When Nebraska returns to the practice field on Tuesday afternoon, a familiar face in the No. 1 jersey will be back in pads at wide receiver.

Head coach Mike Riley confirmed during Monday’s press conference that he expects senior Jordan Westerkamp to return to action this week after missing the past two games due to a back injury he suffered in the third quarter of NU’s win over Illinois on Oct. 1.

Riley said he’d seen steady improvements in Westerkamp’s recovery over the past few weeks, and last week he knew that one of the most productive wide outs in school history was very close to rejoining the lineup.

“After the midway point last week I thought he would be - whatever 100 percent is - I thought he’d be that by tomorrow (Tuesday),” Riley said. “The way he was running, moving, cutting, all that, it looked like that to me.

“Everybody - the trainer, Mark Mayer, Billy Devaney - everybody who really watched him was encouraged by how he looked. But most importantly, when I talked to him I could tell he was going to be ready for tomorrow’s practice, so I think he’ll be back.”

Despite having to sit out two games of Nebraska's first seven games, Westerkamp still stands as one of the Huskers’ top receivers statistically this season. He is still tied for second on the team with 13 catches for 228 yards, and his four touchdown receptions are two more than any other teammate.

Senior quarterback Tommy Armstrong said he couldn’t be happier to get his friend and roommate back in the mix this week. Armstrong said he’s seen Westerkamp chomping at the bit to get back on the field with his teammates.

“It’s going to help a lot,” Armstrong said. “I’ve seen him work out a lot, and he’s been in and out of rehab to make sure he’s doing as much as he can… He’s just excited about getting out there and doing stuff with us and being part of the team again.

“That kind of guy is the type of guy who doesn’t like to be by himself, honestly. He likes to be around the team, and I could see him getting down these last few weeks. But he’s excited, I’m excited, and I think the whole team’s excited about having another threat out there on offense… Having Jordan back is going to be a real key for us.”

- Robin Washut

Over Nebraska’s first 7 games some national experts have picked them to lose against teams like Oregon, Northwestern and Indiana despite being favorites in the point spread.

This week when the Huskers travel to Wisconsin they will be a true underdog for the first time this season, as the 5-2 Badgers are now a 9-point favorite over NU.

“I feel like we are the underdog every week honestly,” Armstrong said. “We’ve been getting picked to lose probably 75 percent of our games, but we are used to it. It’s exciting for us definitely to go to Wisconsin and playing those guys. I’m pretty sure (the experts) have us losing that game too. Like any other week we are ready for it.”

The Huskers have not had good luck against the Badgers either, losing four out of five meetings since joining the Big Ten in 2011.

“They are definitely going to be the best team we’ve played,” senior offensive lineman Dylan Utter said. “We are 7-0 and heading up to Camp Randall and this is what you put all your off-season work in for. It’s why you play football for a great atmosphere like this.”

-Sean Callahan

It’s going to be a week-to-week battle for Nebraska to stay healthy on the offensive line.

Last week sophomore left tackle Nick Gates was a near game time decision on his bad ankle and junior right tackle David Knevel left the game for the third week in a row with an ankle injury.

Not much has changed this week as the Huskers face their toughest defensive test of the season at Wisconsin.

“There’s some stability there in the names, how healthy they can get during the week will be important," Riley said. "As you know, Nick is hobbled. I really admire Nick for even having played that last game, because we contemplated not playing him all the way up until the morning of that game. But he wanted to play and kind of battled through it.

“David Knevel has been off and on in and out of the games for I think three weeks now. I admire how he’s gone through it. My goal is to try and get them healthy to feel as good as they can by the weekend. So we think those two guys are going to play.”

Luckily the Huskers appear be healthy on the interior of the line.

“The inside is somewhat stable, and we are preparing backups where need be,” Riley said. “Cole Conrad, Corey Whitaker, those guys have to be ready probably at multiple positions.”

-Sean Callahan

Terrell Newby has been playing the best football of his career the past few weeks, especially with the work he’s done to close out games in the fourth quarter.

However, Riley knows Nebraska needs its other running backs to help Newby carry the load in the running game going forward.

The ideal player to do that is sophomore Devine Ozigbo, who has been essentially a non-fact the past two games as he continues to recover from an ankle injury he suffered against Illinois.

After rushing for 76 times for 318 yards and four touchdowns in NU’s first five games, Ozigbo has carried the ball just once for two yards the past two weeks.

“We want him to be more involved probably than the last couple weeks,” Riley said. “I say that, and I certainly appreciate how Newby has carried the load, but we have been good when we have rotated and kept guys fresher. We would like to be doing that more.”

In order for that to happen, though, Riley said Ozigbo would need to put together a full week of good practices to rebuild the trust from his coaches that he had prior to his injury.

“Devine has to kind of get in there and prove that he’s ready to do that,” Riley said. “He has practiced well the last couple times we’ve practiced, but he needs to have a full week of practice starting tomorrow that is full speed ahead and looking confident and being able to make tough plays.

“We’re going to need that more than ever this week. Our goal is to have two or three guys that can go in the game and carry the football. The last couple games, we’ve found one. So we’re looking for those other guys to step up and be ready to play.”

- Robin Washut

***Riley said senior tight end Cethan Carter would be out again this week. Carter has yet to play or practice since dislocating his elbow against Illinois.

***Riley said Wisconsin is obviously known for its defense, but the offense is a "tight" and disciplined unit that thrives on capitalizing on defense's mistakes. He said UW likes to use multiple formations and shifting before the snap to throw defenses off. He said the Huskers will have to be sharp on all of their assignments and be very sound in their alignment.

***On the relationship he has with Wisconsin coach Paul Chryst, Riley joked: "We hate each other nowadays." But he said they obviously go way back in the coaching careers and are great friends, and their is definitely a lot of familiarity between their coaching styles. That said, both of them have evolved over the years, so there will definitely be some new wrinkles on Saturday.

***Riley said you "absolutely have to" throw some curve balls in your play calling in a situation like this, but that's really not much different than any game because of how good the scouting is in college football.

***Riley said NU gave up 195 yards on the first four drives of the game vs. Purdue, but then on the last nine drives they only gave up 126. He said the defense has to start games better than that.

***Riley said he's both excited and proud of the work Nebraska's defensive staff and players have done to improve so much since last season. The Huskers now rank in the top 25 in both total defense (24th) and scoring defense (14th).

***Riley said De'Mornay Pierson-El has been gaining confidence every day this season, and just from talking to him Riley said Pierson-El knows he's getting better. Everyone has seen how good he can be with some of the plays he's made this year, and that should only continue.

***Riley said there was a chance Pierson-El could have redshirted this year depending on how his recovery went, and there was a point where Riley thought it might be best for him mentally to sit out 2016. But he left the decision to DPE, and he wanted to play this year.