A scouting report of the Colorado Buffaloes and Nebraska Cornhuskers ahead of Saturday’s game in Lincoln, Neb.

Colorado Buffaloes

Head coach: Deion Sanders, 2nd season (5-8, 32-14 career)

2024 season: 1-0, 0-0 Big 12

Last week: Beat North Dakota State, 31-26, at home

Rankings: N/R

5 Buffs to watch

LB LaVonta Bentley: A leader in the middle of the defense, Bentley had five tackles and a sack in the season opener. In his collegiate career, he’s posted 141 tackles and 23.5 tackles for loss.

RB Dallan Hayden: The former Ohio State transfer didn’t get off to the start he hoped for but led the Buffs with 20 yards on nine carries last week. As the Buffs aim to get the running game going, he’ll be a focal point.

PK Alejandro Mata: In what is expected to be a close game this week, Mata could play a vital role. He made his one field goal attempt and all four extra points last week.

S Shilo Sanders: Senior safety had nine tackles, including a tackle for loss, last week. One of the emotional leaders for the Buffs, he was their leading tackler in 2023.

WR LaJohntay Wester: A fairly quiet opener for the senior (five catches for 58 yards), but his big day is coming. He’s posted 257 catches for 2,761 yards in his collegiate career.

Nebraska Cornhuskers

Head coach: Matt Rhule, 2nd season (6-7; 53-50 career)

2024 season: 1-0, 0-0 Big Ten

Last week: Beat UTEP, 40-7, at home

Rankings: N/R

5 Cornhuskers to watch

DL Jimari Butler: He led the Cornhuskers in tackles for loss (8.5) and sacks (5.5) last year, earning All-Big Ten honorable mention. He also had 34 tackles and two pass breakups.

ROV Isaac Gifford: Led the team with 86 tackles last season (35 more than anyone else). He also had 6.5 tackles for loss, an interception and eight pass breakups.

RB Emmett Johnson: Sophomore rushed for 411 yards last year and was the Cornhuskers’ leading rusher in last week’s opener, finishing with 71 yards on eight carries (8.9-yard average).

WR Isaiah Neyor: In his first game as a Husker last week, he caught six passes for 121 yards and a touchdown. Former Wyoming star (47 catches for 1,039 yards, 11 TDs in 2020-21) played at Texas last year, catching just one pass.

QB Dylan Raiola: The true freshman was a 5-star recruit in the 2024 class and rated by 247Sports as the No. 2 quarterback recruit in the country. In his debut last week, he completed 19-of-27 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns.

When Colorado has the ball

The Buffs will go as Shedeur Sanders goes. CU’s offense runs through its star quarterback, who threw for 445 yards and four touchdowns last week against North Dakota State. That isn’t going to change as long Sanders and his dynamic weapons at receiver are healthy. Head coach Deion Sanders has said he wants to get more out of the run game, though, after the Buffs managed just 59 yards on 23 carries in the opener. “I just wish we could turn it up, be a lot more physical in the run; demand that,” Coach Prime said this week. “We dominate our assignment on that particular play so that we can consistently run, because we have several backs that can flat out do it, and I can’t wait until you guys get to see the best of them.” This won’t be an easy game to establish the run. Nebraska returns most of its starters from a defense that was No. 9 against the run in 2023 and held UTEP to 56 yards on 24 carries last week. Sanders threw for 393 yards against Nebraska last year, but he was sacked seven times and it’s a good bet the Huskers will try to bring pressure this time, too.

When Nebraska has the ball

Nebraska will feature a much more dynamic offense than what the Buffs saw a year ago in Boulder. Quarterback play was atrocious for the Huskers in last year’s matchup, but true freshman Dylan Raiola should change that. He’s making just his second start, but the five-star prospect has a big arm and was sharp in his debut, throwing for 284 yards. The Huskers also ran for 223 yards last week. Nebraska will likely look to establish its run game, duplicating the success it had in Boulder last year (222 yards on the ground). The Buffs looked much better against the run last week than they did during the 2023 campaign, however. NDSU burned the Buffs mainly on QB runs, but that hasn’t been a part of Raiola’s game. Against running backs, the Buffs allowed just 70 yards on 21 carries last week. “They’ve got a bunch of athletes,” Raiola said this week about the CU defense. “They’ve got a bunch of guys that can cover. They’ve got some elite players, NFL type players. We’ve just got to be smart with our approach.”

Special teams

CU is in good shape with the kicking game and had a solid debut last week. Alejandro Mata continues to be sharp, hitting all five of his kicks last week (one field goal, four extra points). He’s 11-for-13 on field goals in his CU career. Punter Mark Vassett was used just twice last week and pinned both of his punts inside the 20-yard line. The Buffs didn’t have any return opportunities last week but have explosive players waiting for their chance. Like CU, Nebraska has returning players at punter and kicker. Tristan Alvano was perfect last week (one field goal, five extra points) and is 10-for-16 on field goals in his career, with a long of 55. Sixth-year senior Brian Buschini is in his third season as the Huskers’ punter (after three years at Montana). He averaged 48.5 yards on his two punts last week and has hit 57 punts of at least 50 yards in his collegiate career. Jacory Barney Jr. averaged 25 yards on kick returns last week, including a 35-yarder, and Isaiah Garcia-Castaneda averaged 8.3 yards on punt returns.

Notables

• CU snapped a six-game losing streak with its win against North Dakota State last week. The Buffs are seeking a second-consecutive 2-0 start. They’ve had 2-0 starts in six of the past eight seasons.

• The Buffs’ current three-game winning streak against the Huskers matches their longest in the series, as they also won three in a row from 1956-58. Although CU has never won four in a row against the Huskers, it did go 3-0-1 against them from 1950-53.

• CU has not rushed for 100 yards as a team against Nebraska in any of the past four matchups. The last time CU hit 100 yards vs. the Huskers was in 2009 (134 yards). Last year, the Buffs finished with 58 yards on 33 carries (1.8 average).

• Shedeur Sanders needs 325 passing yards to reach 4,000 yards for his time at CU and become just the 10th quarterback in program history to reach that milestone.

• Dating back to the 2022 season, CU receiver LaJohntay Wester has caught at least four passes in 15 consecutive games. He’s caught at least two passes in 38 consecutive games, dating back to 2020. Last week, he caught five passes in his CU debut.

• Nebraska has gone seven consecutive seasons without a bowl appearance. It’s the longest drought for the program since a seven-year run from 1955-61. The Huskers have also had seven straight losing seasons, the longest stretch since nine in a row from 1941-49. From 1962-2016, Nebraska failed to reach a bowl just four times.

• Huskers quarterback Dylan Raiola is the son of former Nebraska All-American center Dominic Raiola. His uncle, Donovan Raiola, is currently the offensive line coach for the Huskers.

• Right tackle Bryce Benhart made his 42nd career start last week, the most in Nebraska history for an offensive lineman. Left tackle Turner Corcoran has made 32 career starts, including 27 at left tackle. Overall, the NU linemen have made 158 career starts.

• Nebraska opens the season with four consecutive home games. Just three of the last eight will be at home, however.

• All-time, Nebraska is 50-10 in night games at Memorial Stadium. The first night game at the stadium was on Sept. 6, 1986, when the Huskers defeated Florida State, 34-17. Current CU head coach Deion Sanders was a sophomore at Florida State.