Nebraska Cornhuskers vs Utah Utes Prediction, Picks and Game Preview - 12/31/2025

Game Time: 3:30 pm ET, Wednesday, December 31, 2025

Venue:  Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, NV

Where to Watch:  ESPN

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Nebraska +15.5, Utah -15.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Nebraska +15.5, Utah -15.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Nebraska +16.5, Utah -16.5; Over/Under:  50.5 points

Nebraska Cornhuskers:  7-5 (4-5) (10th place, Big Ten)

Utah Utes:  10-2 (7-2) (3rd place, Big 12)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Jim Feist is on a HOT STREAK in college football on a 17-7 CFB RUN for +$9,360 PROFIT! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

Nebraska Cornhuskers:  lost their last game at home against the Iowa Hawkeyes 40-16.

Utah Utes:  won their last game on the road against the Kansas Jayhawks 31-21.

Nebraska is entering this game with a 7-5 record overall and they have a 4-5 record in their conference games too. They are 4-3 in their home games, 2-2 in their road games, and they are also 1-0 in their neutral site games this season, and they will be at a neutral site for this game. They lost their last game against Iowa 40-16. TJ Lateef was the starting QB and he completed 9/24 passes for 69 passing yards, 0 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Emmett Johnson led the team in rushing yards with 217 and 1 TD. Emmett Johnson led the receivers with 22 receiving yards on 2 receptions. Donovan Jones led the defense in that game with 8 solo tackles and 1 assisted tackle while no one on the defense recorded a sack for them. No one on the defense came away with an interception for them in that one.

 

 

 

Utah is entering this game with a 10-2 record overall and they have a 7-2 record in their conference games too. They are 5-1 in their home games, 5-1 in their road games, and they are also 0-0 in their neutral site games this season, but they will be at a neutral site for this game. They won their last game against Kansas 31-21. Devon Dampier was the starting QB and he completed 15/25 passes for 253 passing yards, 3 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Wayshawn Parker led the team in rushing yards with 95. Larry Simmons led the receivers with 97 receiving yards on 3 receptions and 2 TDs. Logan Fano and Jackson Bennee each led the defense in that game with 8 solo tackles and 2 assisted tackles while Logan Fano and Johnathan Hall each led the defense in sacks with 0.5. Jackson Bennee, Smith Snowden, and Elijah Davis each came away with 1 interception for them in that one.

The current betting odds have Utah listed as a 15.5 point favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. Utah has looked really good in their games this season with their 10-2 record overall and their 7-2 conference record which had them right near the top of the Big 12. They haven't played in any neutral site games this season so this will be their first, playing in the Las Vegas Bowl. Meanwhile, Nebraska has looked good in their games this season with their 7-5 record overall, but their 4-5 conference record had them in the bottom half of the Big Ten. They have played in a neutral site game this year though and they are 1-0. Nebraska had a lot of high hopes this season and they had a great start to the season, but they started to fall apart down the final stretch of the season as the opponents got harder. They didn't look great to end the regular season either, losing 2 games in a row and coming off a 40-16 loss to Iowa in their last one. They didn't have the talent to compete with the top teams in their own conference, and they struggled with some of the bottom feeders too. They aren't in a great situation for this game either, missing some key players. Utah is off a 31-21 win over Kansas in their last one and they have been rolling over teams all season. They have been beating up on a lot of bad teams with a lot of their wins this year coming by double digits. Their only 2 losses were against the 2 best teams in the conference too, losing to BYU and Texas Tech. Utah had a really good defense all season though and they have a lot of talent on offense that is going to roll over this Nebraska defense that didn't look good to end the year. The best way to place a bet here is on Utah to cover the spread in this game. 

Nebraska Utah Prediction:  Our NCAAF Pick for Wednesday, December 31, 2025 (3:30 pm ET start time) is Utah 45 Nebraska 20.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks and expert football picks today. And if you enjoyed this Nebraska Cornhuskers Utah Utes prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our weekly NCAAF predictions and previews.

Nebraska Cornhuskers: 3-11 ATS when playing against a team with a winning record. 2-6 ATS vs. good offensive  teams - scoring 31 or more points/game. 1-5 ATS after a bye week. 5-0 UNDER when the total is between 49.5 and 56. 7-3 UNDER in non-conference games.

Utah Utes: 6-3 ATS when the total is between 49.5 and 56. 4-1 ATS when playing with 2 weeks or more of rest. 17-9 ATS in a bowl game. 6-3 UNDER in non-conference games. 6-1 UNDER after 3 or more consecutive straight up wins.

Nebraska Cornhuskers:  E. Johnson (RB) Out - Personal. J. Jones (WR) Questionable - Undisclosed. G. Gottula (OG) Questionable - Undisclosed. T. Terry (DL) Questionable - Undisclosed. J. Marks (OG) Questionable - Undisclosed. J. Parker (RB) Questionable - Undisclosed. D. Bell (WR) Questionable - Knee. M. Hartzog Jr. (CB) Questionable - Undisclosed. T. Prochazka (OG) Out - Undisclosed. D. Raiola (QB) Out - Leg. C. Connealy (DL) Out - Undisclosed. N. Fennessy (OG) Out - Undisclosed. M. Simpson (DL) Out - Undisclosed. T. Uhlir (LB) Out - Undisclosed. J. Bonner (WR) Out - Undisclosed. G. Pyle (OG) Out - Knee. B. Hill (CB) Out - Knee. G. Stenger (LB) Out - Undisclosed. M. Markway (TE) Out - Knee.

Utah Utes:  R. Davis (WR) Questionable - Undisclosed. J. Randle Jr. (CB) Questionable - Undisclosed. H. Andrews (TE) Out - Undisclosed. D. Zipperer (WR) Out - Undisclosed.

“The Las Vegas Bowl gives our football team the opportunity to visit a great city and compete in one of the nation’s best venues against an elite opponent. The University of Utah has been one of the top programs in the country over the past two decades and have had another outstanding season in 2025. I know our players are eager to play a 13th game and have a memorable bowl experience.” - Matt Rhule on his team playing in the Las Vegas Bowl.

"This has been one of my favorite years. And having the chance to be around these guys one more month and go to battle one more time with them was something I wanted to do." - Kyle Whittingham on his team playing in the Las Vegas Bowl.

WR Hunter, Nyziah

WR Key, Dane

WR Barney Jr., Jacory

TE Lindenmeyer, Luke

QB Raiola, Dylan

RB Lateef, TJ

WR Simmons, Larry

WR Davis, Ryan

WR Buchanan, JJ

TE Bentley, Dallen

QB Dampier, Devon

RB Bray, Daniel

Passing: Dylan Raiola (2,000)

Rushing: Emmett Johnson (1,451)

Receiving: Nyziah Hunter (617)

Touchdowns: Emmett Johnson (15)

Passing: Devon Dampier (2,180)

Rushing: Wayshawn Parker (931)

Receiving: Ryan Davis (659)

Touchdowns: NaQuari Rogers (10)

Coaches:

Nebraska Cornhuskers: Matt Rhule (3rd season)

Utah Utes: Kyle Whittingham (22nd season)