The best way to describe a game
in which Nebraska and Texas.Tech
combined for 12 fumbles and 15
penalties is ugly. “It was winning
ugly for us, and I think it was los
ing ugly for them,” Nebraska quar
terback Scott Frost said. “Both
teams can play a lot better.”
Rover Mike Minter said all the
miscues woe unbelievable, leaving
him shaking his head that Nebraska
escaped with a win. “That was the
ugliest game I’ve ever been in
volved with,” Minter said.
■
Despite winning ugly, NU won
its 26th-straight conference game,
fourth-straight game overall and
recorded its 703rd all-time win.
Nebraska also improved its overall
record to 4-0 against Texas Tech.
The Nebraska players and
Coach Tom Osborne were glad to
see a hard-hitting football game
Saturday. “It was a head-banger out
there,” free safety Eric Stokes said.
“It was a good physical game for
us, and that’s what we need.”
Osborne also liked the hitting.
“It was a head-knocker,”
Osborne said. “It was a hard-nosed
football game, and I enjoyed that
part of it It was a contest where
everybody was playing full out”
'ajsp
Injury update: NU defensive
tackle Jason Peter broke his hand
Saturday and is questionable for
this week’s game against Kansas.
Peter will be fitted with a cast and
should be able to play before it is
removed. Fullback Brian Schuster
suffered a partially separated shoul
der and is also questionable for
Saturday’s 6 p.m. game against KU
at Memorial Stadium.
No otter injuries appeared seri
ous, but I-back Ahman Green re
aggravated his sprained toe, and
right guard Jon Zatechka and right
tackle Eric Anderson suffered
sprained ankles.
■
Both NU and Texas Tech liked
the idea of a rematch in the Big 12
championship game at the Trans
World Dome in St Louis on Dec.
7.
Frost said he wouldn’t be sur
prised to see the Red Raiders rep
resenting the South Division in the
championship game.
Tech has three remaining games
against South Division opponents
— Texas A&M, Texas and Okla
homa^— and the Raiders need to
win all three to make it to St Louis.
“If Tech plays like they did to
day, 1 think they have an awfully
good chance to come out of the
south,” Osborne said.
■
Florida tightened its grasp on -
the nation’s No. 1 spot Saturday
with a 51-10 win over Auburn.
Notre Dame, now ranked 19th, lost
to Air Force 20-17 in overtime and
No. 17 Penn State lost to Iowa 21
20. Nebraska fell behind Arizona
State in the USA Today Coaches’
are now ranked
ny senior reporters irevor rants
NU escapes Wwi
Huskers win despite 5 turnovers, 11 penalties 1
-—- -.-i;:-aaite'- Thmlir* H g.
By Trevor Parks
Senior Reporter
LUBBOCK, Texas — As hard as
Nebraska and Texas Tech tried to hand
each other Saturday’s football game,
the Comhuskers happily accepted an
ugly victory.
Fifth
ranked Nebraska
beat the Red Raid
ers 24-10 Satur
day afternoon in
front of 51,344
fans—the largest
crowd in Tech
Coach Spike
Dykes’ 10-year
career — at Jones
Stadium in Lub
bock, Texas, de
ties and five turn
overs.
The 11 penalties were Nebraska’s
most since committing 11 in 1992
against Washington, and the 99 pen
alty yards woe the most since the 1992
Oklahoma game, in which NU was
flagged for 101 yards
Saturday was the time Ne
braska turned the ball over live times
in a game since the 1994 Kickoff Clas
sic against West Virginia.
“We shot ourselves in the foot so
many times we didr’t feel like we had
any toes left, , quarterback Scott
Frost said. “We hung in there, though.
It was the same kind of circumstances
„ we had at Arizona State a little bit
“Instead of hanging our heads, the
guys kept fighting and kept plugging
through it”
Tech gave the ball up three tunes,
all (m fumbles, and allowed a Jeremy
Hernandez punt to be blocked by Jon
Hesse, who led Nebraska wi nine
tackles, includinff four behind IJ“
of scrimmag
Frost s —e
performan rowmg for only-55
yards: For game, Frost led the NU
offense to only 238 total yards* 218
yards below its season average. Ahman
Green led Nebraska with 76 rushing
yards on 19 attempts.
NU improved to 5-1 overall and 3
• v
u in tne mg iz, oecoming tne nrst team
to beat die Red Raiders at Jones Sta
dium in 12 games. Texas Tech dropped
to 4-3 overall and 3-2 in the confer
ence.
Despite the victory, which left NU
in a first-place tie with Colorado in the
North Division of the Big 12, Coach
Tom Osborne said his team’s perfor
mance needs to improve before Satur
day night’s game at Manorial Stadium
against 3-3 Kansas.
“We need to play better,” Osborne
said. “We are trying to get to the top
somehow, and I don’t worry about
rankings. But I worry about how we
play, and we need to play better than
what we did today.”
At times, things did go well for the
Huskers.
With the game tied at 10, Texas
Tech faced a third down and 1 from
their own 42 when free safety Eric
Stokes knocked the ball loose from
Heisman Trophy candidate Byron
Hanspard. Ralph Brown recovered the
fumble at the Tech 41-yard line.
Hanspard finished the afternoon
with 107 yards rushing — his lowest
total of the season — on 31 attempts
with two critical fumbles.
The Tech running game, ranked
iourtn in me nation entering me game,
mustered only 102 yards against the
Huskers. The Red Raiders finished
with 214 total yards.
Seven rushing plays later, Frost
kept an option around the right side for
a three-yard touchdown run, giving
NU a 17-10 lead with 9 minutes, 29
seconds left in the third quarter.
Bothteams had opportunities ifc the
second half.
But two Joel Makovicka fumbles
— one of which was on die Tech 5
yard line and bounced through the end
zone — and a fumbled NUpuHtby
Tech’s Cliff Robertson at d$ Raider
13-yard line ended any thoughts that
one team may gain control.
The Huskers finally-sealed die win,
when Damon Benning returned a punt
SI yards to the Tech 5 with just more
than eight minutes to play.
Benning stayed in die game, and
after picking up two yards on first
down, he dropped a second-down'^itch
from Frost But the ball bounced back
into thei-back’s hands andbe.$co&d
from diree yards out to give the Husk
ers a 24-10 lead with 8:16 left in the
ballgame. : '• ,r'3S
“We did what we had to do to win,
but it definitely wasn’t pretty out
IL—;
there,” Benning said. “It's important
for us to find some consistency.”
With the exception of the first play
from scrimmage, things didn’t go ac- >
cording to plan for NU in the first half.
Seven seconds into the game, the
Husker defense scored the fastest
touchdown to begin a game in school
history. • .
Jason Peter stripped the ball from
Hanspard and Terrell Farley scooped
it up and raiced 21 yards for a touch
down, putting Nebraska in front 7-0.
“It was an emotional lift for every
one,” Mike Minter said. “That is big.
s Terrell is known for big plays, and hie
made another one.
“We are just thankful that he is on f
our team.”
Nebraska's defense shined 1
throughout the afternoon. The Husk
ers sacked Red Raider quarterback
Zebbie Lethridge six times, including
three sacks by Mike Rucker.
Tech used defense for its first points
as well.
Frost, throwing out of his own end
Please see TECH on 11
Scott Bruhn/DN