I
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Huskers survive scare,
preserve hope for titles
By Derek Samson
Staff Reporter
LAWRENCE, Kan. — Once
again, Nebraska dodged a bullet.
But this time, the bullet came clos
er than ever to shooting down the
Cornhuskers’ hopes for a chance at
the national championship.
Nebraska escaped with a 21-20
victory Saturday to remain undefeat
ed at 9-0 overall and 5-0 in the Big
Eight.
Coach Tom Osborne said he felt
fortunate to leave Lawrence with a
victory.
“We were very concerned coming
in that it would be one of our tough
est of the year,” Osborne said. “At
the beginning of the season, we
thought this was going to be diffi
cult, and it was. I’m just glad to get
out of here with a win.”
The game was decided on the
Jayhawks’ two-point conversion with
52 seconds remaining.
Kansas pulled within 21-20 after
running back Charles Hcndley dove
over the pile for a 3-yard touchdown.
Kansas coach Glen Mason elected to
go for the win, instead of kicking the
extra point to tie the game.
On the two-point conversion, Kan
sas quarterback Asheiki Preston at
tempted a pass to Ashaundai Smith
that fell incomplete.
Osborne said Mason’s decision to
go for two and also to pass on the
play should not be questioned.
“If anyone should be second
guessed it should be me, not Glen
Mason,” Osborne said. “Youjust have
to win the game. I respect his deci
sion, and 1 think that’s the decision
you have to make. A tie wouldn’t
have done them any good.”
Nebraska led 14-7 at halftime but
could not pull away from Kansas in
the second half. The Jayhawks scored
with just over a minute remaining in
the third quarter to tie the game at 14
and put the pressure on the Huskcr
offense.
The 14-14 score was the first time
since 1973 that Kansas hasn’t trailed
Nebraska going into the final period.
“We should have scored a lot more
points than we did,” Osborne said.
“We just didn’t get out in front like
we needed to. We could have been a
lot sharper.”
However, the Nebraska offense did |
respond to the Kansas’ score with
8:20 left in the game. ;
After Calvin Jones’ 51-yard run <
Miami vaults ahead of Nebraska in Coalition Poll
Nov. 7 standings Rankings
USA Today/ Coalition
AP CNN Point total
1. Florida State 1 1 3,098
2. Notre Dame 2 2 2^956
3. Miami 3 4 2747
4. Nebraska 4 3 2703
5. Ohio State 5 5 2^495
6. Tennessee 6 6 2,449
7. Florida 8 9 2,237
8. West Virginia 9 7 2,158
9. Texas A&M 11 8 2,072
10. UCLA 10 10 T937
The bowl coalition will use the combined point totals of
the Associated Press and the CNN/USA Today polls to
rank the Top 25 teams.
The Big Eight champion will play in the Orange Bowl.
The Southeastern Conference champion will play in the
Sugar Bowl and the Southwest Conference champion will
play in the Cotton Bowl.
The highest-ranked team of those conference’s
champions may face the winner of the Notre Dame-Florida
State game Nov. 13, if that team remains undefeated. But
the Fiesta Bowl would get the No. 1 and No. 2 teams if
they aren’t locked into another bowl.
Thus, if Miami stays ahead of Nebraska, the Hurricanes
will probably play the winner of the Florida State-Notre
Dame game, if that team remains undefeated, in the Fiesta
Bowl.
to the Kansas 8, Nebraska scored two
plays later on a 10-yard pass from
Tommie Frazier to Trumane Bell.
On the touchdown catch, Frazier
scrambled out of the pocket then spot
ted Bell, who ran out of the end zone
to make the grab in front of two
Kansas defenders. Bell then stretched
the ball across the goal line as he was
taken down.
“I was just thinking about going
up and grabbing the ball as soon as I
can so I could make something hap
pen,” Bell said. “I knew I wasn't in
so 1 just tried to get the ball across
the goal line.”
The score came on the last Huskcr
possession before Kansas staged its
80-yard. 17-play drive that took up
7:28 of the fourth quarter and result
:d in the Hendley touchdown.
Nebraska captured its second one
win t victory of the season and won
its third game by less than a touch
down.
Backup quarterback Brook
[derringer said the close victories were
i mark of a great team. Berringcr,
,vho led a second quarter drive in
ilacc of Frazier, completed three of
Ive passes for 40 yards. But he threw
m interception in the end zone that
■tided the scoring threat.
—__I
DN graphic
“We know we're out there and
we're going to win it,” Berringer said.
“Anytime you get out with a one
point win, you feel lucky. But it is
great teams that win the close games.”
Last year’s upset loss at Iowa State
gave fans, players and coaches a feel
ing of dcja vu as Kansas lined up for
the two-point conversion.
“The stage was set,” Osborne said.
“We were not as emotionally ready
as we needed to be.”
Kansas scored on the opening
drive of the game after Preston com
pleted a 30-yard touchdown pass to
Dwayne Chandler on fourth down.
Nebraska answered with a touch
down on its opening drive when
Jones, who led offense with 195 yards
on 29 carries, scored from four yards
out.
In the second quarter, Frazier com
pleted an K-yard scoring strike to tight
end Gerald Armstrong to put Nebras
ka on top 14-7.
Even though the win was close,
Frazier said, it showed Nebraska has
matured since the Iowa State loss
last year.
“This shows we are a better team
this year,” he said. “This year, we
just keep going where last year, I feel
we may have let up.”
