LINCOLN — Carl Pelini isn't undervaluing the tradition associated with this weekend's Nebraska-Oklahoma matchup. He's advising his players not to either.

Growing up, this was one of two games that the NU defensive coordinator had to see. The Youngstown, Ohio, native also couldn't miss Ohio State-Michigan.

“That's why they came to the University of Nebraska, right? To play games like this,” Pelini said.

So when the players take the field Saturday night, Pelini would rather they embrace the atmosphere.

“So I hope they go out and they're a little bit loose and I hope they enjoy the game,” he said.

It'll be a reunion of sorts for Carl and Bo Pelini, who attended the same high school as Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops. Carl Pelini said he ran out of tickets about a month ago.

But once the game begins, nobody involved will be thinking about anything other than trying to win, Pelini said.

“You don't even think about who's on the opposite side,” Pelini said. “It's all about the game.

Broyles hard to contain

Want to stump Pelini? Ask the defensive coordinator how to effectively defend the top OU receiver.

Sophomore Ryan Broyles, who missed two games with a shoulder injury, leads the Sooners with 44 catches and 591 receiving yards. No other player in the NCAA has more than Broyles' 10 touchdowns.

Broyles is a dangerous deep threat, but the 5-foot-11, 178-pound receiver can be a dangerous over-the-middle receiver too, according to Pelini. That's what makes him tough.

“They spread the field and they create space for him,” Pelini said. “He's either deep or he's inside. That creates a problem coverage-wise.”

Keeping tempo in check

Oklahoma's offense successfully dictated tempo during last season's blowout, which has become a glaring area of emphasis as the NU staff prepares for this year's rematch.

Pelini didn't like the way his unit reacted to the Sooners' no-huddle approach in the 62-28 loss, And as expected, Oklahoma took advantage.

So the Huskers have been stressing awareness in practice this week, according to Pelini.

“You can't ever fall asleep,” he said. “When they've got the momentum and they start speeding things up, you've got to be ready for that and you've always got to be aware that that's what's going to happen.”

Award winners appear

Twenty major award recipients, including six Heisman Trophy winners, are expected to take part in a “celebration of greatness'' as part of the Nebraska-Oklahoma football weekend in Lincoln.

It follows a ceremony held a year ago in Norman that recognized the Husker and Sooner players and staffs from the 1971 Game of the Century.

“That was such a nice deal that we thought we should reciprocate, but instead of having the same people we thought we'd have the major award winners instead,'' NU Athletic Director Tom Osborne said.

Osborne said the “healthy respect'' and good relationship between the two programs has made such events possible.

The participants will take part in a private dinner Friday night. The group also will be honored at halftime of the NU-OU game on Saturday night.

Along with Osborne, others present will be OU Athletic Director Joe Castiglione and former Sooners coach Barry Switzer. The Heisman winners are Johnny Rodgers, Mike Rozier and Eric Crouch of NU, and Steve Owens, Billy Sims and Jason White of OU.

The award winners planning to attend are:

Nebraska: Larry Jacobson, Johnny Rodgers, Dave Rimington, Dean Steinkuhler, Mike Rozier, Will Shields, Trev Alberts, Zach Wiegert, Tommie Frazier, Aaron Taylor and Eric Crouch. Oklahoma: Steve Owens, Greg Pruitt, Joe Washington, Tom Brahaney, Billy Sims, Brian Bosworth, Derrick Strait, Josh Heupel and Jason White.

No bad news this time

The man who axed Marlon Lucky was in the former Husker's old stomping grounds Tuesday.

Jim Lippincott, the Director of Football Operations for the Cincinnati Bengals, and the guy who waived the ex-NU running back on the HBO documentary show “Hard Knocks,” left Memorial Stadium just prior to Bo Pelini's weekly press conference.

He was the guy in charge of breaking the news of a player's fate throughout the preseason. One of those was Lucky.

NU sports information director Keith Mann said it's a pretty common occurrence to see scouts from NFL teams during the week rather than the weekend. The Bengals, at 5-2, don't figure to be in position to get NU's top prize, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, who was recently moved up to the No. 1 spot on the big board of ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr..

— Jon Nyatawa, Rich Kaipust and Nick Rubek

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