Nebraska falls just short in upset bid

There's no such thing as a moral victory.

That's what every Nebraska coach and player thought after Nebraska fell to No. 7 Texas Tech 37-31 in overtime.

Several players were speechless. But others said this might be a turning point for a Nebraska program that just lost its third game in a row.

"There's no moral victories because we came here to win," NU senior receiver Todd Peterson said. "I hate talking about last year, but I don't know what happened, but we lost all self confidence. We're getting that back."

As well they should be.

Nebraska came into its game with TTU with everybody (including its own fans) expecting a possible repeat of the 70-10 loss NU suffered to the Red Raiders four years ago.

Instead, NU played one of its most complete games and nearly captured the first monumental win of NU Coach Bo Pelini's career.

"We played a lot better," Pelini said. "That football team we just played (Saturday) is a talented football team. We have a lot of respect for them, and they won the game."

The Huskers out-gained the 2nd-best offense in the country by 50 yards in the game. Red Raiders quarterback Graham Harrell was limited by Nebraska's long, sustained drives that ate up more than two-thirds of the game clock.

The running game played a big factor. After several rough outings, the Huskers were able to punch out 114 yards on 35 attempts to keep the first down markers moving.

Another positive can be aimed towards the play of NU senior quarterback Joe Ganz. Ganz completed 36 passes en route to 349 yards through the air as NU receivers found space in the midst of the Texas Tech secondary.

Although Pelini was proud of the way his team came out and performed, he will not deter from his mindset when it comes to wins and losses.

"We have to play smarter," Pelini said. "We're not about moral victories at Nebraska, and we never will be as long as I'm the head coach. If we start being about moral victories, you need to get a new coach."

Starting the fourth quarter, NU trailed TTU by 14. Nebraska mounted its comeback quickly, scoring on a 13-play drive that pulled NU to within seven. Texas Tech was stuffed on its next possession.

Eight plays and 68 yards later, the Huskers tied TTU - only to see the scoring drive matched by a 10-play scoring drive from the Red Raiders that put them up 31-24 with 2:21 remaining.

That was more than enough time for Nebraska as they moved the ball 79 yards right back on TTU in just 1:52 to tie the game and eventually force an overtime. In overtime, TTU scored, but had the extra point blocked, allowing Nebraska a chance to win the game if they scored a touchdown and the extra point.

Two plays later, Ganz may have made his one of his few mistakes in the game by throwing a pass intended for out of bounds right into the hands of TTU's Jamar Wall.

The game was over, but Nebraska had gotten its point across regardless of the loss: the season is far from over, and NU will be playing like that until the final whistle.

"I thought we were going to win," senior receiver Nate Swift said. "I think we had the momentum going into overtime. We got the blocked extra point, and it was looking good for us, but we just didn't come through."

Nebraska will now be planning to come through next week against an Iowa State team that will be returning from a road game of their own in Waco, Texas against Baylor. The Cyclones and Huskers will meet up for NU's second morning game of the year.

The last morning game NU played was against San Jose State, where they didn't pull away until late for a 35-12 win against the Spartans. The Huskers know they will have to be on their game early when traveling to Ames, Iowa, considering No. 17 Kansas found themselves down 20-0 at halftime in Ames.

A tough loss will always be hard to take for Pelini and the Big Red, but it's a loss that many are confident can be built on.

"It's heartbreaking," Peterson said. "To come that close, there's not a way to describe it. A loss is a loss, and it's not fun whether you lose it in overtime or you (get blown out). There's a lot of guys that are really heartbroken right now."

spencerschubert@dailynebraskan.com