Nebraska projected for Music City Bowl vs. Kentucky ahead of trip to Oregon

Nebraska's projected postseason landing spot has changed again. USA TODAY Sports' latest bowl projections, released Tuesday, now send the Cornhuskers to the Music City Bowl in Nashville to face Kentucky, one of the SEC's fastest-rising teams. Cornhuskers Wire reported the new matchup.

The Huskers are 5-1 after a tough loss to then-No. 7 Indiana last Saturday in Lincoln. Nebraska led 17-6 early in the fourth quarter, but the Hoosiers came back on two long passing plays and won 20-17. Cornhuskers Wire described the defeat as "gut-punching," and it cost Nebraska a chance at a signature win in a season that had started cleanly.

The projected opponent also sits at 5-1, but Kentucky's trend is going the other way. The Wildcats moved up to No. 15 after a 35-34 overtime upset of then-No. 10 LSU, their fourth straight win and their second victory over a ranked team this season. They also beat then-No. 9 Texas A&M 31-21. Their only loss was a 45-17 defeat at then-No. 12 Alabama. Kentucky still has Oklahoma, Tennessee and Missouri left, so its own bowl position could shift a good deal before December.

In October, bowl projections mostly show how forecasters see the teams right now, and Nebraska's remaining schedule leaves plenty of room for that picture to change. Cornhuskers Wire called the Huskers' stretch run a gauntlet. It starts this week at Oregon and also includes Ohio State and Iowa. Games against Washington, Illinois and Rutgers are also still to come, and the outlet flagged them as possible trap games if Nebraska lets its focus slip.

The Oregon game is the next marker. Nebraska plays the 3-2 Ducks on Saturday, October 17, with kickoff at 11:00 PM EDT on Fox. A road win in Eugene after the Indiana loss would put the Huskers at 6-1 and could move them up the bowl pecking order. A second straight loss would leave them with less margin for the hard November ahead.

The market is not buying Oregon's record as a sign of weakness. Oregon is favored at -251 on Novig, one of the venues listing the game. The spread has the Ducks favored by 7.5 points, and the total is 52.5. Among sportsbooks, the best listed price on Oregon is -275 at FanDuel. Current numbers are on the Nebraska at Oregon game page.

The Indiana game showed that Nebraska can stay with a top-10 opponent for most of four quarters. Saturday night in Eugene is another chance to finish that kind of game, and the result will likely shape where the Huskers show up in next week's projections.