TLDR: Nebraska has spent the first half of the season beating everybody it was supposed to beat and blowing the 1 game that would have changed the conversation. Washington shows up in Lincoln on Saturday, October 31, unranked, 1-3 in the Big Ten, and still not sure who its quarterback is.
Nebraska (5-1) hosts Washington (4-3, 1-3 Big Ten) after letting a 17-6 4th-quarter lead get away in a 20-17 home loss to Indiana. Washington's season depends on whether Demond Williams Jr. comes back from his rib injury. He's listed as unlikely, and the Huskies beat Purdue 38-26 behind backup Elijah Brown. Neither team plays again first, and no odds have been posted yet.
Everything here starts under center for Washington. Demond Williams Jr. hurt his ribs diving for extra yards late in the first half of the 41-24 loss to Iowa, and Jedd Fisch said the following Monday he didn't expect Williams to play that week. He didn't. Elijah Brown got the start at Purdue, and Washington's latest injury report still lists Williams as questionable and unlikely to dress against Nebraska. Any word that he's healthy changes this game. Until then, plan on Brown.
The Huskies won that Purdue game 38-26 on the road, which is the best thing they have going right now. Before it they'd lost 3 straight, and all 3 were close or ugly: 27-24 at home to Minnesota, 25-21 at USC, then the 41-24 beating by Iowa at home. The backfield has been thin for most of the year too. Running backs Jonah Limar and Quaron Carr both had surgery back in September and are still out, and safety C. Christian is done for the season with an Achilles injury. Neither team plays again before Halloween, and with no board posted yet there's no price to talk about.
Nebraska comes in 5-1 and looked good most of the way. The Huskers beat Bowling Green 56-7, North Dakota 34-7, Michigan State 31-13 on the road and Maryland 48-23. Then Indiana came to Lincoln and Nebraska led 17-6 in the 4th quarter before giving it away. Josh Hoover's 44-yard touchdown to Nick Marsh on 4th-and-1 won it 20-17 for the Hoosiers. That was the program's 30th straight loss to a ranked opponent.
That streak doesn't apply here, since Washington isn't ranked. Nebraska is now the team expected to win, and it has handled those games easily this year. The question the Indiana game raised is about the 4th quarter. The Huskers lost an 11-point lead at home, and Washington has played 2 of its 3 losses within a single score. If this one is close late, Nebraska has to show it can close out a game.
Nebraska's injury report is short: tight end C. Nelson is questionable with a leg issue. Washington's is longer and includes the most important position on the field. The Huskies have two weeks to figure out Williams, and Nebraska has two weeks to work out what went wrong in the 4th quarter against Indiana. Whichever side settles its question first probably wins this one.
Washington vs. Nebraska: Polymarket Odds & Prediction (Oct. 31) — Washington Brings A Quarterback Question To Lincoln On Halloween · Barstool Bush
North Dakota34-7