The Crystal Ball Gaze: Nebraska, USC, and a Home Underdog Story for 2025

You know, it’s a funny old thing, isn’t it? Here we are, just barely settling into 2024, the college football season still a distant echo of last year’s triumphs and heartbreaks. And yet, if you’re anything like us, your mind—or maybe just a tiny corner of it—is already wandering, peeking ahead, wondering what the future might hold for our beloved teams. Honestly, it’s half the fun, the eternal speculation, the 'what ifs' that keep us going through the long offseason.

Well, speaking of those 'what ifs,' something rather interesting popped up on the radar this week, giving us a very, very early glimpse into the 2025 season. And, for once, it involves our Nebraska Cornhuskers and a rather prominent opponent. Turns out, for their highly anticipated home clash against the USC Trojans, scheduled for September 27, 2025—yes, that far away—the Huskers have opened as a one-score underdog, currently sitting at +6.5.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: 2025? It’s a lifetime away in college football years, a veritable eternity when you consider roster turnover, coaching changes, and the sheer unpredictability of it all. And you’d be absolutely right to think that way. These early betting lines? They’re less about crystal-ball accuracy and more about generating a little buzz, a little something for us hardcore fans to chew on. They reflect, perhaps, an initial gut feeling from oddsmakers about program strength and reputation more than a deeply researched analysis of who will actually be on the field over 500 days from now.

But still, it’s a conversation starter, isn't it? For Nebraska, playing at home in what will be Coach Matt Rhule’s third season, being a home underdog against a program like USC certainly offers a specific kind of narrative. You could say it's familiar territory for the Big Red, a position that, in truth, they've often embraced. By 2025, one imagines, Rhule's vision should be far more ingrained, the roster significantly more tailored to his system. We'll have had a full season of either Dylan Raiola or Daniel Kaelin (or, heck, maybe someone else entirely!) under center, gaining crucial experience. The defense, already showing flashes of serious potential, should be even more formidable.

And then there’s USC. Moving into the Big Ten, sans the incomparable Caleb Williams, who will undoubtedly be lighting up Sundays by then. While Lincoln Riley's Trojans will still be a talent-rich program—don’t ever doubt that—they'll be navigating a new conference landscape and a post-Heisman quarterback era. It’s a transition, even for the best programs. So, while they're the favorites here, perhaps that gap isn't as wide as it might initially appear, especially when you factor in the undeniable energy of Memorial Stadium on a fall Saturday.

This game, in essence, is a statement opportunity, an early non-conference blockbuster between two programs with rich histories, both of whom will be looking to re-establish or solidify their national standing in the newly expanded Big Ten era. It’s a chance for Nebraska to prove its mettle against a blue-blood opponent, and for USC to show it can thrive away from the Pac-12. No, they've never actually met on the gridiron before, making this particular matchup all the more intriguing, a fresh chapter in college football lore, you could say.

So, yeah, it's early. Insanely early, really. But for those of us who live and breathe college football, a sneak peek like this—even one over a year out—is a delightful little morsel. It’s a chance to dream, to speculate, to envision Memorial Stadium absolutely rocking on that late September day in 2025, perhaps witnessing the Huskers defy those very early odds. Who knows? That's the beauty of it all, the glorious uncertainty that keeps us glued to every tiny detail, every fleeting prediction, waiting for kickoff, whenever it may be.