Two traditional football powers will meet in the 2015 Foster Farms Bowl, and Nebraska would probably prefer that you just leave it at that rather than delve into their latest season.
Watch the UCLA vs. Nebraska Foster Farms Bowl online: Time, TV schedule, live stream, 3 things to know
Is UCLA facing a no-win situation when they play 5-7 Nebraska in the postseason?
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The Cornhuskers were the only team to beat No. 3 Michigan State this fall, but they only won four other games before the NCAA gave them special consideration as a bowl eligible 5-7 team. That included a loss to 2-10 Purdue that spawned righteous levels of indignation the blackshirt faithful had never known before. Despite a season filled with more downs than ups, they were still able to sneak into a bowl matchup against a UCLA team that spent much of 2015 rattling around the top 25 rankings.
The 8-4 Bruins have been led by quarterback Josh Rosen, who has been Jameis Winston-lite in a breakout freshman year (and also, he had a hot tub in his dorm for a while). His big arm (3,351 passing yards, five 300+ yard passing games) helped push UCLA to a 7-2 start and a shot at the Pac-12 South title, but late-season losses to Washington State and USC ultimately relegated his team to a Dec. 26 bowl game five hours north of campus in Santa Clara.
UCLA fans are still waiting for Rosen to elevate his game and lift the Bruins to something bigger, but while a win over Nebraska will be easier said than done, dropping the Huskers to their eighth loss isn’t going to impress many people. On the flip side, losing to a 5-7 bowl qualifier who accounts for 50 percent of Purdue’s wins in 2015 would be enough to draw plenty of criticism. So, how will UCLA deal with an apparent no-win bowl situation?
How to watch, stream and listen
TV: Dec. 26, 9:15 p.m. ET, ESPN
Online streaming: WatchESPN
Spread: UCLA is favored by 7 points.
Make friends: Get to SB Nation’s team blog chats for this game at Bruins Nation (for UCLA fans) and Corn Nation (for Nebraska fans).
Three big things to know
1. Tommy Armstrong Jr. has earned the green light to sling the ball for the pass-heavy Cornhuskers, but while he's gained nearly 2,900 yards through the air this season it's come with consequences. His 16 interceptions (in 11 games) were the second-most of any FBS quarterback. He finished the season by throwing nine picks in his final three games, two of which, surprisingly, were wins.
2. Paul Perkins isn't taking teams by surprise like he did in a breakout sophomore season for UCLA in 2014, but he's still one of the Pac-12's best runners. He's run for 1,275 yards and 13 touchdowns this year, but he'll be in trouble against Nebraska. The Cornhuskers boast the nation's eighth ranked run defense this season -- but they've also allowed five different players to have 100-yard rushing games against them.
3. S&P+ advanced stats paint Nebraska as a better team than their 5-7 record suggests, but their projection still has the Huskers losing a 34-28 showdown in Santa Clara.
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