Nebraska Cornhuskers vs. Fresno State Bulldogs Game Preview

Nebraska hits the road for its first away game of the 2014 season. The Huskers will face the Fresno State Bulldogs in a very late (primarily if you're on the East Coast) matchup.

After barely beating McNeese State 31-24, this will be a big game for Nebraska. Looking to get the season back on track, the Huskers are hoping for a much more definitive victory over the Bulldogs.

The two programs have only met once before in 2011. Nebraska won at home 42-29. An impressive moment from that previous matchup was when running back Ameer Abdullah made a 100-yard kickoff return to secure the victory. Three years later, Abdullah and his team are hoping for another win over Fresno State.

Can Nebraska bounce back after the disappointing performance against McNeese State?

Where: Bulldog Stadium; Fresno, California 

When: Saturday, September 13, at 10:30 p.m. ET

Watch: CBS Sports Network

Listen: Husker Sports Network or Sirius Channel 108, XM 199

Betting Line via Odds Shark: Nebraska (-10)

Nebraska's Keys to Victory

Nati Harnik/Associated Press

1. Stop Josh Harper

After McNeese State, it seems likely that Fresno State's game plan will involve a lot of Josh Harper. After all, the Huskers were lucky at how often the Cowboys dropped passes. Had they not, McNeese State could have easily ran away with the game.

Now that Randy Gregory is (likely) back, there will be less pressure on the defense to make up for his absence. Plus, Fresno State knows Gregory can stop the run. So the Huskers should expect the ball to be put in the air and should plan to keep an eye on Harper.

2. Put the Ball in the Air

It would be easy to just let Ameer Abdullah run the ball, and the Huskers likely will. However, Nebraska can't forget to put the ball in the air too.

Quarterback Tommy Armstrong wasn't the most consistent with his passes against McNeese State. Facing Fresno State though? Armstrong should get some confidence back.

According to Robert Kuwada of The Fresno Bee, the Bulldogs rank 118th of 127 in the FBS in passing defense. The team has been allowing 346 yards per game. With his connection and friendship with wide receiver Jordan Westerkamp, there's no reason not to pass the ball.

Plus, Westerkamp has proved he can catch basically anything. The Huskers will have to keep an eye out for free safety Derron Smith, but beyond that, Armstrong has a good crew of receivers and tight ends to throw to if he can stay confident.

3. Eliminate Mental Mistakes

Against McNeese State, the Huskers were clear they were their own worst enemy.

"We shot ourselves in the foot time after time after time," Bo Pelini said after the McNeese State game, per Huskers.com. "Sometimes it didn't hurt us where it should have hurt us in a couple of other instances. At the end of the day, we got outcoached, we got out played, and like I said before, we were lucky to win the football game."

Going forward, Nebraska needs to eliminate those silly errors. To win going forward, the Huskers have to play sharp and eliminate things like turnovers. There's not much room for error at this point.

Fresno State's Keys to Victory

Mark J. Terrill/Associated Press

1. Throw the Ball

Nebraska struggled to defend the pass against McNeese State, which means Fresno State should take note. After all, why run it if you know the Huskers secondary may struggle?

Plus, Fresno State has wide receiver Josh Harper. In 2013, he helped the Bulldogs become the fifth team in FBS history to have three 1,000-yard receivers, per USA Today. The two players who helped Harper achieve that—Davante Davis and Isaiah Burse—are now gone, but that doesn't mean Harper still isn't an asset to this team.

In 2014, he's had 12 receptions for 139 yards, per ESPN.com. He hasn't had a touchdown yet, but after having 13 in 2013, it feels like that's on the horizon. Fresno State should take advantage of Harper and the Huskers' struggles at defending the pass and put the ball in the air.

2. Put Pressure on Tommy Armstrong

Against McNeese State, Armstrong knew he made it easy on the defense. The Cowboys were reading his eyes, which is something Armstrong knew he could improve upon.

"You’ve just got to realize, when you know that’s going to be open, don’t look at it,” Armstrong said, per the Omaha World-Herald's Jon Nyatawa. “I stared down a few receivers here and there. And got lucky on certain things.”

If Fresno State wants similar results, pressure will be key. Armstrong will likely begin to stare down his receivers more and more in those instances, so that can work in the Bulldogs' favor. Armstrong does have a good offensive line in front of him, but if Fresno State can shake that a bit, it will likely also shake Armstrong.

3. Take Advantage of the Home Field

This is Nebraska's first away game of the season. In addition, it's also being played at 7:30 p.m. PT (or 9:30 p.m. CT). That's going to feel late for the Huskers.

While Nebraska will do all it can to adjust before Saturday, there's something to be said about playing at home and in one's time zone. Fresno State can definitely take advantage of that.

If Bulldog Stadium is rocking, it can absolutely have an affect on how the Huskers play. Armstrong is still young, and despite having some experience, Bulldog Stadium is new to him. The crowd and environment can have as much of an effect on this game as anything else.

Nebraska Players to Watch

Nati Harnik/Associated Press

Tommy Armstrong (QB, Soph.)

The McNeese State matchup was not a great one for Tommy Armstrong. However, the sophomore has accepted responsibility for many of the mistakes he made and is ready to move forward.

“I knew going into the game they were going to read my eyes,” Armstrong said, per Jon Nyatawa of the Omaha World-Herald. “I let that get away from me a few times, and it came back to haunt me.”

He went on to say that he knows it's all about preparation. He does plan to put in the time. “I just have to take it to the film room and learn from it,” he said, per Nyatawa.

Fresno State will be a good opportunity for the sophomore to bounce back. With Jordan Westerkamp and Ameer Abdullah by his side, Armstrong has a lot of potential against the Bulldog defense.

Randy Gregory (DE, Jr.)

Looks like defensive end Randy Gregory will be back on the field against Fresno State. "Randy ran yesterday," Pelini said, per Michael Bruntz of 247Sports.com. "He looked great yesterday, and he looked great today."

After an old injury resurfaced, Gregory was sidelined for most of the Florida Atlantic game as well as the McNeese State game. While the defense did its best to step up in his absence, the void left by Gregory was noticeable.

If he is back on the field against the Bulldogs, all eyes will be on him. The All-American definitely has plenty of folks curious about how he'll be able to contribute going forward.

Fresno State Players to Watch

Rick Bowmer/Associated Press

Josh Harper (WR, Sr.)

Josh Harper hasn't had a touchdown catch in 2014, but it feels like he might be due for one. After all, the senior had 13 in 2013.

Fresno State has now lost to both USC (52-13) and Utah (59-27) on the road, but the Bulldogs get the Huskers at home. For Harper, home-field advantage may make the difference.

Regardless, the wide receiver is talented. He had 1,011 yards on 79 receptions in 2013, per ESPN.com. If given the chance, Harper will take it. He's going to be someone worth watching for the Nebraska secondary.

Derron Smith (FS, Sr.)

Per GoBulldogs.com, Derron Smith enters the 2014 season with 14 career interceptions. That's the most of any FBS player returning this year. For Tommy Armstrong, Smith should definitely be a concern.

In 2013, Smith boasted 87 tackles, four sacks and eight tackles for loss. As reported by Mike Huguenin for NFL.com, he was considering entering the NFL draft after last season but decided to stick around for his senior season. Gil Brant, NFL Media senior draft analysis, now projects him to be selected in the first round of the 2015 draft.

Smith will definitely try to wreak havoc on Armstrong and his passing game. The one advantage for the Huskers is that he hasn't had a single sack yet in 2014. Regardless, Nebraska is going to need to keep an eye on Smith.

What They’re Saying

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Head Coach Bo Pelini

On Jamal Turner receiving a medical redshirt:

"

I’ve been wrong before, but I think it’s going to be a slam dunk. I feel bad for the kid, one of those deals where he’s running down the field and there goes his Achilles…kind of a weird deal.

"

On Nebraska's passing game against McNeese State:

"

Our level of detail in the passing game was terrible. Guys [were] running the routes at wrong depths, at times there were misreads by the quarterback.

"

On wide receiver Alonzo Moore:

"

Alonzo’s just gotta go turn it loose. He’s tremendously talented. At times I see him going out there more worried about making a mistake. He needs to just let his talent take over.

"

On poor tackling from the defense and correcting that:

"

It’s not what we were doing, it was how we were doing it. It wasn’t just like we went out there and missed a bunch of tackles. We were in bad positions because our eyes were in the wrong place, we were not playing fundamentally the way we need to play. We weren’t playing with the level of detail it takes to play great

"

On not getting the ball to Ameer Abdullah more against the Cowboys:

"

It starts with me. It’s all of our faults but at the end of the day he’s our best football player. We’ve got to make sure we get the ball in his hands.

"

On barely defeating McNeese State:

"

We were lucky to walk out with a win. ... Hopefully we'll become a better football team because of it.

"

Quarterback Tommy Armstrong

On his interception that was returned for a touchdown:

"

It was on me. Bad read, the safety just sat there and waited on the ball. I should’ve hit my outside receiver… That was the momentum shift for them, tying it up 14-14 when we could’ve easily went up 21-7.

"

On how the team should view opponents:

"

We're not good enough to relax ... We have to treat every game like it's against the best team in the country.

"

On Fresno State:

"

I’m looking forward to the new atmosphere and overcoming certain things. It’s going to be different not having the crowd on our side, but it’s going to help us because when we go out to Fresno it’s going to be us against thousands of fans. It’s a lot to look forward to. We need to execute to put points on the board. It’s going to be a long trip back if we don’t play how we’re supposed to play. We are on a mission. It’s not fun and games when we go away. We are on a mission, and that mission is to win.

"

All quotes obtained via the Huskers' Sept. 8 press conference unless otherwise noted.

Prediction

Nati Harnik/Associated Press

I have been saying for months that if Nebraska was going to lose a nonconference game, it would be to Fresno State. And then McNeese State happened.

It was clear the Huskers overlooked the Cowboys. Even senior cornerback Josh Mitchell said so. "We weren't focused," Mitchell said, per Huskers.com. "We just weren't ready. We took those guys too lightly, and they came ready to play."

Hopefully McNeese State was a wake-up call. It likely was too. Based on Mitchell's comments, as well as his teammates, it seems the Huskers aren't planning to overlook Fresno State.

With that said, my original prediction that the Huskers would lose to Fresno State has changed. After a near loss to the Cowboys, Nebraska will be more ready to face the Bulldogs than originally expected. What once appeared like a potential trap game the Huskers would overlook is now an important matchup to get Nebraska's season back on track.

Expect a big game from Ameer Abdullah as well as Jordan Westerkamp (who both seem able to carry and catch any ball no matter how difficult). If Randy Gregory returns, the defense should be stronger than it was against McNeese State.

Ultimately, Fresno State is going to score. However, Nebraska will end up scoring more.

Prediction: 31-17 Nebraska

For complete team coverage and everything Huskers, you can follow Erin on Twitter at @erinsorensen.