A preseason ranking Nebraska football fans should be excited about; plus SEC commissioner takes a shot

It’s easy to understand why Nebraska football fans are sick of preseason polls, or at least the hype that comes with them.

The Husker faithful have been subjected to so much of that over the past decade, with far too little to show for it in return.

There is hope that will change this season. Matt Rhule is entering his third season as the head coach. Dylan Raiola enters his second season as the starting quarterback after a solid, but not spectacular, freshman campaign.

Raiola is poised to take a big leap. Rhule’s teams usually do in the third season as well. ESPN’s Football Power Index sees Nebraska football taking a jump as the No. 25 team heading into the 2025 season.

These rankings are based on computers. Hype isn’t a factor, and there is an 86 percent chance that Nebraska football wins six games again in 2025. The computers also give Nebraska just over a 10-percent chance of making the College Football Playoff.

That checks out to me. If everything goes right — the offensive line is legit, Raiola takes a step, the wide receivers and defensive transfers work out — this team could be a legit threat to be one of the 10 best teams in college football.

There are three Nebraska football opponents ranked in the top 25 of the ESPN FPI as well. Michigan (17th) and USC (19th) will each come to Lincoln this season. The Huskers will also play at Penn State (5th).

The schedule is favorable, and at the very least, Nebraska should find its way into the actual top 25 this season (AP and CFB Playoff rankings).

SEC commissioner takes a shot at Nebraska football

Greg Sankey, the SEC commissioner, was talking about non-conference scheduling this week and brought up Nebraska’s game against Tennessee, essentially saying the Huskers weren’t being honest about why they canceled the series against the Vols.

“I’ve been the recipient of plenty of side comments about good of the game,” Sankey said. “When programs like when Wake Forest notifies Ole Miss the day before their first game of a home-and-home series and says that they’re not playing the one back in Oxford, that’s a problem. When Nebraska cancels an agreement to play Tennessee home-and-home and cites the College Football Playoff selection process as a fundamental reason why, we have to understand the College Football Playoff selection process is threatening the regular season and not supporting it.”

SEC teams only play eight games, so until that changes, these scheduling issues will continue as every program is trying to put itself in the best position to make the College Football Playoff.