LINCOLN, Neb. - It was another tough outing for Nebraska’s run defense on Friday night in Nebraska’s 24-6 loss to Minnesota.

The Huskers surrendered 186 rushing yards to the Gophers, including a 71-yard run to set up a score. Defensive coordinator John Butler says he wasn’t as aggressive as he normally would be calling the defense - a game plan Matt Rhule described as “vanilla”, not wreaking much havoc.

Nebraska now faces a Northwestern team with a similar offensive style to Minnesota.

“I didn't call the game as aggressively as I planned,” Butler said. “We started out well on those first two drives, got into a nice rhythm and then we gave up that explosive run, that probably affected me more than it should.”

While Nebraska’s game plan didn't work out against Minnesota, players like Marques Watson-Trent and Andrew Marshall say much of that goes back to Nebraska’s preparation during the week.

“I feel like we relaxed a little bit,” Watson-Trent said. “It’s easy when you’re winning to not hone in on the details… Little things lead to big things.”

“It felt like we took our foot off the gas after the win over Maryland,” Marshall said. “It was a hard fought battle and I think we got slightly comfortable.”

Now, Nebraska returns home to take on a Northwestern team that loves to run the football - it’s a rivalry known for close games with 10 one-score contests over the last 13 meetings.

Butler is taking it upon himself to make sure the Blackshirts are better prepared come Saturday morning.

“That’s our responsibility, that’s our job as coaches,” Butler said. “When you’re a process program like we are, that games over, but there’s things to be learned from that game. Making sure if and when we did get away from playing physical and fast, that that’s where we fall back on. And I think the players understand the urgency.”

Northwestern and Nebraska kick off at 11:00 a.m. CT on Saturday