The top 5 moments on the road for Nebraska football
Remember when good things used to happen for the Huskers away from home? Here are the five best moments for Nebraska football away from Memorial Stadium.
Last month, I shared the top five moments in Memorial Stadium for Nebraska football.
To kick off July, let’s look at the best moments for the Huskers on the road.
5. Ahman Green scores on the first offensive play in Boulder (Colorado, 1995)
Why it was a big moment: Colorado hadn’t defeated Nebraska since 1990. The Buffaloes were stacked and expected to beat the Big Red. The Folsom Field crowd was especially amped for this game.
Colorado was ranked #7. Nebraska was #2. Would this be the year?
Colorado had a short drive that ended with a punt to open the game. Nebraska’s first play was a speed option out of the Power-I. Ahman Green took the pitch from Tommie Frazier and took it 58 yards to the house.
I can’t find the source, but apparently Tom Osborne told the team before the game that if they ran the first play correctly, they would score a touchdown.
Absolute legend.
4. Eric Crouch scrambles 95 yards for a touchdown (Missouri, 2001)
Why it was a big moment: Nebraska wasn’t necessarily in danger of losing to a 1-2 Missouri team. But it was late in the third quarter, and Nebraska was only leading 16-3. The Husker offense had struggled all day. And it needed a jolt.
Quarterback Eric Crouch provided it with a signature Heisman moment. He dropped back to pass, avoided a defender (and potentially a safety), scrambled, and then juked and outran the entire Missouri defense.
3. Husker Nation invades South Bend (Notre Dame, 2000)
Why it was a big moment: This home-and-home series was highly anticipated because Nebraska and Notre Dame hadn’t played since the 1972 Orange Bowl. Notre Dame got the first home game, but it felt like Lincoln, not South Bend.
An estimated 25,000 Husker fans—conservative in my opinion—invaded Notre Dame Stadium despite their 4,000 ticket allotment. Husker fans have always been known to travel. This game only confirmed that reputation before a national TV audience.
2. The Miracle at Missouri (Missouri, 1997)
Why it was a big moment: Nebraska wouldn’t have won a share of the national championship in 1997 without it. Of course, Nebraska didn’t win the game on this catch. They still needed a PAT to tie and send it to overtime. But the clock expired after this play. It was the miracle that saved their season.
Here’s the thing to remember: Missouri was not a great team that year. Nebraska just ran into a buzz saw that day. Missouri did whatever it wanted on offense. But so did Nebraska. Thankfully, they had the ball last, and freshman Matt Davison was in the right place at the right time.
1. Johnny Rodgers puts ‘em in the aisles at the Game of the Century (Oklahoma, 1971)
Why it was a big moment: Rodgers set the tone for the greatest football game ever played by scoring on Oklahoma’s punt just three minutes and 32 seconds into the game.
This play was the difference in a back-and-forth game where OU outgained NU by over 100 yards of offense.
Rodgers’ return isn’t just the most famous punt return in Nebraska football history. It very well may be the most famous and best punt return in all of college football history.
Honorable mentions:
The Scoring Explosion explodes for 84 points (Minnesota, 1983).
Nebraska defense shuts down Oklahoma, ending the Sooners’ 31-game Big 8 winning streak (Oklahoma, 1988)
De’Mornay Pierson-El returns a punt for a touchdown to get Nebraska back in the game against Iowa (Iowa, 2014).
Ndamukong Suh makes an incredible interception, highlighting a 28-point fourth quarter to beat Missouri (Missouri, 2008).