Memorial Stadium - Lincoln, NE
Kickoff: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET
Line: Nebraska -7, Total: 64

Two unranked schools look to prove they belong in the top-25 when BYU and Nebraska open the 2015 season Saturday in Lincoln.

The Cougars posted their third straight 8-5 season last year, but were only 5-8 ATS. The healthy return of dual-threat QB Taysom Hill will certainly give BYU's offense a boost, but the defense surrendered 270 passing YPG (11th-most in nation) and lost five starters. The Cornhuskers are coming off a 9-4 campaign (8-5 ATS) that included a 6-1 mark (3-4 ATS) in Lincoln. Twelve starters return for new Nebraska head coach Mike Riley, who had been leading the Oregon State program. Much of the team's success revolves around how QB Tommy Armstrong Jr. will manage Riley's spread offense. Although Riley's career 13-27 ATS mark (33%) in the first month of the season favors the Cougars, bettors should also consider taking the Huskers based on their opponent's 8-19 ATS mark (30%) since 1992 when the total is at least 63 points. Both teams have some injury concerns too, as BYU will be missing at least three players -- RB Jamaal Williams (personal), TE Steven Richards (knee) and LB Sione Takitaki (suspension) -- and Nebraska's offense will be thinner without All-American punt returner De'Monrnay Pierson-El (foot), and possibly TE Trey Foster (ankle), who is listed as questionable.

Can BYU pull off the mild upset at Nebraska? For the answer, connect to College Football Best Bets for all the StatFox Experts picks throughout the 2015 regular season and bowl season.

After gaining a pedestrian 182 rushing YPG last year (47th in nation), the Cougars should be much more effective on the ground with RB Jamaal Williams (518 rush yds, 4.8 YPC, 4 TD) and QB Taysom Hill (460 rush yds, 5.3 YPC, 8 TD) back from knee and leg injuries, respectively. Hill (975 pass yds, 7.4 YPA, 7 TD, 3 INT) also has his No. 1 target back in 6-foot-6 WR Mitch Mathews (922 rec yds, 9 TD). BYU stuffed the run effectively last year (121.8 rush YPG, 20th in FBS) and returns DE Bronson Kaufusi (7 sacks, 43 tackles, 6 PBU) and WLB Sione Takitaki (3 sacks) to pressure opposing quarterbacks. BYU allowed only 6.7 YPA (26th in FBS) and has high hopes for sophomore CBs Jordan Preator (9 PBU) and Michael Davis (43 tackles, 6 PBU).

QB Tommy Armstrong Jr. (2,695 pass yds, 7.8 YPA, 22 TD, 12 INT) must improve his accuracy (53% completions) for new head coach Mike Riley’s pro-style offense to work. Armstrong has been working well with new offensive coordinator Danny Langsdorf, who was the New York Giants quarterbacks coach. He will mostly target WR Jordan Westerkamp (747 rec yds, 16.3 avg, 5 TD), but 6-foot-2 WR Alonzo Moore (136 rec yds) and TE Cethan Carter (98 rec yds, 1 TD) must also step up for the passing game to work. The team will certainly miss RB Ameer Abdullah, who rushed for 1,611 yards and 19 touchdowns, but RBs Imani Cross (384 rush yds, 5.1 YPC, 5 TD) and Terrell Newby (297 rush yds, 4.4 YPC, 5 TD) both got ample work last year. The goal is to not have Armstrong run as much as he did last year when he gained 705 yards on 4.9 YPC and scored six touchdowns. New defensive coordinator Mark Banker, formerly Oregon State's DC, will implore his defense to increase its 23 takeaways from last season (41st in nation), but he must be thrilled to coach a unit that ranked fifth in the nation in third-down defense (30%). The two defensive playmakers in Banker's aggressive 4-3 scheme are DE Greg McMullen (4 sacks) and S Nate Gerry (5 INT, 88 tackles), while 300-pound junior DTs Maliek Collins (7.5 sacks, 90 tackles combined) do the dirty work up front.