After two weeks of close games against major college competition, Troy could not handle anything No. 21 Nebraska threw at it Saturday night.
In front of 84,799 fans - the second largest crowd Troy has played in front of - the Trojans struggled offensively, defensively and on special teams, being shutout for the first time since its loss to Nebraska in 2003.
The 56-0 shutout was the worst loss the Trojans' have seen since a 61-0 defeat by Marion Military Institute in 1970.
"(Nebraska was the) best football team we've faced in a long time," Troy Coach Larry Blakeney said. "Their players were prepared and ready and big and fast. I don't know what they call that offense, if it's West Coast or East Coast or South Coast or whatever, but it was very well-designed, and it gave us more than we can handle."
Giving up a total of 597 offensive yards to the Huskers - the most since Middle Tennessee gained 641 against the Trojans in 2001 - Blakeney said the problem was the Trojans' inability to tackle.
With plenty of large holes to run through, NU racked up huge yards, including a 51-run by sophomore Marlon Lucky that was the longest run against the Trojans this season.
Nebraska's pass attack also forced the Trojans' secondary to fits as NU senior quarterback Zac Taylor was 14 for 17 on the pass for 281 yards, including a 67-yard pass to junior wide receiver Terrence Nunn.
Troy strong safety Brannon Condren said the Huskers had the best offense Troy has seen so far this season. Though he earned a season-high 13 tackles, Condren said NU was more prepared than both No. 19 Florida State and No. 24 Georgia Tech, who beat the Trojans 24-17 and 35-20, respectively.
"They are a lot better than Florida State and Georgia Tech," Condren said. "They pretty much just ran it down to the posts. For some reason we just did nothing about it. They had a great game plan for us. They didn't take us lightly like Florida State and Georgia Tech did. They came out and put it on us, so I have to give them credit."
Offensively, the Trojans amassed only 140 yards, struggling to make third-down conversions with only one on 11 tries. They also didn't see as much time with the ball - only 23 minutes of possession time compared with NU's 36 minutes.
Much of the Trojans' lack of offense came because of Nebraska's strong four up front, Blakeney said. With not much time in the pocket, Troy quarterback Omar Haugabook struggled with the pass, going 12 for 21.
While Florida State had a more athletic defense, wide receiver Gary Banks said the Trojans couldn't handle Nebraska's size and physicality.
"Nebraska is definitely the biggest and the strongest that we've faced all the way across the board," Banks said. "From the D-tackles to the D-ends, they definitely were the biggest and the strongest. I think it kind of wore on us as the game went on."
Penalties and lack of mental focus on the Trojans' part also played a huge part in the loss. But for the most part, Blakeney was convinced Troy lost not because of their mistakes, but because Nebraska was a superior team in every sense.
From size to execution, the Huskers were just far too much a football team for the Trojans' to handle.
"In my opinion, they'll move up in my poll," Blakeney said. "I don't know about anybody else's, but they'll move up in my poll after seeing what they do on film, seeing them not quite be able to get it done against USC and then what they did tonight."
