Fueled by three touchdowns in a 3:27 second span of time, and 27 points in the 4th quarter the Nebraska Cornhuskers (AP 21) proved that they could beat a ranked opponent in in a driving rain, on the road.
Nebraska had the dubious distinction of losing 14 straight games on the road against ranked opponents. Seeking to prove themselves after a devastating loss to Virginia Tech two weeks ago, the Huskers needed to beat the Tigers (AP 24) to take control of the Big 12 North division. The winner of this game has gone on to win the north title the last three years.
For Husker fans, it started out much like their nightmare in Blacksburg with heavy rain and sloppy running and a non-existent passing game. More than 9 inches of rain that fell over the Columbia area Thursday. Conditions were so bad that hand signals had to be used by the officials due to a lack of power on the Tiger's scoreboard.
Neither team managed much in the way of offense in the first quarter. Quarterback stats were pretty bad until late in the 4th quarter when Zack Lee managed to find his receivers on short fields or missed tackles for longer scores.
Lee had arguably the better night, completing 14 of 32 passes for 159 yards and three TDs. Tiger's QB Blaine Gabbert clearly had the harder time of it, completing just 17 passes out of 42 attempts for 142 yards and 2 picks.
Rushing was also difficult, with Helu pacing the Husker run attack with 88 yards on 18 attempts. His longest run of 41 yards came late in the 4th quarter. Rex Burkhead had 34 yards on 5 attempts with a long of 14 yards.
Derrick Washington paced the Tigers with 81 yards on 20 rush attempts. Dejon Gomes became Gabbert's worst nightmare picking both interceptions with significant returns after catch.
Early in the game, the Tigers looked like they were the team to beat, utilizing better special teams play. The first score of the game came on a safety caused when Husker Punter Alex Henerey miss handled the snap and was forced to get rid of the ball out of the endzone as the Tigers Defense pressed in.
The Tigers scored on a 1 yard quarterback keeper that capped a 72 yard, 7 play drive sprung on a 38 yard Gabbert pass to Jared Perry down to the Nebraska 6 yard line.
Mizzuo seemed to have the upper hand into the 4th quarter. Their wheels were about to come off the wagon in stunning fashion as the Husker Defense finally began to come to life.
After giving the Tiger offense a second chance on a penalty marred 4th and 6, the Husker defense stood firm and forced a turn over on downs after 4 straight failed pass attempts by Missouri. This would begin what would be the end for the Tigers as Nebraska went on a tear, scoring three touchdowns in a 3:27 period of time. Taking advantage of a couple short field situations and a huge break out run, the Huskers scored on drives of 10, 18 and 69 yards, including a TD run by Helu and 2 TD passes by Lee. Niles Paul snagged a ball for 56 yards and 13 yards making him the most deadly target of Lee for the evening.
Despite being down by a point, Gabbert had his Tiger offense driving in the 4th quarter. Assisted by a pass interference on the Huskers that gave life on a 4th and 6 desperation series. The Tigers squandered that opportunity and after the Huskers scored for the 3rd time in 3:27 seconds, the life seemed to be squeezed out of the Tiger offense.
The explosive offensive play may have broken the spirit of the Tigers whose tackling now looked lackluster at best in the soggy rain. On Consecutive series, NU converts third and short, squeezing the what remainin life may have been in the Tiger players, fans and the clock.
With Helu's final push into the end zone, the huskers clearly are feeling the monkey coming off their back. Their efforts and determination to find another organ grinder have allowed a questionable team a quality win that should help drive them through the heart of their conference play. They are now in the driver's seat in the Big 12 north and Missouri now must regroup and wait for Nebraska to stumble.
From the looks of things, Nebraska's monkey has a new address ... in Columbia, Mo.
Mike Rowland
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