Nebraska Football: Game-by-Game Predictions for 2022 – AthlonSports.com

Nebraska Football: Why the Cornhuskers Deserve Preseason Top 25 Considerations — The Cornhuskers have a very manageable slate to open things as Scott Frost enters a make-or-break season leading his alma mater.

If there is one team that should be the most desperate to turn in a winning season in 2022, it just may be the Nebraska Cornhuskers. The program has gone a once unthinkable five consecutive seasons without playing in a bowl game, but hopes are rising high that this is the year that drought comes to an end. And, if a few things can go their way, Nebraska could be a viable player in the way the Big Ten West shakes out this fall.

Related: Nebraska Football 2022 Season Preview and Prediction

Scott Frost enters his fifth season as head coach of his alma mater, and the pressure has never been as high as it could be this year for him to turn in a long-awaited winning season. Nebraska will have some fresh faces to rely on to help get the Huskers over the last couple of hurdles holding them back from a bowl trip. Changes to the coaching staff and some roster turnover could be the key to turning things around, finally, in Lincoln.

Here is what the experts at Athlon Sports have to say about the Huskers this season, with game-by-game predictions for Big Red beginning with a game across the Atlantic Ocean.

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	Steven Lassan	Mark Ross	Kevin McGuire
vs. Northwestern (Dublin, Ireland)	Nebraska	Nebraska	Nebraska
North Dakota	Nebraska	Nebraska	Nebraska
Georgia Southern	Nebraska	Nebraska	Nebraska
Oklahoma	Oklahoma	Oklahoma	Oklahoma
Indiana	Nebraska	Nebraska	Nebraska
at Rutgers	Nebraska	Nebraska	Rutgers
at Purdue	Purdue	Purdue	Purdue
Illinois	Nebraska	Nebraska	Nebraska
Minnesota	Minnesota	Nebraska	Nebraska
at Michigan	Michigan	Michigan	Michigan
Wisconsin	Wisconsin	Wisconsin	Wisconsin
at Iowa	Iowa	Iowa	Iowa
Final Records	6-6	7-5	6-6

Steven Lassan (@AthlonSteven)
Following last year’s 3-9 mark, the 2022 season is clearly a make-or-break year for coach Scott Frost at Nebraska. However, the Cornhuskers weren’t nearly as bad as last season’s record indicated. With a statistically impossible 0-8 mark in one-score games, some progression is likely coming by default in ’22. After struggling in this department last fall, improvement in small areas like special teams, turnover margin and third/red-zone offense/defense could make a difference in close games. Also, Frost’s decision to hire veteran Mark Whipple and recruit Texas transfer Casey Thompson to start at quarterback are two moves that should pay off in ’22. Defense hasn’t been a problem for the Cornhuskers in recent years, and I think this unit is still going to be a strength despite returning only five starters. Cleaning up the mistakes from ’21, performing better along the offensive line and meshing the offense with all of the changes should be just enough for Nebraska to get to a bowl. Making up ground early in the schedule is crucial, as the Cornhuskers play Minnesota, Michigan (road), Wisconsin and Iowa (road).

Mark Ross (@AthlonMarkR)
It’s pretty much now or never for Scott Frost at Nebraska. It’s been a rough go for the former Cornhusker star at his alma mater although last year’s 3-9 record doesn’t tell the whole story. But the bottom line is this team has to do the little things it takes to win and play better in close games. The other thing this Nebraska team will need to do if it has any hope of going bowling is win early and often. A 3-1 September is pretty much a necessity because the second half of this slate is brutal, especially November. But after getting very few breaks last season, I’ll say a few more bounces go the Huskers’ way in 2022. Frost does finally lead his team to a bowl game, and it’s possible Nebraska does more than just sneak into the postseason too. But the Huskers will have to bring their A-game week in and week out to get there because the margin for error is not very large and if they don’t, there could be a coaching change to follow.

Kevin McGuire (@KevinOnCFB)
I feel as though I have been down this road before, and perhaps a few too many times, but darn it, I’m about to travel down it again. Count me among those who feel that something has to bounce Nebraska’s way at some point, and this could be the season they do. I’m not about to throw Nebraska into the Big Ten West hunt, but I do think the Cornhuskers have enough to be playing more of a role in how the division plays out. An opener in Ireland against a Northwestern team Nebraska pummeled last season feels like a good way to start the season.