Two schools looking to improve on middling 2024 seasons will kick off their schedules on Thursday night, as the Nebraska Cornhuskers face off against the Cincinnati Bearcats at Arrowhead Stadium.
This should be a competitive affair from start to finish, though I like the Cornhuskers to prevail in my Nebraska vs. Cincinnati predictions.
Read on to see more analysis of my early college football picks for Thursday, August 28.
Nebraska vs Cincinnati predictions
Here are our early thoughts on the spread and total for this week’s game. We will have a full game preview (with a best bet and SGP) later in the week.
Early Nebraska vs Cincinnati spread pick: Nebraska -6.5 (-115 at FanDuel)
There’s a fair amount of hype for Nebraska heading into the 2025 season, as, once again, many analysts are expecting this will finally be the year that the Cornhuskers come back to some level of prominence.
A lot of that is tied to quarterback Dylan Raiola, who was inconsistent but showed more than a few flashes of brilliance as a freshman last season.
Raiola should improve in his sophomore year and may also get a boost under new offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen, who has had great success in developing passers throughout his career.
The Nebraska defense should see improvement, too, especially with the addition of transfer Williams Nwaneri, a five-star defensive end who redshirted with the Missouri Tigers last season.
That should only help a Cornhuskers defense that held eight of their last nine opponents to 28 points or less last season.
Cincinnati has hardly been an offensive powerhouse either. The Bearcats scored 24 points or fewer in each of their last seven contests in 2024 and are returning the same core players, including quarterback Brendan Sorsby.
With Nebraska improving under Matt Rhule and no major changes on the Cincinnati side, I’m taking the Cornhuskers to cover in the opener.
Early Nebraska vs Cincinnati total pick: Under 54.5 (-112 at FanDuel)
Each roster has questions on offense and packs some serious defensive talent, which immediately has me leaning toward the Under for Thursday.
As noted above, Cincinnati has brought back most of an offense that generated only 25.2 points per game last season. Sorsby does present a dual threat at quarterback, but he hasn’t gotten much support, and his production — 18 passing touchdowns and nine more on the ground — won’t have an improved Nebraska defense shaking in its cleats.
However, the Cornhuskers have questions to answer on offense as well. Even expecting improvement out of Raiola, it can’t be forgotten that he threw for just 13 touchdowns against 11 interceptions and isn’t a threat as a runner.
The Bearcats will be a fairly tough test, as they have a strong defensive line, while Nebraska is counting on a talented offensive line that hasn’t played together to gel quickly.
Both defenses are likely running ahead of these developing offenses right now, and I expect that to play out on Thursday. The Under is my clear play, and I’m likely to stick with it unless the total drops significantly before gametime.
Nebraska vs Cincinnati odds
- Nebraska vs. Cincinnati spread: Nebraska -6.5
- Nebraska vs. Cincinnati moneyline: Nebraska -240, Cincinnati +195
- Nebraska vs. Cincinnati Over/Under: 53.5
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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