Five burning questions heading into Minnesota week

Nebraska bounced back with a much-needed 13-10 walk-off victory over Northwestern on Saturday. Now the Huskers will look to stay on track in an important Big Ten West road game at Minnesota.

Here are five of the biggest questions still facing NU going into the week...

There isn’t a more pressing question on Nebraska’s plate right now than the status of starting quarterback Adrian Martinez.

The sophomore went down on the final play of the third quarter against Northwestern with what looked to be a left leg injury. He limped off the field and did not return the rest of the day.

The good news for the Huskers was that sophomore backup Noah Vedral stepped in and led the game-winning drive in the final minutes to save the day. But head coach Scott Frost made it clear that Martinez would continue to be the guy as long as he was healthy.

Nebraska might be overly cautious with Martinez’s workload this week in practice, so it could end up being until game day before we know just how severe of an injury he has.

The next biggest issue for Nebraska is the status of wide receiver JD Spielman, who didn’t play at all in the second half after suffering an undisclosed injury in the third quarter.

The Huskers are already limited in the number of trusted playmakers they have on offense, and Spielman ranks near the top as easily the most productive receiving threat.

Frost sounded hopeful after Saturday’s game that Spielman’s injury wasn’t anything too serious, but like Martinez, NU will probably be as careful as possible to make sure he has ample opportunity to heal before Minnesota.

While injuries took their toll on Nebraska’s offense against Northwestern, the Huskers had one of their top weapons watching from the sideline for half the game completely by choice.

Frost said he decided to sit the sophomore running back for the first half “because of internal things and rules” and added that the team needed “to be able to rely on him all the time.”

When Washington finally got in the game, he touched the ball on five of NU’s first seven plays of the third quarter, but he totaled zero total yards. He only had one more carry the rest of the day and didn’t get the ball at all in the fourth quarter.

With Martinez and Spielman dinged up at the very least, will Washington take on a bigger role at Minnesota? Or will his issues continue to linger?

With all the questions surrounding Nebraska’s offense at the moment, this week will likely once again be decided heavily on how much the defense can carry the load.

The Blackshirts will have to do it against a Minnesota offense that just ran wild over Illinois on Saturday to the tune of 52 carries for 332 yards and two touchdowns.

Rodney Smith led the way with a whopping 211 yards and a score on 24 attempts, while Shannon Brooks followed up with 16 rushes for 111 yards and a touchdown.

The Golden Gophers only average a modest 159.0 rushing yards per game on the year, including failing to crack 100 yards in the previous two games.

But Minnesota showed how dangerous its ground attack can be when it clicks on all cylinders, especially with weapons like receiver Tyler Johnson on the outside.

How well the Huskers can slow down UM’s run game and make the Gophers one dimensional will be as big of a key as any.

Take a look at the Big Ten standings right now and you’ll see the usual suspects like Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Penn State at the top.

You’ll also notice a 5-0 Minnesota team right alongside them.

The Golden Gophers have had plenty of fortunate bounces go their way, winning four of their five games by seven points or less with two victories coming against FCS competition. Their two conference wins came on the road against a Purdue team that’s fallen apart and at home vs. Illinois, which is, well, Illinois.

So how good is Minnesota? This week will tell a lot about where PJ Fleck’s squad is right now, even if it’s against a Nebraska team that has left much to be desired in its own right.

TCF Bank Stadium will likely be rocking for Saturday’s 6:30 p.m. kickoff on FS1, so the Huskers will have to be dialed in for another battle.