Nebraska Cornhuskers Defeat Colorado Buffaloes, 45-17, In Big 12 Finale

Unfortunately for the Colorado Buffaloes, the Nebraska Cornhuskers put a stop to any good feelings the team from Boulder had before kickoff. With both teams playing their Big 12 regular season finales, the Huskers dominated the Buffs, 45-17. Colorado interim head coach Brian Cabral finished the regular season with a 1-2 record, and the Buffs had a 5-7 record. The loss prevented the Buffs from becoming bowl-eligible (Air Force is the only FCS team in Colorado to be bowl-eligible). The Huskers now head to the Big 12 championship game at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas next week. They will face either Oklahoma State or Texas A&M.

With Nebraska's regular quarterback, Taylor Martinez, benched for the game, Cody Green started at quarterback, but it was running back Rex Burkhead who took control of the offense, throwing for two touchdowns and rushing for one. He had 101 yards on the ground. 

Colorado quarterback Cody Hawkins became the all-time leader in passing yards for the university, passing for 7,409 yards in his career. However, it was hardly Hawkins' best day, going 10-of-26 with 163 yards and two touchdowns. He also threw two interceptions in the third quarter, which eventually turned into Nebraska touchdowns.

Buffs running back Rodney Stewart finished with 88 yards on 20 carries.

While Nebraska continues to play on, Colorado now gets ready for an intense recruiting season and to prepare for their move to the Pac-12 in 2011.

Colorado Buffaloes Vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers: Nebraksa Leads 17-3 At The Half

The Colorado Buffaloes are headed to the locker room at halftime down 17-3 to the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The Colorado offense hasn't been able to get anything going on offense and has been hurt by some missed penalty calls on the defensive side. The Buffaloes only managed 85 total yards on the first half, running for 59 and throwing for 26 on a single completion. 

Nebraska has 219 total yards with 159 coming on the ground. Running back Rex Burkhead has totaled 100 yards in the first half and threw for a 26 yard touchdown pass with about a minute remaining in the second quarter. Wide receiver Brandon Kinnie clearly pushed off on the play but the penalty was not called. 

The Buffaloes will need to have a strong first drive out of the half to make this a game, and Cody Hawkins has to be able to complete a few passes. As he was entering the locker room Brian Cabral told the reporter that the Buffaloes "have [the Cornhuskers] right where they want them". We will see if that is true by the way Colorado performs in the last two quarters in the Big 12 conference.

Colorado Buffaloes Vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers: Rex Burkhead Gives Nebraska 10-0 Lead

The Nebraska Cornhuskers have taken a 10-0 lead over the Colorado Buffaloes early in the second quarter. Rex Burkhead plunged for 2 yards to give Nebraska the first touchdown of the game. The Buffaloes have had two possessions and have only managed one first down as Cody Hawkins struggles to find open receivers amongst the tough Nebraska secondary. The Buffaloes have only 10 yards of total offense so far.

The Cornhuskers have ran the ball well and completed a few key passes to spark their two scoring drives. They haven't been afraid to come out in the wildcat formation, which is something that Colorado made need to try in order to move the ball. Nebraska has 128 yards on the ground already, with 75 coming from Rex Burkhead. In order to make this a game, Colorado is going to have to force Nebraska to throw the ball with 3rd stringer Cody Green at quarterback and their number one receiver Niles Paul out for the game.

Colorado Buffaloes vs. Nebraska Cornhuskers - Keys to the Game for the Buffs

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Penalties, Turnovers & Third Down Conversions

Last week, Colorado had two penalties, no turnovers and was 9-14 on third down. It was their best performance in all three categories this year. Nebraska ranks 109th in penalties averaging 7.8 a game, the Buffs rank 82nd averaging 6.4. Nebraska ranks 48th in turnover margin, the Buffs 38th. Nebraska ranks 49th in third down conversions, the Buffs rank 23rd, converting on almost 47% of their third downs. If Colorado can limit the mistakes and convert at a better rate than the Huskers like they have done all year, the CU should be in the game all the way until the end.

Trenches

When you play the seventh ranked rushing offense and the ninth ranked defense, you know Colorado will have to play well in the trenches to win. The Buffs’ line has played great the last two weeks with huge rushing outputs and most important, only allowing one sack. Cody Hawkins has had time to throw and if they can keep Nebraska off of him today, Cody has shown he can be successful. If you can point towards a slight weakness on this Nebraska defense, it is their defensive line so if OG Ryan Miller and OT Nate Solder can move the Huskers front seven, Rodney Stewart should have some success.

The Buffs’ defense has been excellent against the run the last two weeks. They have also been able to get to the quarterback frequently. The last two weeks, Colorado has sacked the quarterback 14 times.

Limit the Big Play Early, Make Someone Other Than Helu and Burkhead Beat You

Regardless of who is at quarterback, Nebraska still has two big play makers in running backs Roy Helu and Rex Burkhead. Helu has averaged 6.9 a carry this year while Burkhead has averaged 5.8. The good news is starting QB Cody Green is not nearly the spread option threat Taylor Martinez is, allowing the defense to key more on the running back and less on the quarterback. This year, Martinez has totaled 974 yards with a 7.3 a carry average while Green has only averaged 2.8 per carry and 75 yards. Considering that the Huskers #1 receiver in Niles Paul is out of the game as well, Colorado should be able to load the box and make Cody Green beat them.

But the Buffs defense will need to sure up defending the middle of the field. Last week, Kansas State exposed the inexperience in the Buffs’ secondary with their ability to attack the middle of the field with slot receivers and tight ends. Defensive backs Tyler Sandersfield, Ray Polk and Terrel Smith will have to play better today.

Energy Level

Colorado has played at a higher energy level the past two weeks under Brian Cabral, they have been physically dominant and have shown more emotion than they ever did under Dan Hawkins. That same energy level and confidence needs to transfer on the road. We will know if Brian Cabral is head coach material if he can get his team to respond on the road like he did at Folsom. Cabral has highlighted this game like McCartney did, has expressed its importance, hopefully his team buys in.

Challenge Upfield

I can see both teams loading up the box in an attempt to stop the run. The first team, in my opinion, to have success challenging the opposition downfield and loosening up the line of scrimmage will win this game. If the Buffs get too conservative, it might play right into the hands of the Huskers’ defense. Colorado has play makers on the edge in Scotty McKnight, Toney Clemons and Paul Richardson. If they can get a guy like Paul Richardson going early, the field should open up.

Colorado Vs. Nebraska: Taylor Martinez To Sit, Cody Green To Start For The Cornhuskers

Bo Pelini made official what we all expected was coming. Cody Green will start at quarterback against the Buffaloes on Friday while Tayor Martinez will sit. Martinez has been hampered by a sore ankle over the last few weeks and he re-aggravated the same injury against Texas A&M. Martinez was involved in a much publicized dressing down from Pelini after returning to the sidelines from the locker room. Rumors swirled early in the week that Martinez may be leaving the team, but they were quickly shot down by all official sources. 

Cody Green has thrown for 215 yards while running for 75 in his brief playing time this year. He does not have the game breaking speed of Martinez and the Cornhusker offense has struggled to put up points with him at the helm.

The Huskers received more bad news early today when they learned that leading wide receiver Niles Paul would be out for the game against Colorado and a possible Big 12 championship appearance.

Colorado Buffaloes Vs Nebraska Cornhuskers: The Buffs' Final Big 12 Game

(Sports Network) - The 16th-ranked Nebraska Cornhuskers and the Colorado Buffaloes are set to close out the regular season with a game that is important to both squads.

This season has clearly been a disappointing one for Colorado, which got off to a 3-6 start. The sixth loss was the result of an epic collapse against Kansas, and Dan Hawkins was relieved of his head coaching duties after that demoralizing defeat. To the credit of interim head coach Brian Cabral, the Buffaloes have put together back-to-back victories, including last weekend's 44-36 decision over Kansas State. Put simply, a win this weekend would make Colorado eligible for a bowl bid, something that would have seemed highly unlikely a few weeks ago.

"How 'bout them Buffaloes!" exclaimed Cabral after the triumph over Kansas State. "I couldn't be more proud of our players and coaches by the way that they have responded the last two weeks. You couldn't have asked for more."

As for Nebraska, it is deadlocked atop the Big 12 North Division standings with Missouri at 5-2, and the club is 9-2 overall. Fortunately for the Cornhuskers, they beat Missouri in late October to earn the tiebreaker, so a victory over Colorado on Friday will send Bo Pelini's team to the Big 12 Conference Championship Game. Last weekend, Nebraska put forth its worst offensive showing of the season in a 9-6 loss to Texas A&M, a disappointing setback to say the least.

"The game's irrelevant," said Pelini, when asked what he told his team after the Texas A&M loss. "At the end we still control our destiny. If we take care of business next Friday we'll give ourselves a chance at the league championship. That's our main focus anyway."

Nebraska owns a 48-18-2 series advantage over Colorado, which includes two straight wins over the Buffaloes.

Judging by the fact that Colorado racked up 44 points against Kansas State last weekend, the Buffaloes obviously played well offensively. They finished with 476 total yards, and the fact that they had over 200 yards both rushing and receiving speaks to the tremendous balance they were able to achieve. Cody Hawkins completed 14-of-25 passes for 203 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions, and the fact that he wasn't sacked at all was a credit to both Hawkins' quick delivery and the offensive line. Scotty McKnight had two touchdown catches, and tailback Rodney Scott rushed for 195 yards and two scores on 34 carries.

"Give me 40 [carries] if you can," said Stewart, who is more than willing to carry the load.

Defensively, Colorado yielded 411 yards to Kansas State, and the fact that the Buffaloes gave up just 101 rushing yards on 38 carries was highly impressive. The pass defense wasn't nearly as good, permitting 18.2 yards per completion, and the fact that Kansas State finished with five offensive touchdowns is disappointing to fans of the Buffaloes. Still, the result was a victory, and even the defense can be proud of that.

Overall this season, Colorado is generating 24.8 ppg and 368.5 total ypg, average numbers for a rather mediocre offense. Hawkins has thrown for 1,384 yards and 12 touchdowns against three interceptions, and he will remain under center for the rest of the season since Tyler Hansen is gone due to injury. Stewart has rushed for 1,230 yards and 10 touchdowns, as he has quietly had a phenomenal season. As for McKnight, the club's top receiver, he has posted 47 catches for 611 yards and seven touchdowns.

Opponents are posting 29.5 ppg and 399.4 total ypg against Colorado, which is allowing fewer than four yards per rushing attempt compared to 11.9 yards per pass completion. With 19 takeaways and 33 sacks, there have been some big plays made by the defense. Josh Hartigan is a player to watch, as he has seven sacks to his credit.

Nebraska is averaging 32.7 ppg and 425.9 total ypg this season, numbers that the players and coaches can be proud of. A freshman has been the catalyst for the Cornhuskers, as quarterback Taylor Martinez has thrown for 1,435 yards and nine touchdowns while also rushing for 974 yards and 12 scores. Unfortunately, he injured his ankle last time out and will likely miss Friday's tilt. Cody Green will take the reins, and he has thrown just 35 passes this season, an obvious concern heading into the bout with Colorado. Green will likely hand off to Roy Helu Jr. often, as the tailback has rushed for 1,043 yards with 10 touchdowns and is a big-time performer.

Colorado has been hot offensively the last few weeks, but the Nebraska defense is more than capable of slowing down the Buffaloes. The Cornhuskers are allowing only 16.7 ppg and 294.5 total ypg, and they actually allow more rushing yards per contest (151.4 ypg) than passing yards (143.1 ypg). Pelini's troops have recovered just three fumbles in 11 games, but they have intercepted 16 passes and registered 29 sacks. Lavonte David has recorded 120 tackles, including 14 TFLs and six sacks.

Neither Nebraska nor Texas A&M was able to score a touchdown in last week's 9-6 affair. The Cornhuskers posted just 306 total yards, four fewer yards than they allowed, and both Martinez and Green threw interceptions in that game.

Without Martinez, Nebraska may struggle a bit early on, but expect the Cornhuskers to take care of business against Colorado and advance to the Big 12 title game.