Following back-to-back victories against top-10 teams and climbing atop the national rankings, Coach Tom Osborne had some concern when Nebraska football played Iowa State in early November 1995.
That despite the game being played at sold-out Memorial Stadium and the Cyclones being 3-5.
“I was a little bit apprehensive,” he said. “Sometimes there’s a little tendency to have an emotional letdown, and I didn’t think we did that. I think we played with consistency and good effort.”
Osborne was understating. The Huskers scored on their first 10 possessions and 11-of-13 in the game. It was a good day to run the ball. Temperature at kickoff was 39 degrees. Nebraska rushed for 624 yards, the second-most in school history. Ahman Green rushed for 176 yards and three touchdowns, on only 12 carries. The Cyclones rushed for 121 yards as a team. The Huskers ran 89 scrimmage plays for 776 total yards, fifth-most in NU history. They had 37 first downs.
The final score was Nebraska 73, Iowa State 14. And that’s not a misprint.
First-year Cyclone Coach Dan McCarney’s response? Osborne “is a class act,” McCarney said, showing class himself. “I’ve always said that. And I believe it. He substituted freely and often, and never, at any time in the game, did I think they were trying to run it up. They were just in another league.”
Osborne used 96 players, including 15 who carried the ball. Lawrence Phillips was among those 15, a suspension after the Michigan State game lifted. He also carried 12 times, for 68 yards and a touchdown. Nebraska’s other touchdowns came from Clinton Childs, Joel Makovicka and Tommie Frazier, who ran for two touchdowns and passed for two, to Green and Reggie Baul.
Kris Brown also kicked a 38-yard field goal just before halftime. He made five-of-six extra points, with Ted Retzlaff kicking the last three. Frazier ran one for two points.
Frazier completed 10-of-15 passes for 118 yards and the touchdowns, without an interception. Nebraska didn’t turn over the ball for a fourth consecutive game. Mike Minter and Mike Fullman intercepted passes and Jared Tomich had a sack for the Huskers.
Thirty-one Huskers had at least one tackle, led by Jamel Williams with seven.
Iowa State running back Troy Davis went into the game averaging a nation-leading 190.75 yards. “I don’t know how anybody can shut him down,” Nebraska defensive coordinator Charlie McBride said.
The Huskers did limit him to 121 yards on 28 carries.
“We came into this week focused. We had to stop Troy Davis,” said Husker defensive tackle Christian Peter. “The first thing we wanted to do was concentrate on the run.”
Nebraska scored 20 points in the first quarter and never looked back.
“That’s as fine a physical-looking team as I’ve ever seen,” said McCarney, the defensive coordinator and defensive line coach at Wisconsin (1990-94) after beginning his coaching career as defensive line coach at Iowa (1979-89). “Physically, just standing on the sideline, I’ve coached against Nebraska in the past, back in the ‘80s, and that’s the best-looking football team I’ve ever seen.”
McCarney was an offensive lineman at Iowa (1972-74). “I’ve been in college football for 25 years, as a player and a coach, and that’s as fine a team as I’ve ever played or coached against,” he said.
A fine team with no letdown. Quite the contrary.
