2006 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team

2006 Nebraska Cornhuskers football
Big 12 North Division Champions
Big 12 Championship Game, L 7–21 vs. Oklahoma
Cotton Bowl Classic, L 14–17 vs. Auburn
Conference	Big 12 Conference
	North Division
2006 record	9–5 (6–2 Big 12)
Head coach	Bill Callahan (3rd year)
Offensive coordinator	Jay Norvell (3rd year)
Offensive scheme	West Coast offense
Defensive coordinator	Kevin Cosgrove (3rd year)
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium (Capacity: 81,067)

2006 Big 12 football standings
	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Northern Division
Nebraska x		6	–	2					9	–	5
Missouri		4	–	4					8	–	5
Kansas State		4	–	4					7	–	6
Kansas		3	–	5					6	–	6
Colorado		2	–	6					2	–	10
Iowa State		1	–	7					4	–	8
Southern Division
#11 Oklahoma x$		7	–	1					11	–	3
#13 Texas		6	–	2					10	–	3
Texas A&M		5	–	3					9	–	4
Texas Tech		4	–	4					8	–	5
Oklahoma State		3	–	5					7	–	6
Baylor		3	–	5					4	–	8
Championship: Oklahoma 21, Nebraska 7
$ – BCS representative as conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2006 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team represented the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Bill Callahan and played their home games at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Before the season

While the Huskers lost talented running back Cory Ross and defensive back Daniel Bullocks, they did retain offensive lynchpin Zac Taylor (QB) and talented kicker Jordon Congdon. The team also hoped to play I-back Marlon Lucky (who excelled on kick returns as a freshman) as their starting running back. Terrence Nunn, the top kick-returner in the Big 12 last season, also returned and was intended to be the Huskers' featured receiver.

On defense, the Blackshirts include DE Adam Carriker, among others. The Ruud name returned to Lincoln, with Bo Ruud playing weakside linebacker.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent^#	Rank^#	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 2	2:30 PM	Louisiana Tech*	No. 22	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	FSN	W 49–10	85,181
September 9	12:30 PM	Nicholls State*	No. 21	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE		W 56–7	84,076
September 16	7:00 PM	at No. 4 USC*	No. 19	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum • Los Angeles, CA	ABC	L 10–28	92,000
September 23	6:00 PM	Troy*	No. 24	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	FSN	W 56–0	84,799
September 30	6:00 PM	Kansas	No. 21	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	FSN	W 39–32 ^OT	85,069
October 7	7:00 PM	at Iowa State	No. 22	Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA	ABC	W 28–14	55,338
October 14	7:00 PM	at Kansas State	No. 20	Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium • Manhattan, KS	FSN	W 21–3	50,723
October 21	11:00 AM	No. 5 Texas	No. 16	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE	ABC	L 20–22	85,187
October 28	2:30 PM	at Oklahoma State	No. 20	Boone Pickens Stadium • Stillwater, OK	ABC	L 29–41	40,108
November 4	11:00 AM	No. 25 Missouri		Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE (Rivalry)	ABC	W 34–20	85,197
November 11	2:30 PM	at No. 23 Texas A&M	No. 25	Kyle Field • College Station, TX	ABC	W 28–27	85,336
November 24	2:30 PM	Colorado	No. 22	Memorial Stadium • Lincoln, NE (Rivalry)	ABC	W 37–14	85,800
December 2	7:00 PM	vs. No. 10 Oklahoma	No. 18	Arrowhead Stadium • Kansas City, MO (Big 12 Championship)	ABC	L 7–21	80,031
January 1	10:30 AM	vs. No. 10 Auburn*	No. 22	Cotton Bowl • Dallas, TX (Cotton Bowl Classic)	FOX	L 14–17	66,777
*Non-conference game. Homecoming. ^#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Central Time.

^[1]

Roster and coaching staff

2006 Nebraska Cornhuskers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class OL 65 Austin, GregGreg Austin Sr OL 66 Barrett, CruzCruz Barrett Fr WR 1 Brooks, ChrisChris Brooks So OL 59 Byford, BrettBrett Byford Jr WR 82 Cammack, WesWes Cammack RFr OL 62 Christensen, AndyAndy Christensen So QB 15 Davis, BeauBeau Davis So WR 26 Erickson, DanDan Erickson Jr FB 47 Farino, PaulPaul Farino RFr QB 12 Ganz, JoeJoe Ganz So TE 39 Glassman, DanDan Glassman Fr IB 34 Glenn, CodyCody Glenn So OL 75 Haines, VictoryVictory Haines Jr WR 7 Hardy, FrantzFrantz Hardy Jr WR 9 Henry, WillWill Henry Fr TE 11 Herian, MattMatt Herian Sr OL 67 Hickman, JacobJacob Hickman Fr TE 86 Hill, SeanSean Hill Jr WR 4 Holt, MenelikMenelik Holt Fr OL 61 Huff, MikeMike Huff So IB 32 Jackson, BrandonBrandon Jackson Jr OL 73 Jones, D.J.D.J. Jones Fr QB 5 Keller, SamSam Keller Sr FB 40 Koehler, ColtonColton Koehler RFr RB 36 Lawson, ThomasThomas Lawson So OL 74 Lingenfelter, NewtonNewton Lingenfelter Sr IB 20 Lucky, MarlonMarlon Lucky So OL 50 Mann, KurtKurt Mann Sr TE 44 McNeill, MikeMike McNeill Fr TE 81 Mueller, JoshJosh Mueller Jr OL 76 Murtha, LydonLydon Murtha So OL 77 Nicks, CarlCarl Nicks Jr WR 83 Nunn, TerrenceTerrence Nunn Jr FB 45 Otto, WillWill Otto Sr OL 54 Patrick, ChrisChris Patrick Jr WR 17 Peterson, ToddTodd Peterson So TE 85 Phillips, J.B.J.B. Phillips Jr OL 69 Picou, JordanJordan Picou Jr WR 16 Purify, MauriceMaurice Purify Jr OL 79 Roark, ChadChad Roark Fr FB 48 Sand, AndyAndy Sand Jr OL 70 Slauson, MattMatt Slauson So WR 87 Swift, NateNate Swift So QB 13 Taylor, ZacZac Taylor Sr TE 89 Teafatiller, HunterHunter Teafatiller So FB 41 Todd, DaneDane Todd Sr OL 68 Williams, KeithKeith Williams Fr IB 27 Wilson, KennyKenny Wilson Jr TE 49 Young, DreuDreu Young Fr	Defense Pos. # Name Class S 7 Adams, JordanJordan Adams Jr DL 95 Allen, PierrePierre Allen Fr CB 1 Bowman, ZackaryZackary Bowman Sr LB 34 Bradley, StewartStewart Bradley Sr LB 40 Brandenburgh, LanceLance Brandenburgh Jr DB 21 Brothers, TitusTitus Brothers Jr DE 90 Carriker, AdamAdam Carriker Sr LB 45 Covey, NickNick Covey RFr DL 94 Cryer, BarryBarry Cryer Sr DB 6 Culbert, MajorMajor Culbert Fr DL 54 Dagunduro, OlaOla Dagunduro Sr LB 52 Dillard, PhillipPhillip Dillard So DB 46 Eisenhart, BenBen Eisenhart Jr CB 28 Fluellen, IsaiahIsaiah Fluellen Sr S 30 Green, TierreTierre Green Jr CB 2 Grixby, CortneyCortney Grixby Jr DE 80 Harvey, DavidDavid Harvey RFr DT 96 Johnson, BrandonBrandon Johnson Jr DB 25 Jones, AndreAndre Jones Jr DL 89 Luhrs, KevinKevin Luhrs Jr DE 63 Martin, BenBen Martin Fr LB 13 McKeon, CoreyCorey McKeon Jr DE 44 Moore, JayJay Moore Sr DB 33 O'Hanlon, MattMatt O'Hanlon RFr LB 50 O'Shea, MarkMark O'Shea Sr LB 15 Octavien, SteveSteve Octavien Jr DE 98 Potter, ZachZach Potter So DE 86 Poulosky, AndyAndy Poulosky Jr DE 85 Rice, ThomasThomas Rice Jr FS 24 Rigoni, BrandonBrandon Rigoni Sr DL 55 Roark, CraigCraig Roark RFr LB 51 Ruud, BoBo Ruud Jr S 8 Shanle, AndrewAndrew Shanle Sr LB 88 Sievers, ClaytonClayton Sievers So DE 97 Smith, MikeMike Smith Fr DL 43 Steinkuhler, TyTy Steinkuhler So DL 93 Suh, NdamukongNdamukong Suh So DB 3 Thenarse, RickeyRickey Thenarse Fr DE 99 Turner, BarryBarry Turner So S 4 Watson, AdamAdam Watson Fr DB 22 West, AnthonyAnthony West Fr CB 9 Wilson, BryanBryan Wilson Jr LB 53 Wortman, TylerTyler Wortman So DB 23 Young, CoreyCorey Young Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class LS 56 Baumgartner, JustinJustin Baumgartner Fr LS 52 Benzel, BryanBryan Benzel RFr PK 29 Congdon, JordanJordan Congdon So PK 94 Egger, ZachZach Egger Fr P 19 Kester, TylerTyler Kester Jr LS 55 McBride, NathanNathan McBride RFr LS 82 O'Leary, T.J.T.J. O'Leary So P 91 Such, MichaelMichael Such Fr P 97 Titchener, DanDan Titchener So PK 37 Wesch, JakeJake Wesch So	Head coach Bill Callahan    3rd season    3rd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Benedictine Coordinators/assistant coaches Jay Norvell    3rd season as OC/QB coach    3rd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Iowa Kevin Cosgrove    3rd season as DC/LB coach    3rd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: UW-Oshkosh John Blake    3rd season as DL coach    3rd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Oklahoma Bill Busch    3rd season as ST/S coach    7th year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Nebraska Wesleyan Phil Elmassian    2nd season as CB coach    3rd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: William & Mary Ted Gilmore    2nd season as WR coach    2nd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Wyoming Randy Jordan    3rd season as RB coach    3rd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: North Carolina Dennis Wagner    3rd season as OL coach    3rd year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Utah Shawn Watson    1st season as TE coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Southern Illinois Dave Kennedy    3rd season as S&C coach    10th year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Nebraska Keith Heckendorf    1st season as GA coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: St. Cloud State Jon Osterhout    1st season as GA coach    1st year at Nebraska    Alma mater: Sacramento State Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: January 16, 2011

Game notes

Louisiana Tech

Louisiana Tech at Nebraska [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Louisiana Tech 0 10 0 0 10 • Nebraska 7 14 7 21 49 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 2:30 p.m. CST Game attendance: 85,181 TV announcers (FSN): Bill Land (Play-by-play), Dave Lapham (Color) & Emily Jones (Sideline)

Nicholls State

Nicholls State at Nebraska [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Nicholls State 0 0 0 7 7 • Nebraska 14 14 14 14 56 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 12:30 p.m. CST Game attendance: 84,076

USC

Nebraska at USC [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Nebraska 3 0 0 7 10 • USC 7 7 7 7 28 Location: Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles Game start: 7:00 p.m. CST Game attendance: 92,000 TV announcers (ABC): Brent Musburger (Play-by-play), Bob Davie (Color), Kirk Herbstreit (Color) & Lisa Salters (Sideline)

Troy

Troy at Nebraska [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Troy 0 0 0 0 0 • Nebraska 14 14 14 14 56 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 6:00 p.m. CST Game attendance: 84,799 TV announcers (PPV): Greg Sharpe (Play-by-play), Matt Davison (Color) & Dan McLaughlin (Sideline)

Kansas

Kansas at Nebraska [box score]

1 2 3 4 OT Total Kansas 0 10 9 13 0 32 • Nebraska 17 7 0 8 7 39 Date: September 30, 2006 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 6:00 p.m. CST Game attendance: 85,069 TV announcers (FSN): Joel Meyers (Play-by-play), Dave Lapham (Color) & Jim Knox (Sideline)

Iowa State

Nebraska at Iowa State [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total • Nebraska 7 14 0 7 28 Iowa State 0 7 0 7 14 Date: October 7, 2006 Location: Jack Trice Stadium, Ames, Iowa Game start: 7:00 p.m. CST Game attendance: 55,338 TV announcers (ABC): Dan Fouts (Play-by-play), Tim Brant (Color) & Jack Arute (Sideline)

Kansas State

Nebraska at Kansas State [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total • Nebraska 7 7 7 0 21 Kansas State 0 0 3 0 3 Date: October 14, 2006 Location: Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium, Manhattan, Kansas Game start: 7:00 p.m. CST Game attendance: 50,723 TV announcers (PPV): Dan McLaughlin (Play-by-play), Rich Baldinger (Color) & Brent Stover (Sideline)

Nebraska won their 800th football game with a win over Kansas State on October 14, 2006.^[2] Only four teams have won 800 or more games: Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas, and now Nebraska.^[2]

Texas

Texas at Nebraska [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total • Texas 3 13 0 6 22 Nebraska 7 0 0 13 20 Date: October 21, 2006 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 11:00 a.m. CST Game attendance: 85,187 TV announcers (ABC): Brent Musburger (Play-by-play), Bob Davie (Color) & Lisa Salters (Sideline)

The Cornhuskers entered the game against the 2006 Texas Longhorn football team ranked 16th in both human polls and 19th in the computer rankings, for a total BCS ranking of 17th.^[3] Coming into the game, Texas was the third-winningest program in college football, with 800 wins.^[2] Nebraska was fourth, having won their 800th game the previous weekend vs Kansas State.^[2] Only four teams have won 800 or more games: Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas, and now Nebraska.^[2] The game marked the first time for Texas to face an 800-win program since Texas broke through the 800-win barrier. The 2006 football season also marked the first time for four 800-win programs to face off against each other, with Notre Dame and Michigan having played each other earlier in the season.

In terms of winning percentage, Texas ranked third at 71.52% while Nebraska ranked seventh at 70.57%.^[2] The Cornhuskers claimed five national championships on top of Texas' four. The environment at Lincoln has been considered one of the most hostile for an opposing team, due in part to the noise of the crowd.

Austin American-Statesman columnist Kirk Bohls predicted that Nebraska might pull off an upset against the Longhorns. Among the reasons he gave were that "Texas isn't a great running team (only a good one).." that "Texas' pass defense is very suspect..." and that Longhorn kicker Greg Johnson had only kicked one field goal all year.^[4] Bohls also speculated that Nebraska might have more motivation because "Texas has had Nebraska's number for a while, ... [Texas] knocked off the Huskers in the inaugural Big 12 football championship game at St. Louis to deprive Nebraska of a shot at another national title in 1996."^[4] In 1998, freshman quarterback Major Applewhite led the Longhorns to a victory over the seventh-ranked Cornhuskers, snapping their 47-home game winning streak.^[4][5] They also ended the Cornhuskers new streak at 26 in 2002.^[6] Coming into the 2006 game, Texas was the only team in the Big Twelve Conference with a winning record vs. Nebraska, with a 6–4 lead.^[2] Texas leads the series 5–1 since the formation of the Big 12, and they are 4–1 against Nebraska since Mack Brown came to Texas.^[2]

Prior to the game, the betting line in Las Vegas casinos was Texas by 5 ½ points.^[7] The game set a new stadium attendance record crowd of 85,187, the 280th consecutive sell-out at Nebraska.^[8][9] The game featured 36-degree temperatures, winds out of the north at 20 miles per hour, rain, and snow flurries.^[8]

Texas got the ball to start the game and Quan Cosby returned the kick-off to within the Nebraska 10 yard line. The Longhorns were unable to score a touchdown and had to settle for a field goal. Nebraska scored a first-quarter touchdown. Texas scored 14 points in the second quarter, but kicker Greg Johnson had one of the two extra points blocked, so the score at half-time had Texas ahead 16 to 7. Johnson also missed two field goals during the game. Neither team scored in the third quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Nebraska took a 20–19 lead with 4 minutes 54 seconds left in the game. After Texas was forced to punt, Nebraska only had to run out the clock to ensure victory. Nebraska ran a passing play on third down and NU receiver Terrence Nunn picked up the first down but fumbled the ball. The fumble was recovered by Texas safety Marcus Griffin at the Nebraska 44 yard-line with 2:17 left. Colt McCoy led the Longhorns through the snow flurries to the Nebraska 5. With less than a minute remaining, and the Horns facing fourth down, Texas needed a field goal to win.

Johnson had already missed three kicks (two field goals and an extra point) and he told Coach Brown late in the game that his leg was tightening up. Brown looked to walk-on sophomore Ryan Bailey to give the Longhorns the win. Bailey had made only 10 kicks as a high-school kicker from Anderson High School in Austin, Texas and he had never attempted a kick for the Longhorns. The trip at Nebraska was only the second time he had ever been included in the travel roster, which is limited to 64 players. Before the kick, Brown told him "You're the luckiest guy in the world. You've got a chance to be Dusty Mangum on your first kick." Mangum had scored the game-winning field goal as time expired to lift the Longhorns to victory over the Michigan Wolverines in the 2005 Rose Bowl.

Before Bailey could attempt the kick, Nebraska's coach attempted to "ice the kicker" by using his coach's challenge to have the officials review the preceding third-down play. The play was reviewed and allowed to stand as an incomplete pass, as called on the field. Brown gave Bailey a swat on the helmet and Bailey jogged onto the field and calmly made the kick. Nebraska had time for two shots at the end-zone but both passes were broken up, and Texas won the game by 2 points, 22–20.^[10]

The win was Texas' 16th straight road game victory, extending a school record, and 19th consecutive win in conference play.^[10] The latter streak is the second longest in the country, following the conference game winning steak of USC. The game was the first time for Colt McCoy to lead the Longhorns to a come-from-behind victory in the fourth quarter.

The Longhorns had several injuries during the game. Defensive starters Derek Lokey and Robert Killebrew both had to leave the game due to leg injuries.^[9] Cornerback Tarell Brown was seen limping badly after the game and kicker-punter Greg Johnson aggravated a previous injury on his fourth-quarter field goal.^[9]

Former Longhorn quarterback Vince Young was on the sidelines for the first time since going to the NFL and he went to the Longhorn locker room afterwards to congratulate the team on the win.^[9] Representatives from the Fiesta Bowl, the game that normally takes the Big 12 Conference champion, were also on hand.^[11]

There had been media speculation that Nebraska and Texas would win their respective conference divisions to play again in the Big 12 Conference Championship. This possibility was echoed in post-game interviews as both teams voiced respect for the other. Texas coach Mack Brown said, "Nebraska is back, For them to keep coming back and back and back – they made big plays throughout the game to put themselves in a position to win."^[11] He continued, "As soon as they back away from it, they'll see that their program is back on track, one of the best in the country. And they'll be excited about a chance to go play somebody in (the Big 12 championship game). Hopefully, if we can keep playing, it might be us."^[11] Nebraska cornerback Cortney Grixby said of Texas, "They kept their composure. That's the mark of a champion. And that's what they are."^[12]

Oklahoma State

Nebraska at Oklahoma State [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Nebraska 10 13 0 6 29 • Oklahoma State 0 20 0 21 41 Date: October 28, 2006 Location: Boone Pickens Stadium, Stillwater, Oklahoma Game start: 2:30 p.m. CST Game attendance: 40,108 TV announcers (ABC): Dave Barnett (Play-by-play), Ray Bentley (Color) & Vince Welch (Sideline)

Missouri

Missouri at Nebraska [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Missouri 0 6 7 7 20 • Nebraska 10 17 0 7 34 Date: November 4, 2006 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 11:00 a.m. CST Game attendance: 85,197 TV announcers (ABC): Gary Thorne (Play-by-play), Andre Ware (Color) & Dave Lamont (Sideline)

Texas A&M

Nebraska at Texas A&M [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total • Nebraska 7 14 0 7 28 Texas A&M 7 3 3 14 27 Date: November 11, 2006 Location: Kyle Field, College Station, Texas Game start: 2:30 p.m. CST Game attendance: 85,336 TV announcers (ABC): Eric Collins (Play-by-play), David Norrie (Color) & Stacey Dales (Sideline)

Colorado

Colorado at Nebraska [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Colorado 7 0 7 0 14 • Nebraska 7 7 7 16 37 Date: November 24, 2006 Location: Memorial Stadium, Lincoln, Nebraska Game start: 2:30 p.m. CST Game attendance: 85,800 TV announcers (ABC): Mark Jones (Play-by-play), David Norrie (Color) & Stacey Dales (Sideline)

Oklahoma

Nebraska vs Oklahoma [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total Nebraska 0 7 0 0 7 • Oklahoma 14 0 7 0 21 Date: December 2, 2006 Location: Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Game start: 7:00 p.m. CST Game attendance: 80,031 TV announcers (ABC): Mike Patrick (Play-by-play), Todd Blackledge (Color) & Holly Rowe (Sideline)

Called "The Battle of the Big Reds",^[13][14] the rivalry between the University of Oklahoma and Nebraska University was one of the most heated contests of the old Big Eight Conference. Played every Thanksgiving weekend for 71 years (from 1927 to 1998), this contest produced many memorable games; including the Game of the Century in 1971. The rivalry has cooled somewhat since the creation of the Big 12 as Bill Callahan's Nebraska Cornhuskers and Stoops's Oklahoma Sooners now split a home-and-home two of every four years.

This is only the fourth time that the teams have met at a neutral site. The last time was the 1979 Orange Bowl where the Sooners won 31–24. Oklahoma holds the lead in the all-time series 42 to 37 with 3 ties and has never lost to Nebraska on neutral turf (one 7–7 tie in 1919 in Omaha). Bob Stoops is 3–1 against Nebraska and has a two-game winning streak; Callahan has never beaten Oklahoma.

This is the first time the two teams have met in the Big 12 Championship Game to determine the Big 12 Conference champion. Nebraska played in the championship game three of the first four years, winning in 1997 and '99, but had not made it back since. Oklahoma missed the first four games but represented the south four of the next six years, topping the conference in 2000, '02, and '04. Oklahoma has both the most appearances in the championship game (5) and conference titles (3) of any team in the Big 12.^[15][16]

Nebraska received the ball to start the game but Maurice Purify fumbled on the first play from scrimmage. Oklahoma recovered the ball at the Nebraska 2 and scored a touchdown to take the lead 7–0 with 48 seconds expired off the clock. It was the fastest score in Big 12 Championship Game history.^[17] With 5:35 left in the first quarter, Oklahoma executed a touchdown pass to Malcolm Kelly to go up 14–0.

With 4:37 left in the first half, Nebraska's Zac Taylor threw a touchdown pass and the extra point shaved Oklahoma's lead to 14–7, which was still the score as the game went to half-time.

At the start of the half, Oklahoma started with the ball but were unable to advance, as Nebraska recorded their first quarterback sack of the game and caused Oklahoma to go three-and-out and punt. Later in the third quarter, Oklahoma used 11 plays, 3 minutes and 21 seconds, to go 99 yards and score a touchdown with 1:25 left in the third quarter.

With 8:53 left in the game, Nebraska threw what was almost a touchdown pass, but Nick Harris made a diving catch to intercept the ball in the end-zone for a touchback. Neither team scored in the fourth quarter, so Oklahoma won the game 21–7. It was their fourth Big 12 Conference football championship, which is the most for any team in the conference (Nebraska and Texas each have two).

Auburn (Cotton Bowl Classic)

Nebraska vs Auburn [box score]

1 2 3 4 Total • Auburn 7 7 3 0 17 Nebraska 7 7 0 0 14 Date: January 1, 2007 Location: Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Texas Game start: 10:30 a.m. CST Game attendance: 66,777 TV announcers (FOX): Pat Summerall (Play-by-play), Brian Baldinger (Color) & Krista Voda (Sideline)

If Nebraska had won the Big 12 Conference Championship Game, they would have gone to the Fiesta Bowl. Since they lost, they went to the Cotton Bowl Classic; the Big 12 Conference announced before the Championship Game that the loser would receive a Cotton Bowl Classic invitation. The Cotton Bowl Classic was played on New Year's Day.

Rankings

Ranking Movement

Poll	Pre	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Final
AP	20	21	19	23	21	22	21	17	20	NR	NR	24	23	19	22	NR
Coaches	22	21	19	24	21	22	20	16	20	NR	25	22	19	18	22	NR
Harris	Not released				21	21	19	16	20	NR	25	23	22	20	22	N/A
BCS	Not released							17	22	NR	NR	23	22	20	23	N/A

After the season

After the acrimonious firing of Frank Solich in 2003 for what Nebraska Athletic Director Steve Pederson perceived as a failure to recruit top players, Nebraska hired Callahan, who promptly introduced the West Coast offense, a marked shift from Nebraska's traditional I-formation option attack. The offense took time to register with the players as the Huskers struggled to adapt, posting a 5–6 season in 2004, Nebraska's first losing season in over 40 years. However, in 2005 the Huskers started fast, going 4–0 to start the season before being defeated at home by Texas Tech 34–31. After a rebound win over a weak Baylor squad, the next few games were some that Huskers fans would want to forget: a 41–24 loss away to Missouri, a home loss to Oklahoma, and a crushing road defeat at Kansas, which had not defeated Nebraska since 1968. However, the season ended on a higher note, as the Huskers dominated the Colorado 30–3 in Boulder.

Awards

^[18]

Award	Name(s)
Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year	Zac Taylor
Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year	Adam Carriker
All-Big 12 1st team	Zac Taylor, Adam Carriker, Dane Todd, Bo Ruud, Brandon Jackson
All-Big 12 2nd team	Maurice Purify, Jay Moore, Matt Slauson, Marlon Lucky
All-Big 12 honorable mention	Stewart Bradley, Brett Byford, Cortney Grixby, Corey McKeon, Andrew Shanle, Kurt Mann, Greg Austin, Tierre Green
All-Big 12 Freshman 1st team	Ndamukong Suh

NFL and pro players

The following Nebraska players who participated in the 2006 season later moved on to the next level and joined a professional or semi-pro team as draftees or free agents.^[19]

Name	Team
Zackary Bowman	Chicago Bears
Stewart Bradley	Philadelphia Eagles
Adam Carriker	St. Louis Rams
Joe Ganz	Washington Redskins
Cody Glenn	Washington Redskins
Cortney Grixby	Carolina Panthers
Brandon Jackson	Green Bay Packers
D.J. Jones	Omaha Nighthawks
Marlon Lucky	Cincinnati Bengals
Jay Moore	San Francisco 49ers
Lydon Murtha	Detroit Lions
Carl Nicks	New Orleans Saints
Terrence Nunn	New England Patriots
Steve Octavien	Kansas City Chiefs
Chris Patrick	New York Giants
Todd Peterson	Jacksonville Jaguars
Zach Potter	New York Jets
Andy Poulosky	Sioux City Bandits
Maurice Purify	Cincinnati Bengals
Bo Ruud	New England Patriots
Andrew Shanle	Chicago Bears
Matt Slauson	New York Jets
Mike Smith	Omaha Nighthawks
Ty Steinkuhler	New York Jets
Nate Swift	Denver Broncos
Zac Taylor	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Keith Williams	Pittsburgh Steelers
Kenny Wilson	Sioux City Bandits

References

1. "Football – 2006 Schedule/Results". University of Nebraska-Lincoln Department of Athletics. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
2. "Texas Longhorn Game Notes" (PDF). Mack Brown Texas Football. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 28, 2006. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
3. "BCS Standings, October 15, 2006". ESPN. October 15, 2006. Archived from the original on November 2, 2006. Retrieved October 16, 2006.
4. "Texas is Ripe for an Upset – Huskers Are Out for Some Payback Today". Austin American-Statesman. October 21, 2006. Archived from the original on November 7, 2006. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
5. Halliburton, Suzanne (October 20, 2006). "Can McCoy Duplicate What Applewhite Did Against Nebraska". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
6. Killian, Ryan (October 20, 2006). "Longhorns Ride Into Cornfields". The Daily Texan. University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
7. "NCAA sports line". October 20, 2006. Archived from the original on October 16, 2006. Retrieved October 20, 2006.
8. "Texas Pulls Out Win Over Nebraska – First-Ever Kick by Ryan Bailey Puts Texas on top 22–20". Austin American-Statesman. October 21, 2006. Archived from the original on November 9, 2006. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
9. "Notebook – Vince Sighting, Injury Report, Lincoln Success Rate". Austin American-Statesman. October 22, 2006. Retrieved October 22, 2006.
10. "Texas Longhorns at Nebraska Cornhuskers". ESPN. Associated Press. October 21, 2006. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
11. Sherman, Mitch (October 22, 2006). "Turning Point Slips Through NU's Fingers". Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
12. Kaipust, Rich (October 21, 2006). "Huskers Let 'Horns Off the Hook". Omaha World-Herald]]. Retrieved October 21, 2006.
13. Waganer, Jason (October 21, 2001). "Forget Baylor, Let's Focus on the Huskers!". OklahomaSports.com. Archived from the original on October 28, 2006. Retrieved December 2, 2006.
14. "Big Red Review: Another Classic Battle". Nebraska Football. October 29, 2005. Retrieved December 2, 2006.
15. "Nebraska 2006 Football" (PDF). University of Nebraska. Retrieved December 1, 2006.
16. "Game 13 – Dr. Pepper Big 12 Championship – Dec 2, 2006" (PDF). University of Oklahoma. Retrieved December 1, 2006.
17. "Big 12 Championship Game". ABC. December 2, 2006.
18. "2006 Husker Honors". Archived from the original on May 16, 2009. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
19. "All Time NFL Huskers". Archived from the original on May 16, 2009. Retrieved May 13, 2009.