Beginning this week, Historical focuses on the 1997 national championship season for Nebraska football, Tom Osborne’s last.
First up for Nebraska in 1997, Akron at Memorial Stadium. First down, no surprise; Akron, 59-14.
“These kind of games don’t give me any great joy,” Coach Tom Osborne said. “Akron did the very best they could. They played hard. They have good character, and I don’t think they quit. I think they’ll win some games this year, but we have to play whoever’s on our schedule.”
For the record, Akron won two games and lost eight more. But that’s neither here nor there. The Huskers are the focus. “We suited up about 116 (players) or so and I think we got close to that many in the ballgame,” said Osborne. According to the official statistics, Nebraska played 101.
Six true freshmen saw action, including I-back Correll Buckhalter, quarterback Bobby Newcombe, wide receiver Matt Davison, rush end Kyle Vanden Bosch, cornerback Erwin Swiney and rover Joe Walker. That’s noteworthy because Osborne didn’t play many true freshmen during his 25 seasons.
Buckhalter was among four Huskers who ran for two touchdowns. The others were quarterback Scott Frost, I-back Ahman Green, who left the game at halftime with back-tightening, and fullback Joel Makovicka. Frost was the leading rusher, with 123 yards on 11 carries.
Offensively “our execution was pretty crisp,” said Osborne. “I thought our blocking was good. We expect to have a better offensive team this year.
“I thought Scott Frost and Frankie London both played well.”
London, the second-string quarterback, ran five times for 79 yards and completed 4-of-5 passes for 90 yards. Frost completed 7-of-13 for 67 yards. Neither threw an interception.
The Huskers had the game’s only turnover, a lost fumble.
“Whether you are playing a No. 1-ranked team or a No. 50-ranked team, you still have to take care of the ball and still have to execute,” Osborne said. “I thought that part (execution) was pretty good.”
Pretty good? Nebraska finished with 644 yards of offense, including 472 rushing on 56 carries. Green carried nine times for 99 yards, Buckhalter seven for 61, Makovicka seven for 59.
I-backs DeAngelo Evans, Jay Sims and Dan Alexander, fullback Willie Miller and split end Kenny Cheatham sat out because of injuries.
Nebraska picked up 30 first downs and never punted. The Huskers’ other points came on a 38-yard Kris Brown field goal midway through the second quarter, to make the score 24-0.
Akron managed 11 first downs and 243 yards of offense.
“Defensively, I think the one thing that concerned me was the sustained drive,” Osborne said. Late in the third quarter, the Zips drove 82 yards on 10 plays for their first touchdown.
The drive came with defensive starters still on the field. “We really didn’t get any pressure on the quarterback and seemed to lack enthusiasm as a unit once we went up 14-0,” said defensive tackle Jason Peter, who led Nebraska with six tackles. “The way we played today won’t cut it once we really start getting through the season because if we play this way against Washington, we will lose.”
Washington, in Seattle, was the Huskers’ third opponent.
“I didn’t think anybody would run the ball well against us very well this year, and they ran it,” Osborne said. “The long pass play was maybe a little bit of good fortune on their part.”
Akron’s second touchdown came on a 69-yard pass early in the fourth quarter.
Nebraska had a week off before its second game, against Central Florida in Lincoln. “I talked to the players a little bit after this game and I told them that last year we took a step backward,” Osborne said.
“We played Michigan State (to open 1996) and didn’t play too badly. I wasn’t very happy with the practices in the open week before Arizona State. I think we got complacent and that wasn’t good. We didn’t improve and that can’t happen now. We need to keep getting better.”
