LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska football players and fans will have to set their alarms earlier next Saturday for the team’s first morning game since early September.

The kickoff for Nebraska’s game against Rutgers will be 11 a.m. Central Saturday in Lincoln. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

Nebraska’s (6-1, 2-1 Big Ten) last five games have been played at night, including last Saturday’s 38-17 win over Northwestern.

Rutgers (5-2, 1-2 Big Ten) is coming into the game off a loss against Ohio State.

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Ameer Abdullah had four 1-yard touchdown runs and quarterback Tommy Armstrong Jr. scored on a 16-yard reception, leading No. 19 Nebraska to a 38-17 victory at Northwestern on Saturday night.

Abdullah finished with 146 yards on 23 carries as the Cornhuskers (6-1, 2-1 Big Ten) bounced back from a 27-22 loss at Michigan State. Abdullah had only 45 yards in the loss to the Spartans on Oct. 4.

Northwestern (3-4, 2-2) wasted another big game for freshman Justin Jackson in its second consecutive loss. Jackson had 128 yards and two touchdowns in his third straight 100-yard game.

The Wildcats got a scare in the third quarter when receiver Miles Shuler had his head down when he slammed into Nebraska safety Corey Cooper after a short reception. Shuler held up his right arm to acknowledge the cheers as he was taken off the field on a stretcher. The school said he was taken to a hospital as a precaution.

Lincoln, Neb. – The Nebraska football team went through a 45-minute walkthrough inside the Hawks Championship Center on Thursday in preparation for Saturday’s game against Northwestern. Head Coach Bo Pelini spoke to the media after practice.

“We just finished up,” Pelini said. “I think we had a good week. The kids are anxious to play. I know I am.”

Pelini added that sophomore tight end Cethan Carter is out for a couple weeks, but linebacker David Santos “is good to go.” Pelini also said that wide receiver Brandon Reilly is “ready to go” and talked about the other receivers as well.

“Taariq (Allen) gets a lot of reps and has been around a little bit,” Pelini said. “Alonzo (Moore) is still coming. He’s getting better. It comes with time and it comes with reps, and getting out there and getting a chance to do it for real. There’s only so many reps to go around. They’ve gotten more opportunities and I think they are getting better.”

The last three meetings between Northwestern and Nebraska have been decided by seven total points, including last season’s Hail Mary win at Memorial Stadium. Pelini said that history suggests this one will be close.

“I’m always hoping for the best,” Pelini said. “(I’m hoping) that it’s not so close, but I told our guys. We have a lot of respect for this team. We better be ready for a dogfight.”

Pelini added that he’s “not a big fan” of bye weeks, but thought this season’s came at a good time after a 5-1 start.

“Health-wise it came at a good time for us,” Pelini said. “It really did.”

The Huskers and Northwestern square off on Saturday at 6:30 p.m., at Ryan Field in Evanston, Ill. The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network. 

Nebraska has completed its 2018 non-conference football schedule with the addition of a home game against the University of Akron.

The Huskers will play host to the Zips in the season opener on Sept. 1, 2018. The matchup will be the second all-time meeting between Nebraska and Akron. The Huskers defeated Akron, 59-14, in the 1997 season opener at Memorial Stadium.

Akron is coached by Terry Bowden, who is in his third season at the school. The Zips own a 4-2 record in 2014, including a victory at Pittsburgh.

The matchup with Akron completes a 2018 non-conference schedule that also includes home games against Colorado (Sept. 8) and Troy (Sept. 15).

Nebraska will play nine Big Ten games in 2018, including four home contests against Purdue, Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan State. The Huskers’ 2018 road schedule includes games at Michigan, at Wisconsin, at Northwestern, at Ohio State and at Iowa.

With the exception of one non-conference game to be scheduled in 2017, Nebraska’s future schedules are complete through the 2019 season.

Lincoln, Neb.- The Nebraska football team continued its preparations for its Saturday night Big Ten West Division showdown with the Northwestern Wildcatson Tuesday afternoon, as the Huskers completed a 90-minute practice inside of the Hawks Championship Center and outside on the Ed and Joyanne Gass practice fields.

Offensive coordinator Tim Beck addressed the media following practice, mentioning that the Huskers have been working on the little things since the Huskers’ last game Oct. 4 at Michigan State.

“Just improving and working on little things like pad level, trying not over coach our guys too much. I thought we thought a little too much against Michigan State,” he said. “Trying to be perfect all the time, you have to play fast and hard. If you play trying not to make a mistake, you usually do.”

This was the first time Beck met with media members since after the McNeese State victory. Beck said that he decided to speak after the loss against the Spartans.

“I felt like after the loss, we needed to have somebody speak on behalf of the offense,” Beck said. “I know Coach Bo (Pelini) speaks for our team, but I didn’t want our players coming up here without having a guy that is in the ‘war-room’ so to speak.”

According to Beck, Northwestern has a very well-coached defense led by their head coach, Pat Fitzgerald, a former All-American linebacker at the school.

“They are another well-coached good defensive team, they are going to stop the run and load the box up,” Beck said. “Good red-zone defense, trying to keep you out of the end zone. It is one of the top scoring defenses.”

Beck added that the Huskers need to not give any possessions away to Northwestern if NU wants to win.

“First of all, we have to take care of the football, we have had 10 turnovers in three games against them, that’s big,” he said. “It has hurt us over the years, a lot of those have been in the red zone. we have to be better in that area and just more consistent in the game finishing drives.”