The Huskers had big defensive problems with USC and coordinator Kevin Cosgrove is taking the hits this week from the media and the fans. But the players say blame them for last week's performance.

Cornerback Cortney Grixby and his Blackshirt teammates say the loss falls on the shoulders of the players. “Somebody got to put the blame on somebody and I guess this week it was coach Cos."

"That’s not what he coached out there on the field. We weren’t consistent and we want to get better this week at practice.”

Ball State comes to Lincoln Saturday full of confidence they can pull off another upset. The Cardinals surprised Navy last Saturday.

“We can’t let down, we’re coming off a loss,” says Grixby. “We need a win and that’s what you gotta do."

"They say sometimes winning solves everything," says Grixby. "Winning will help us forget about some of the stuff from last week.”

Coach Bill Callahan said Thursday the Huskers had a good week of practice, with one of the major points of emphasis on slowing Cardinal quarterback Nate Davis.

Davis has already thrown for 781 yards and eight touchdowns in two games. He's completed 53.3% of his passes, possesses both elusiveness when he drops back to throw and a powerful arm.

“He does an awful lot,” Callahan said. “He’s a productive quarterback that has the ability to make plays outside the pocket."

"He has such a strong arm that he can pick up the deep defenders and he has excellent vision. That’s what makes him dangerous. He can get out of the pocket, get flushed and move from the boundary to the wide field and throw it clear across or down the field and make big plays.”

Nebraska may have to face Ball State without a pair of defensive starters. Defensive end Zach Potter and cornerback Zackary Bowman were both held out of Thursday’s practice. So was running back Cody Glenn.

However, neither Potter nor Bowman has been ruled out of Saturday’s game.

The Huskers are already dealing with the loss of left guard Andy Christenson and continue to assess their options for replacing him. Included in the mix are Matt Slauson, Jacob Hickman, Mike Huff, Keith Williams and Jordan Picou.

“We’re going to still evaluate tonight (Thursday),” said Callahan. “It’s been a good week of practice for all of those guys. We’ve used all sorts of different combinations, so we’ll look at that film and see where we’re at. It’s been a great competition this week.”