Nebraska and USC To Tussle in Prime Time
For the second straight year, Nebraska and USC will square off in prime time, as ABC just announced that the Huskers and Trojans will be a part of their Saturday Night Football lineup on September 15th. The game will kick off at 7 p.m. central time, and be carried nationally. This announcement must be music to Husker fans' ears, for many reasons.
Added Advantage
You don't have to be Mr. Vegas to know that home field advantage plays a big part in game outcomes and spreads. Some say that a stadium like Memorial in Lincoln is worth at least 7 points to the Huskers. And, regardless of the team, playing at night creates a much more raucous environment. That may create additional advantage to NU. The Huskers will take every bit of it, as USC will bring a fierce team in to town.
Great Exposure
This telecast ensures that NU already has two nationally televised games on ABC. The after-Thanksgiving contest with Colorado also gets national coverage. While NU is no stranger to media coverage (all but one game was televised in some way last year), much of the college football coverage is segmented by region. Rarely do teams get the chance to have the national stage all to themselves. This is one of the few times that national opinion makers in New York and LA get genuine exposure to NU. In a sport run by media polls, don't underestimate the effect a game like this can have.
Recruiting Help
No doubt, NU will try to pack in the potential recruits for visits to this game. After all, if you were a big time football player, isn't this the week you would want to make your official visit? And, a night kick off ensures that the players will have ample time to travel to Lincoln following their Friday night contests. This is a much better scenario for NU than last year, when its marquee home games were scheduled for 11:00 a.m. kickoffs.
If this is the year for NU to make the next step in its return to national prominence, they couldn't ask for a better opponent or a better stage. Now, it is just a matter of whether or not they get the job done.
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