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By Dorek Sa won
Senior Reporter
AMES, Iowa — Nebraska may
have been feeling a little deja vu foi
the first three quarters of its 28-12 win
over Iowa State on Saturday.
Just two years after the Cyclones
upset Nebraska 19-10 in Ames —
handing Nebraska coach Tom
Osborne his only loss to a team that
finished with a losing record — the
Cornhuskers looked close to suffer
ing the same fate again, leading the
winless Cyclones only 14-12 going
into the fourth quarter.
But top-ranked Nebraska, which
remained No. 1 in both polls after
Saturday’s win, wore the Cyclones
down in the fourth quarter, scoring
two touchdowns to improve its record
to 11-0 overall and 6-0 in the Big
Eight.
Osborne said Nebraska played well
considering the added inspiration the
Cyclones had in Coach Jim Walden’s
final game.
“They certainly played with a lot
of intensity.” he said. “Their defense
played hard. On our side of the ball, I
was very pleased with the fact that we
never lost our poise. We kept playing
and did a nice job. It was an emotional
day.
“They were ready to play. Their
defense played with a lot of emotion.
I think they were a very emotional
team, and this was their bowl game
today. It was very reminiscent of two
years ago.”
But from the beginning, it didn’t
look like Iowa State had a chance to
win its second straight over Nebraska
in Cyclone Stadium.
The Huskers took their 16-play
opening drive 80 yards in 7:26, and
Law rence Phillips capped it off with
a 1 -yard touchdown run.
But Phillips and Nebraska could
do no more for a while. Phillips
gained only 30 yards on 15 carries in
the first half.
After Nebraska went three plays
and out in its next two possessions, it
held only a 7-0 lead at the end of the
first quarter. But it also held Iowa
State to only seven total yards in the
period.
Osborne said holding Iowa State
to seven yards in the first quarter, 55
at the half and 213 for the game
proved that the defense showed up
ready to play.
“I thought our defense played
pretty well,” Osborne said. “Iowa
State has a pretty good offense, and
they were moving the ball well in the
last few games. They had 440 yards
against Kansas State (the week be
fore), so 1 thought our defense played
pretty well.”
In the second quarter, Iowa State
benefited from Nebraska's mistakes.
Nebraska s Jon \fcdral was flagged
for a personal foul after a Nebraska
punt, giving the Cyclones a first down
at the Nebraska 35-yard line.
The Huskcrs held and forced a 35
yard field goal from Omaha native Ty
Stewart.
On the Cyclones' next scries, the
Husker defense again held and forced
Iowa State to punt.
However, on the punt, the ball ap
parently bounced off a Nebraska
player, making it a live ball, which
was recovered by Iowa State's Jim
Knott at the Nebraska 18.
“They (officials) said it hit one of
our players, but from where I'm stand
ing from I can't sec that,” Osborne
said. “I asked the player, and he said
it didn’t (hit him), but they always say
that.”
Nebraska’s defense again held and
forced another Stewart field goal, this
one a 37-yarder that cut Nebraska’s
lead to 7-6.
The Husker offense finally got back
on track at the end of the hal f, as quar
terback Brook Bcrringcr, who threw
for 193 yards, completed two passes
to Abdul Muhammad on a four-play
scoring drive — the last one for a 38
yard touchdown.
Muhammad's diving catch in the
end zone gave Nebraska a 14-6 lead
with 1.59 left in the first half.
“He (Muhammad) just got behind
him. and thank goodness I put the ball
where it needed to be,” Bcrringcr said.
“It gave us a little bit of momentum
coming out of the locker room the
second half, and I think we used it to
our advantage.”
That momentum swung quickly
midway through the third quarter
when Iowa State quarterback Todd
Doxzon connected with Calvin
Branch for a 58-yard touchdown pass.
Iowa State tried to tie the game
with a two-point conversion, but
Doxzon was stopped short of the goal
line, and the Huskcrs still led 14-12
with 3:42 left in the quarter.
Nebraska comerback Tyrone Wil
liams said the Cyclones tried to burn
the Huskcrs with the deep pass all day.
“They hit us with a play we knew
was coming from early in the game,”
Williams said. “We knew that would
be coming, and then they finally hit
on that one. The guy just made a good
move and got inside position on me.”
But like so many times before, the
Huskers’ running game — which
managed only 106 yards in the first
three quarters — took over in the
fourth quarter, allowing Nebraska to
pull away from 0-8-1 Iowa State.
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