Friday Flakes: Next Season’s Nebraska Football Schedule Should Temper Expectations Quite a Bit – But Also An Opportunity
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I believe we should expect a better and improved team from Nebraska in 2026 especially compared to the end of 2025.
I would also go as far to say that if Matt Rhule finds a way to increasing the win total (8 wins in 2026 regular season) then I think we should feel like the program is on track. If you have not taken a peak at next year’s schedule then you might think we should expect 9 or 10 wins since this is Matt Rhule’s fourth season.
That is not the case and I will post an illustrative tweet below. As the tweets says, Nebraska could start 5-0 and fail to make a bowl game.
The 5-0 start does make a few assumptions such as wins over a Pat Fitzgerald Michigan State team and a Maryland team with a talented second year quarterback in Malik Washington.
Sigh.
Then you get Indiana and Oregon. Likely losses. Then here might be the most important stretch of the season against Washington, at Illinois and then at Rutgers.
Washington has one of the best quarterbacks in the country in Desmond Williams Jr. Sigh.
Illinois is coached by Bret Bielema. Sigh.
Going east to Rutgers is never good and this has the feeling of a Friday night game.
Then there’s Ohio State. Loss.
Then at Iowa which until I see differently they will win that football game.
So if you are expecting to get to a bowl game then you are looking at the Rutgers game as win number six.
Then if you are wanting more than six wins, where are you going to get them? Indiana, Washington, Ohio State, Oregon, Illinois and/or Iowa?
This isn’t insurmountable. Like you could talk yourself into Washington and Illinois. Maybe even Iowa if you are throwing a coin into a wishing well.
The other side of the coin is that a difficult schedule like Nebraska football has in front of it is also a great opportunity. A lot of chances to pick up wins against real good football programs. The team is not looking like it is going to repeat as off-season champions and expectations are lower than they have been in several years. Seems like a perfect time to surprise some people.
I hope and expect that this football team is going to be much better but we might not end up seeing it in the win column like we really would want. Then we can argue based off of the eye test.
Fun. I can’t wait.
SPORTS! SPORTS! SPORTS! SPORTS! SPORTS!
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“STICK TO SPORTS!” Nah.
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