ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Blake Corum ran for 162 yards and a touchdown, helping No. 3 Michigan stay undefeated with a 34-3 win over Nebraska on Saturday.
The Wolverines (10-0, 7-0 Big Ten, No. 3 CFP) have won their first 10 games for the first time since 2006, when they closed the regular season as the second-ranked team with a loss to rival and top-ranked Ohio State.
In two weeks, Michigan will play the Buckeyes on the road with the Big Ten East Division title and likely spot in the College Football Playoff at stake.
Michigan was in control from the start against the Cornhuskers (3-7, 2-5) and opened with a 12-play, 80-yard drive that Corum capped with a 2-yard run for his 18th touchdown.
The Heisman Trophy candidate had 100-plus yards rushing — in the first half — for the seventh straight game and pulled within a game of the school record set by current running backs coach Mike Hart.
J.J. McCarthy was 8 of 17 for 129 yards with two touchdown passes. McCarthy also ran for a 3-yard score late in the third, putting Michigan ahead 24-3.
Nebraska started quarterback Chubba Purdy in place of Casey Thompson, who missed a second straight game with an elbow injury, and he left the game in the second quarter after appearing to injure his right ankle.
Logan Smothers filled in and after fumbling a snap, the Cornhuskers settled for a field goal and 14-3 score.
Purdy was 6 of 12 for 56 yards and ran for a team-high 39 yards. Smothers was 4 of 8 for 15 yards for the Cornuskers, who finished with just 146 yards of offense.
THE TAKEAWAY
Nebraska: The once-proud program has lost 21 straight games against Top 25 opponents, dating to 2016, and has not knocked off a top-five opponent since 2001.
Michigan: The passing game has a lot of improving to do, and not much time to pull it off, to improve the team’s chances of winning at Ohio State for the first time since 2000.
UP NEXT
Nebraska: Hosts Wisconsin and plays at Iowa to end the season.
Michigan: Plays No. 21 Illinois, which will likely fall out of the AP Top 25 after losing to Purdue, in a final tuneup before traveling to Ohio State.