked Nebraska defeating the Terrapins, 28-7, in 2016.
• Nebraska's 54-7 victory at Maryland in 2019 is the Huskers' second-largest margin of victory in a Big Ten Conference game and its largest on the road. The 54 points are the most by Nebraska in a Big Ten road game.

Stuffing the Run
The Blackshirt defense has been dominant against the run. Nebraska owns the nation's most
improved run defense compared to 2022, allowing 111.9 fewer yards per game on the ground.

• Nebraska ranks second in the Big Ten and third nationally in rushing defense, allowing 77.2 rushing yards per game. 
• Nebraska has allowed just 16 rushing plays of 10 or more yards, the fewest in the nation.
• Nebraska has held eight opponents to fewer than 100 rushing yards, including five to less than 60 yards–Minnesota (55 yards), Colorado (58), Northern Illinois (26), Louisiana Tech (46), and Illinois (21). Only second-ranked Michigan has surpassed the century mark on the ground.
• Nebraska has held eight opponents to fewer than 100 yards rushing in a season for the first time since holding eight foes to under 100 rushing yards in 2009. The last time Nebraska held nine opponents to under 100 rushing yards was in 1999.
• The four-game streak to start the season was the longest stretch of holding opponents to 100 yards or less rushing since limiting five straight opponents to less than 100 rushing yards in the last two games of the 2003 season and the first three games in 2004.
• Nebraska's four-game streak of holding its opponent to less than 60 yards on the ground was its longest since achieving that milestone in the first four games of the 1999 season.
• Nebraska has 28 sacks, including season-high totals of eight at Colorado and against
  Northwestern. The 3.11 sacks per game ranks second in the Big Ten and 13th nationally.
  Nebraska's season sack total is already its best since 2019, and the Huskers are on track for their first 30-sack season since 2013.
• The eight sacks against Colorado and Northwestern were the most by a Nebraska team since the Huskers recorded 9.0 sacks against Texas in the 2009 Big 12 Championship Game.
• Nebraska had 13 tackles for loss against Northwestern, its most since also posting 13 at Illinois in 2019. The last time Nebraska had more than 13 TFL was 16 at Michigan in 2013. 

Defense Keeping Opponents Off Scoreboard Early in Games
Nebraska's defense has been strong throughout the season, and has been at its best at the
outset of games, making it very difficult for opponents to score in the first quarter.

• Nebraska has shut out the opponent in the first quarter in five games this season, holding Minnesota, Colorado, Louisiana Tech, Illinois and Purdue without a first-quarter point. Dating back to last season, Nebraska has shut out eight of its past 13 opponents in the first quarter. Nebraska has allowed a total of 20 first-quarter points this season.
• Michigan State was the first opponent to score a first-quarter point in Nebraska's four road games this season.
• In its last six games against Big Ten West foes dating back to last year, NU has allowed a total of 16 first-half points. The Huskers shut out Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa in the first half in their final three divisional games in 2022. This year, NU allowed three points before half at Minnesota, seven at Illinois and six vs. Northwestern, before pitching a first-half shutout against Purdue on Oct. 28. In those same seven Big Ten West games, Nebraska has allowed just three first-quarter points (FG by Northwestern). 

Running Attack Powers Husker Offense
In addition to the success of shutting down the opponents' running game, the Nebraska offense has relied on a powerful running game in 2023. The Huskers are averaging 185.4 rushing yards per game to lead the Big Ten and rank 32nd nationally. 

• Nebraska rushed for 312 yards in its victory over Louisiana Tech, marking its first 300-yard
  rushing game since running for 427 yards against Northwestern in 2021.
• The Huskers rushed for 200 yards in three straight games against Colorado, Northern Illinois and Louisiana Tech, marking NU's first time with 200-plus rushing yards in three straight games since 2018 (Northwestern, Minnesota, Bethune-Cookman).
• Nebraska topped 180 rushing yards in each of the first four games, its longest such streak since having five straight games with more than 180 rushing yards in the middle of the 2018 season.
• Quarterback Heinrich Haarberg (157 yards) and running back Anthony Grant (135 yards) each topped the century mark against Louisiana Tech. It marked the first time Nebraska had two players crack 100 rushing yards in the same game since QB Adrian Martinez and RB Dedrick Mills did so against Rutgers in 2020.
• Nebraska has eight rushing plays of 30 yards or more which is tied for 17th nationally. The Huskers had four 30-plus yard runs against Louisiana Tech.
• Nebraska ranks as one of just 12 teams in the nation to rank in the top 35 nationally in both rushing offense and rushing defense, including just Nebraska and Rutgers in the Big Ten.
• Nebraska averages 108.2 more rushing yards per game than it allows to the opposition.
  Nebraska is one of eight teams in the country and two in the Big Ten (Penn State) with a positive rushing differential of at least 100 yards per game.
• Nebraska's ability to control the football was evident against Purdue when the Huskers opened the scoring with a 15-play, 87-yard drive that consumed 8:52. That was Nebraska's longest drive of the season in terms of plays, yards and time, and it was the longest drive in time for Nebraska since a 9:24 scoring drive against Northwestern in 2017.

Newcomers Make Immediate Impact for Huskers
Nebraska has featured many new faces in prominent roles in the 2023 season. A total of 24 players have made their first starts at NU in 2023, including seven players in their first year in the program.

• Three true freshmen have made at least three starts, place-kicker Tristan Alvano (9), defensive end Cameron Lenhardt (3) and receiver Malachi Coleman (3).
• Lenhardt was only the ninth Husker true freshman (excluding kickers) to start a season opener since freshmen regained eligibility in 1972.
• Lenhardt joined Maliek Collins as the only true freshmen defensive linemen to start a game for Nebraska since freshmen regained eligibility in 1972. Collins started one game as a true freshman during the 2013 season, earning a start in the 2014 Gator Bowl.
• Lenhardt made his presence known early in the season, particularly at Colorado. He recorded 2.0 sacks against the Buffs, becoming the first Husker true freshman with two sacks in a game since Barry Turner had two sacks at Baylor in 2005. Lenhardt missed two games because of injury at mid-season but has returned to full speed in recent weeks, and has 14 tackles, 3.0 sacks and 4.5 TFL this season.
• Lenhardt is one of four true freshmen to see action in the defensive front seven. Princewill Umanmielen has made 15 tackles, including seven against Northwestern. He has 3.5 TFL and had his first career sack against Northwestern. Riley Van Poppel split a sack at Colorado and had a key goal-line stop at Illinois, and Sua Lefotu recovered a fourth-quarter fumble against the Buffs.
• Alvano handles the place-kicking duties and shares kickoff chores. The Omaha native has made six field goals and all 23 of his PAT attempts, while adding nine touchbacks on 20 kickoffs. Alvano connected on a 55-yard field goal against Purdue, the longest by Nebraska since 2008 and tied for the second-longest in school history.
• True freshman receiver Malachi Coleman has started three games and has four receptions this season. He had a 44-yard TD reception in the fourth quarter against Northwestern.
• True freshman receiver Jaylen Lloyd has played in seven games this season. He made the most of his second career reception, hauling in a 73-yard touchdown catch in the second quarter against Purdue to give Nebraska a 14-0 lead.
• Redshirt freshman running back Emmett Johnson has earned starts in three of the past games. He rushed for a career-best 76 yards on 13 carries against Purdue, while running for a gamesealing 29-yard touchdown. He also had 73 yards on 12 carries against Northwestern, and a team-high 57 yards and a touchdown at Michigan State.

This Week's Numbers
3 -- Saturday will mark just the third all-time matchup between Nebraska and Maryland
and only the second in Lincoln. The previous matchup at Memorial Stadium was a
28-7 Nebraska win in 2016. 
8 -- Eight of Nebraska's nine opponents have been held to less than 100 rushing yards.
Nebraska last held eight foes under 100 rushing yards in 2009, and has not held nine
opponents to less than 100 yards on the ground in this century.
46 -- Nebraska has had 46 different players start at least one game on offense or defense
this season. That includes 26 players on offense and 20 on defense. Tommi Hill has
started games on both sides of the ball.