Nebraska Football: Huskers Rooting for Washington This Week Against Stanford

In Week 3, Nebraska defeated the Washington Huskies 51-38 in Memorial Stadium.  Nevertheless, most Husker fans were not pleased with the defensive performance.  The Blackshirts have had their struggles this year, particularly against the run and in the secondary, but the Huskies have held their own in the Pac-12 North, with a 3-0 conference record and No. 24 ranking. 

Therefore, this win over the Dawgs could prove to be a very solid victory for a Husker team searching for a credible win after the first half of the season.  Even though the best team the Huskies have beaten is a 3-3 Cal team, they have a chance to upset No. 8 Stanford in a very intriguing matchup.

The question surrounding Saturday's game centers around the inconsistent Washington defense.  Which defense will show up—the defense that allowed a combined 110 points in its first three contests or the defense that has steadily improved since surrendering 51 points to the Huskers in Lincoln?  

One thing's for sure.  Nick Holt's defense needs to play their best game of the year if they want to shut down Andrew Luck and Co.

While the defense is a question, Washington seems to be clicking on all cylinders when it comes to its offense.  After leading Washington's offense to a 52-24 rout of Colorado last week, Keith Price is completing close to 70 percent of his throws, has thrown for 1,466 yards and 21 TDs and has a Top 10 passer rating nationally.  He is controlling this offense better than Jake Locker ever did, and he is only a sophomore.  

In addition, a steady dose of Chris Polk will wear down an overrated Stanford defense, which has not faced an offense even close to the caliber of this Washington offense yet.  I expect Washington to put points on the board tomorrow night.  A shootout in Palo Alto is in line.

Where does Nebraska fit in all of this?  Well, the Big Red has received some flack for its "soft" non-conference schedule this year.  A UDub win tomorrow could firm Nebraska's resume at the end of the year as a quality non-conference win should the Huskers find themselves in a peculiar situation as a result of the ever-reliable BCS.  After last year's torturous Holiday Bowl, I never thought I would ever find myself saying this, but for this weekend, "Go, Huskies!"