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AUSTIN, Texas (Ticker) -- Unbeaten and third-ranked Nebraska faces its toughest test of the season when it visits Darrel Royal Stadium to battle No. 18 Texas in a rematch of the classic 1996 Big 12 Conference Championship Game. With the exception of a tight game with Southern Mississippi on September 18, the Cornhuskers (6-0, 3-0 Big 12 North) have rolled through the early part of their season and are in position to make a run at the national championship. But the rest of the schedule is treacherous -- games against Texas A&M, Kansas State and Colorado are still to come -- and many are saying Nebraska is not as good as its record. The Longhorns (5-2, 2-1 South) are out to prove that's so. Two years removed from Texas' 37-27 upset of Nebraska in St. Louis, the Cornhuskers can not feel all that confident heading into this game. They suffered a 20-16 home loss to Texas last season, a setback that started a 4-3 tailspin for Nebraska. Future Heisman Trophy winner Ricky Williams pounded on the Nebraska defense in last year's game for 150 rushing yards. Without Williams this time, the Longhorns will turn to Major Applewhite and hope the sophomore signal-caller can win the game. Not that Applewhite has to do it all by himself. Wide receivers Kwame Cavil and Ryan Nunez have been nothing short of superb and Hodges Mitchell must have learned from Williams as he is turning into a dangerous receiving weapon out of the backfield in addition to his team-leading 671 rushing yards. A key player for Nebraska in the game will be senior safety Mike Brown, an All-American candidate. Instead of shadowing one receiver, Brown will be asked by coach Frank Solich to react -- watch Applewhite and then use his terrific speed to close on the ball. On offense, the Cornhuskers ground attack is not the juggernaut that it has been in recent seasons. They do rank sixth in the nation with over 265 yards per game on the ground, but that is only because of the number of times they hand the ball off -- 52 1/2 times per contest. Texas ranks 14th against the run, allowing just 93 yards per game on the ground. The series is tied, 3-3, but Nebraska has not beaten Texas since recording a 19-3 triumph in 1974.
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