Nebraska prepares for the Pinstripe Bowl

This is not the typical home team, FCS level Rams that just completed a 2-10 season. The Huskers took the practice field on a cold and sunny Thursday afternoon flanked by social media cameras and a bevy of staff. A post-practice grab-and-go buffet line greeted the players afterward as they walked the few miles back toward downtown Manhattan and an evening at a high-profile ping-pong club.

“Just looking around and spending time with each other,” freshman linebacker Vincent Shavers said of more time in New York City. “I’ve never done this before without any other team, so I’m very happy. I am grateful to them.”

Jay-Z’s “Empire State of Mind” played on the sound system as Nebraska went through practice two days before the Pinstripe Bowl. The Huskers practiced at Joe Moglia Field — Moglia, a Fordham alumnus, was once former NU coach Bo Pelini’s executive adviser in 2009 and 2010 — on an artificial surface also shared by Fordham’s football and baseball teams. Baseball’s press box named after another famous graduate, Vin Scully, was just feet away as the visiting Big Ten team went through drills.

The gated campus — just a few blocks away from busy Bronx neighborhood streets — was covered in small piles of snow scattered throughout. Temperatures in the sun may have felt in the mid-40s, while shaded conditions felt closer to the 20s.

New Nebraska assistant coaches Daikiel Shorts (receivers) and Phil Simpson (outside linebackers) spoke to a host of reporters afterward along with a few players.

Coach Matt Rhule will speak at noon Friday as part of a Pinstripe availability before kickoff Saturday at noon Eastern time.