This week is most definitely the “Show-Me” week in college football.
We’ve come to the point in the schedule where everybody has entered, or is entering, conference play. Several teams, including the Missouri and Nebraska, are out to earn a little respect by taking on ranked conference foes.
Tomorrow night, the Tigers and Cornhuskers will do just that when they face off in Columbia on ESPN’s Thursday Night Football.
Here is the need-to-know info for Thursday, from our Week 6 college football TV schedule and point spreads post:
#21 Nebraska at #24 Missouri
- Nebraska-Missouri Date: Thursday, October 8th
- Nebraska-Missouri Kickoff Time: 9:00 ET
- Nebraska-Missouri TV: ESPN
- Nebraska-Missouri Point Spread: Nebraska -2.5
- Nebraska-Missouri Pick by Jerod: Nebraska -2.5
Talk about a team that hasn’t proven anything yet. Missouri is 4-0 against one of the softest schedules in the country. The Tigers own unimpressive wins over Illinois, Bowling Green, Nevada and Furman.
Now enter a Nebraska team, led by fiery coach Bo Pelini, that lost by a point at No. 5 Virginia Tech, and has laid waste to the three Sun Belt teams in Florida Atlantic (49-3), Arkansas State (38-9), and Louisiana-Lafayette (55-0). Just for comparisons sake, No. 4 LSU beat the Ragin’ Cajuns 31-3.
Nebraska leads the nation in scoring defense, but the Blackshirts will be tested against a Missouri offense that ranks 16th in the country.
Missouri quarterback Blaine Gabbert, a St. Louis native who originally committed to Nebraska, has yet to throw an interception this season against 11 touchdowns. He had his breakout game in his first start, a 37-9 win over Illinois. The sophomore threw for 319 yards and three touchdowns while running for 39 yards and another score in the victory.
The Gabbert family makes for an interesting story line by itself. The 6-foot-5 Blaine is at Mizzou after spurning the Huskers. His younger brother, Tyler, a high school senior, has committed to Nebraska, making for a bit of a split household. Tyler’s commitment did not stop Missouri coach Gary Pinkel from paying a visit to St. Louis last week to watch Tyler’s Parkway West team play.
Nebraska has a good quarterback already in place with Zac Lee. He’s completing 65 percent of his passes with seven touchdowns.
Adding balance to the Huskers 19th-ranked offense is running back Roy Helu, who has 464 rushing yards with five scores and a 6.4-yards per carry average.
Strength against strength is a theme to go with in this one with Missouri’s high-powered offense against Nebraska’s shut-down defense.
But it could be Nebraska’s own potent offense that is the difference in this one.
Nebraska-Missouri Prediction: Nebraska 34 | Missouri 28
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* – Bo Pelini photo credit: Sam Greenwood/Getty Images via Zimbio.com
