Shreveport, La. ? After playing for a national championship a year ago, Nebraska wasn’t expecting to be in the Independence Bowl this season.

The Cornhuskers finished the regular season 7-6, their worst record since they went 3-6-1 in 1961. They hope to maintain their winning record in today’s bowl game against Mississippi (6-6).

It’s an entirely different scene than usual for Nebraska, down to the questions about the conspicuous lack of Husker fans in town for the game.

Ole Miss has nearly sold its entire 12,000-ticket allotment, but Nebraska officials estimated no more than 6,000 Husker fans would travel to 50,000-seat Independence Stadium.

“The game’s only a couple days after Christmas, it’s pretty far from home, and it’s pretty tough to get flights in here,” Nebraska split end Ross Pilkington said. “A lot of people will watch it on TV. We know people will still be supporting us.”

Nebraska hasn’t looked more beatable in decades, and it shows in the way Ole Miss players talk about their meeting with the Cornhuskers.

Mississippi linebacker Eddie Strong talks of disrupting the Husker offense by roughing up quarterback Jammal Lord.

“He keeps the ball more than he pitches. If we hit him in the mouth, he’ll pitch it more and we’ll take him out of the game,” Strong said.

Nebraska quarterback Jammal Lord stretches during Thursday's practice in Shreveport, La. The Huskers will face Mississippi today in the Independence Bowl.

Ole Miss, which runs an explosive but inconsistent passing attack led by Eli Manning, is back in Shreveport for the second time in four seasons.

Despite both teams’ struggles this season, the Independence Bowl, sponsored by MainStay, holds the potential to be an entertaining, high-scoring contest given how both squads have struggled on defense.

Lord ran for more than 1,300 yards this season, while running back Dahrran Diedrick surpassed 800. They’ll test an Ole Miss defense that only recently has started to come together.

“We know they’ve got a fast defense,” Diedrick said. “So it’s going to be up to the running backs to find the creases and make the big plays.”

After allowing 200 rushing yards to SEC doormat Vanderbilt earlier this season, the Rebels allowed only 213 yards combined in their last two games against LSU and Mississippi State.

Ole Miss has struggled to run the ball. Lord outrushed Mississippi’s entire team by a couple hundred yards this season. Manning has carried the load for the Rebels, passing for 3,088 yards with 20 touchdowns.

“He’s different than a lot of quarterbacks we’ve gone against,” Nebraska rush end Chris Kelsay said. “He’s very composed in the pocket. If we’re able to put pressure on him, take him out of rhythm and put uncertainty in his head right away, it could be a good day for us.”

Jeff Jamrog, interim defensive coordinator, wants to see if the Huskers can stop Manning with pressure up front rather than overloading pass coverage.

“Our emphasis is to stop the run and then to make him throw and throw it in a hurry,” Jamrog said. “If we stop the run, we like our chances of winning the game. The big thing we’re trying to emphasize is take away the football.”

Nebraska linebacker Demorrio Williams said he and his teammates hope to treat Manning the way the Blackshirt defense treated Eli’s brother, Peyton, when the Huskers beat Tennessee after the 1997 season.

Peyton Manning threw for a season-low 134 yards and was intercepted once as the Huskers beat the Volunteers 42-17. The game secured the Huskers’ third national championship in four years.