David Braun Previews Northwestern's Upcoming Matchup with Nebraska

Gavin Dorsey

Oct 22, 2025, 19:40

Gavin Dorsey

Oct 22, 2025, 19:40

Updated at: Oct 22, 2025, 19:40

The Wildcats are off to a great start to the year, but Northwestern faces a plethora of talented opponents moving forward. In order to return to a bowl game for the second time in three years, Northwestern needs to win one of its final five games, and that road starts with the 5-2 Cornhuskers this Saturday.

Nebraska was ranked the No. 25 team in the nation a week ago, until a demoralizing 24-6 loss to Minnesota took the wind out of the Huskers' sails. The Golden Gophers held Nebraska's second-ranked passing offense in the conference to just 177 yards through the air and sacked quarterback Dylan Raiola nine times. The Huskers also totaled just 36 rushing yards.

Northwestern will look to replicate many aspects of Minnesota's game plan when the 'Cats head to Lincoln on Saturday. However, head coach David Braun acknowledged during his Monday press conference that he believes Nebraska's performance last weekend was an outlier. The third-year coach of the Wildcats was nothing but complimentary when discussing Matt Rhule and the Cornhuskers.

"Coach Rhule has done an exceptional job at Nebraska," Braun said. "Having had the chance to be around him for a couple of years, there's no one better in the country in terms of coaching fundamentals and technique. He's coached a lot of different positions, worn a lot of different hats and found a lot of success at a lot of different places."

Amid his third season leading the program, Rhule has compiled a 17-15 overall record and an 8-14 record in Big Ten play. Nebraska went 7-6 and defeated Boston College in the Pinstripe Bowl in 2024, returning the Huskers to the postseason for the first time since 2016.

Similarly, Braun's 'Cats are also 17-15 since 2023, including a 10-14 conference record and a Las Vegas Bowl win in his first season. Northwestern and Nebraska have similar paths forward in hoping 2025 will be the teams' respective breakout seasons for establishing long-term success.

Braun is well aware of the challenges Nebraska poses with Raiola, Big Ten leading rusher Emmett Johnson and a pair of dangerous wideouts, and he expects the Cornhuskers to test Northwestern's defense "in a lot of different ways."

Memorial Stadium, which seats over 85,000 fans and has sold out 407 consecutive games dating back to 1962, is a factor in its own right. Braun called the Huskers' home arguably the most hostile environment in all of college football.

"You've got to do a great job of handling your pre-snap process, specifically on offense," Braun said. "You've got to do a great job of responding as momentum shifts in the football game. Ultimately, in this league, it's going to take four quarters. We've got to be at our best in the fourth quarter, and what a great opportunity coming off of this week to challenge our team to improve in that area."

The 'Cats have won four consecutive games, including three in Big Ten play, but the upcoming schedule will put Northwestern to the test and determine whether Braun's squad is a conference contender or not.

"Momentum is real, but it's something that you can't take for granted," Braun said. "Why does this team have a little bit of momentum behind it right now? It's because we have been incredibly intentional about focusing on daily improvement. If we can focus on daily improvement, we're going to give ourselves a chance. But just because we've won a few games in a row doesn't mean that we're positioned to win this next game. We've got to get back to work."

David Braun Previews Northwestern's Upcoming Matchup with Nebraska