Washington at Nebraska
Washington (4‑3) at Nebraska (5‑2) — no line posted yet, but the model favors Nebraska (77%). Nebraska’s offense is at the 93rd percentile on explosive plays; Washington’s defense is at the 50th.
How they got here
Last three games
Washington · 4-3
Rated 26th in our preseason ratings, 37th now, down 11 spots.
1-2 in its last three, capped by a 12-point win over Purdue as a 3-point underdog.
Last three games
Nebraska · 5-2
Rated 40th in our preseason ratings, 15th now, up 25 spots.
1-2 in its last three — but nothing on this résumé beats a top-40 team yet.
Biggest mismatch: Nebraska’s explosive plays against Washington, 43 points
Each row ranks the two sides among all teams. The longer the line, the bigger the mismatch.
Nebraska’s explosive plays against Washington’s defense
Nebraska offense, 93rd percentile · Washington defense, 50th
Washington’s success rate against Nebraska’s defense
Washington offense, 50th percentile · Nebraska defense, 87th
Washington’s rushing EPA against Nebraska’s defense
Washington offense, 16th percentile · Nebraska defense, 47th
What’s at stake
Washington
- Washington needs 2 more wins in the final 4 to reach bowl eligibility.
- Washington is the Pacific Northwest's argument that contender altitude is a choice, not a geography.
Nebraska
- Nebraska needs 1 more win in the final 4 to reach bowl eligibility.
- Nebraska hasn’t beaten a ranked opponent since 2016.
The series
Nebraska leads the series 5-4-1
10 meetings since 1925 · Nebraska won the last meeting
- 2011Nebraska 51-38
- 2010 · neutral siteWashington 19-7
- 2010Nebraska 56-21
- 1998Nebraska 55-7
- 1997Nebraska 27-14
Face-off
What each fanbase carries into this one.
Washington
The chip · vs the national mediaFans heard their 2023 run reframed the moment DeBoer left — that the season was a fluke of one coach and one quarterback, that the West Coast program would shrink back to the middle. They believe Husky Stadium on the water and the program's history say otherwise, and they're tired of having to re-prove it.
What this game touches
Losing the 2023 team all at once. Months after playing for the title, Kalen DeBoer left for Alabama, Michael Penix Jr. went to the NFL, and the roster scattered into a new conference. Jedd Fisch inherited a near-total rebuild and went 6-7 in the 2024 Big Ten debut before steadying to 9-4 in 2025 with a LA Bowl win over Boise State — progress, but still short of the 2023 ceiling.
Nebraska
The chip · vs the national mediaThe take that Nebraska is a museum — a great history and a hollow present, coasting on a sellout streak and 1990s highlights. The fanbase answers with the streak itself: still there, still full, still waiting.
What this game touches
The fall from the '90s — and the Raiola defection. Nebraska's 1990s dynasty (three titles in four years, a 60-3 run) gave way to a quarter-century of decline; the 2025 team went 7-5, and the franchise QB the program built around — legacy recruit Dylan Raiola — broke his leg, then transferred to Oregon, the latest gut-punch for the most loyal fanbase in the sport.
Best players
Washington
- Alex McLaughlin (S) · 48 tackles
- Dezmen Roebuck (WR) · 484 receiving yards
- Chris Lawson (WR) · 483 receiving yards
Nebraska
- Owen Chambliss (LB) · 46 tackles
- Dwayne McDougle (DB) · 43 tackles
- Kwazi Gilmer (WR) · 492 receiving yards
The betting line, and the fans
Washington fans are in a better mood than Nebraska fans (34th vs 6th among FBS fanbases), even with Nebraska favored.
Weather at kickoff
Typical at Memorial Stadium: kickoff time makes little difference, scores run 83 to 86
Washington at Nebraska · Saturday, Oct. 31 · Memorial Stadium.
Weather score: 0 to 100, higher is better, for the first 3 hours and 20 minutes of the game. Ideal is 100, Comfortable 90 to 99, Mixed 75 to 89, Rough 50 to 74, Harsh under 50.
If it kicked off at
Typical at Memorial Stadium: noon Saturdays score 86, 3:30 pm 83, 7:30 pm 86.
- noon: 86, Mixed
- 3:30 pm: 83, Mixed
- 7:30 pm: 86, Mixed
Typical weather score at each kickoff time.
Typical means the average of regular-season Saturdays at this stadium, 2018 to 2025. It is not a forecast for this game.
Home field
Nebraska is worth +5.2 points (±3.9) more at home than on the road since 2018 — top third of FBS, 69th percentile.
47% at home, 28% on the road against FBS opponents (24-27 home, 11-29 away).
Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads -0.2 at home vs. away over 97 games — inside the ±5.9 noise, so the flat number is the honest one here.
Night kickoff — historically worth about half a point more to the home side against the number, and not much more than that. The visitors travel about 1,345 miles to get here.
Season profile
Week by week
Nebraska
- Wk 3Wvs North Dakota34-7
- Wk 4Wat Michigan State31-13
- Wk 5Wvs Maryland48-23
- Wk 6Lvs Indiana17-20
- Wk 7Lat Oregon14-17
Washington
- Wk 3Wvs Eastern Washington48-16
- Wk 4Lvs Minnesota24-27
- Wk 5Lat USC21-25
- Wk 6Lvs Iowa24-41
- Wk 7Wat Purdue38-26
Power rating by week
Nebraska is rated 3.6 points ahead as of week 8. Our power rating by week; higher is better.
Conference standings
Place in the conference, then conference record.
- Nebraska11th2-2
- Washington15th1-3