by Chuck Sommers
Wednesday, Sep 14, 2022
Game time: Noon ET
Venue: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, NE
Where to watch: FOX
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Oklahoma -11
FanDuel: Oklahoma -10.5
BetMGM: Oklahoma -11.5
Caesars: Oklahoma -11.5
Season record
No. 6 Oklahoma: 2-0
Nebraska: 1-2
Upsets galore in Week 2 of college football! We almost saw Alabama go down in Week 2, but that didn't stop the top-25 polls from shaking up a great deal. What does Week 3 bring for us? Sean Murphy had a 6-2-1 run this past Saturday and is on a 15-8 run. If you like those odds, make sure you're following Sean's best bets. Check out Sean's picks, as well as other choices from our champion handicappers in our Best Bets section.
Oklahoma - Nebraska preview, analysis and prediction
Last week
Oklahoma: won 33-3 vs. Kent State
Nebraska: lost 45-42 vs. Georgia Southern
Only in the year 2022 would the Nebraska Cornhuskers actually have more of a newsworthy event heading into this week than the Oklahoma Sooners. Because while we should be discussing Oklahoma and its national championship prospects, it took Nebraska all but a few games to finally move on from Scott Frost.
This weekend's matchup in Lincoln will be the first since the Huskers fired Frost after a disappointing three-year tenure. It only took losing so many games and being a complete disappointment in the college football world for things to finally to come to fruition.
Nebraska was just never going to be the team that would remind people of success past, especially in a stacked conference like the Big Ten. Now, the Huskers need to take a step back and possibly rebuild for the next few years.
"Earlier today I met with Coach Frost and informed him we were making a change in the leadership of our football program, effective immediately. Scott has poured his heart and soul into the Nebraska Football program both as a quarterback and head coach, and I appreciate his work and dedication," Nebraska vice chancellor for athletics Trev Alberts said in a statement.
Mickey Joseph takes over as the interim coach, and his early task is trying not to get destroyed Saturday. And how in the world could anyone think Nebraska will keep things close after losing 45-42 to Georgia Southern last week? More than 1,200 total yards and 87 points, but the problem for Nebraska was they didn't have the majority of those totals.
But just for fun, Nebraska will honor its first two national championship teams before the game from 1970 and 1971, which probably tells you how long ago the glory days were.
We're not going to slander the Nebraska talent on the field, at least the offense. Casey Thompson threw for 318 yards and a touchdown, and Anthony Grant ran for 138 yards and a touchdown. But when the defense gives up 409 through the air to Kyle Vantrease and Gerald Green runs for 132 yards on 10 carries and two touchdowns, someone has to be held accountable for this nonsense.
"We win together and lose together," Frost said. "All of us are frustrated after that one. Give them credit, give Clay credit. We can't let it divide us."
Well, only one lost. So cold, like a Frost.
Oklahoma has gotten off to a strong start in their first year without Lincoln Riley as head coach. The opponents haven't been great, though, facing UTEP and Kent State, but the Sooners have allowed 16 points total through two weeks and at the very least, the Sooners are playing defense. Things are looking promising on that front.
Dillon Gabriel threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to Marvin Mims who reeled in seven receptions for 163 yards.
"We faced some good adversity tonight," said new Oklahoma coach Brent Venables. "As I told (the team) at halftime, there's nothing less important than the score at halftime. We were really prepared for exactly what happened. We talked about it all week.
"I was hopeful for some strain and a challenge. There's not going to be change and development and improvement without a challenge. I'm glad that that happened."
Only in the year 2022 would the Nebraska Cornhuskers actually have more of a newsworthy event heading into this week than the Oklahoma Sooners. Because while we should be discussing Oklahoma and its national championship prospects, it took Nebraska all but a few games to finally move on from Scott Frost.
This weekend's matchup in Lincoln will be the first since the Huskers fired Frost after a disappointing three-year tenure. It only took losing so many games and being a complete disappointment in the college football world for things to finally to come to fruition.
Nebraska was just never going to be the team that would remind people of success past, especially in a stacked conference like the Big Ten. Now, the Huskers need to take a step back and possibly rebuild for the next few years.
"Earlier today I met with Coach Frost and informed him we were making a change in the leadership of our football program, effective immediately. Scott has poured his heart and soul into the Nebraska Football program both as a quarterback and head coach, and I appreciate his work and dedication," Nebraska vice chancellor for athletics Trev Alberts said in a statement.
Mickey Joseph takes over as the interim coach, and his early task is trying not to get destroyed Saturday. And how in the world could anyone think Nebraska will keep things close after losing 45-42 to Georgia Southern last week? More than 1,200 total yards and 87 points, but the problem for Nebraska was they didn't have the majority of those totals.
But just for fun, Nebraska will honor its first two national championship teams before the game from 1970 and 1971, which probably tells you how long ago the glory days were.
We're not going to slander the Nebraska talent on the field, at least the offense. Casey Thompson threw for 318 yards and a touchdown, and Anthony Grant ran for 138 yards and a touchdown. But when the defense gives up 409 through the air to Kyle Vantrease and Gerald Green runs for 132 yards on 10 carries and two touchdowns, someone has to be held accountable for this nonsense.
"We win together and lose together," Frost said. "All of us are frustrated after that one. Give them credit, give Clay credit. We can't let it divide us."
Well, only one lost. So cold, like a Frost.
Oklahoma has gotten off to a strong start in their first year without Lincoln Riley as head coach. The opponents haven't been great, though, facing UTEP and Kent State, but the Sooners have allowed 16 points total through two weeks and at the very least, the Sooners are playing defense. Things are looking promising on that front.
Dillon Gabriel threw for 296 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to Marvin Mims who reeled in seven receptions for 163 yards.
"We faced some good adversity tonight," said new Oklahoma coach Brent Venables. "As I told (the team) at halftime, there's nothing less important than the score at halftime. We were really prepared for exactly what happened. We talked about it all week.
"I was hopeful for some strain and a challenge. There's not going to be change and development and improvement without a challenge. I'm glad that that happened."
Prediction
I can understand the line being as low. Nebraska motivated under a new head coach, still unsure about Oklahoma going on the road for the first time. At the end of the day, Oklahoma is just better and it shouldn't be that difficult to put together a win here. Oklahoma by 17
Betting trends
Oklahoma is 15-10 ATS as a favorite the past three seasons.
Oklahoma is 1-6 ATS off a home win by 17 or more.
Nebraska is 22-7 ATS against Big 12 opponents since 1992.
Nebraska is 14-4 ATS in its last 18 following a home game where both teams score 31 points or more.
Statistical leaders
Oklahoma:
Passing: Dillon Gabriel -- 529 yards, 5 TD
Rushing: Eric Gray -- 173 yards
Receiving: Marvin Mins -- 244 yards, 2 TD
Nebraska:
Passing: Casey Thompson -- 866 yards, 4 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Anthony Grant -- 428 yards, 5 TD
Receiving: Trey Palmer -- 231 yards
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert football picks today. And if you enjoyed this Oklahoma Sooners - Nebraska Cornhuskers prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily NCAA/NFL projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
