The Michigan football team is going back on the road this weekend to open Big Ten play against Nebraska. The Wolverines are 2-1 on the season after losing against Oklahoma in Week 2, so a loss against the Cornhuskers would be disastrous. Michigan acting head coach Biff Poggi is very familiar with Nebraska head coach Matt Rhule, and he knows that this is going to be a difficult matchup.
Biff Poggi and Matt Rhule have a good relationship. When Poggi accepted the head coaching job at Charlotte a couple of years ago, Rhule was the first person who called him.
Now, Poggi is getting ready to face Rhule. He knows that Rhule has historically been very successful in his third year with a team.
“Matt is a tremendous coach. You've all seen the statistics: Everywhere Matt has been in his third year has been tremendous,” Poggi said, according to an article from 247Sports. “He's got the football team. He's won them over. He's got the staff he wants. He's got a lot of good players.”
Nebraska has a great coach, and Biff Poggi knows that they have great players as well.
“I love the running back,” he said. “He's a guy whose yards after contact are ridiculous, has unbelievable balance. When you think about Nebraska, these are the things that this team has: They are big and physical on the offensive line. They have really good body-up receivers.”
On the other side of the ball, there are a lot of challenges for the Michigan football team. It won’t be easy for the Wolverines to put up points this week.
“Defensively, there's a lot of movement,” Poggi added. “Their defensive line, as stout as can be. And they take great pride in their defense there — the whole black shirts movement there. And they're real good. I mean, look at what they've done. I don't care who you play. I don't care who you play. The results are the results, and they've got it going.”
Michigan and Nebraska will get underway at 2:30 CT on Saturday from Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, NE. The game will be airing on CBS, and the Wolverines are currently favored by 2.5 points.
